Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has visited the birthplace of the country's most infamous drug trafficker, Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, calling for peace and reconciliation days after a US jury convicted the kingpin.
Speaking to a crowd in Badiraguato, a mountainous municipality in the northwestern state of Sinaloa long associated with cartels, Lopez Obrador said people must not be "stigmatised."
"(The people of) Badiraguato are good people, they are hardworking people," he told a cheering crowd in a public square. "We must seek reconciliation, we must find peace."
Mexican drug lord Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman, after being recaptured in 2014 and presented by the authorities in Mexico City, Mexico Source: EFE
Though warring gang factions have inflicted periodic bloodshed on the municipality, some villagers speak fondly of the largesse of their native son, who was born in the hamlet of La Tuna and whose Sinaloa cartel provided work for marijuana and opium poppy growers.
With a population of 32,000, Badiraguato is one of the poorest municipalities in the state of Sinaloa and the country, according to Mexican statistics agency Inegi.
Lopez Obrador, who has spoken of the need to fight poverty across Mexico, announced a development plan for Badiraguato that included a new highway, a public university and a program to plant trees.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador visited the notorious drug lord in prison. Source: AAP Image/AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell
"Until now, I've never seen a president come here," said Javier de la Rocha, a 41-year-old farmer.
El Chapo is not the only drug lord who calls it home - Rafael Caro Quintero and Ernesto Fonseca Carrillo, both former leaders of the Guadalajara cartel, were also born nearby.
In a district where 70 per cent of residents live below the poverty line, the capos emerged as unlikely benefactors, building roads and buildings, locals say.
Authorities escort Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, center, from a plane to a waiting caravan of SUVs at Long Island MacArthur Airport. Source: AAP
"Mr. Guzman helped the town a lot. Now that he is not here, let's hope the state responds," said Jose Carrillo, a 61-year-old day labourer, while eating at a chicken restaurant named after El Chapo.
Several residents said they were cautiously optimistic about Lopez Obrador's plans and eager to work on the projects.
