Land reform and violence: Evidence from Mexico

•We exploit the 1992 Mexican counter reform to document the connection between land reform and violent crime.•The land reform significantly increases the number of murders.•Clearly specified land rights reduce gains from violence. We document the connection between land reform and violent crime in M...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of economic behavior & organization 2016-11, Vol.131, p.106-113
Main Authors: Murphy, Tommy E., Rossi, Martín A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agrarian reform
Land reform
Mexico
Municipalities
Murders
Property rights
Studies
Violence
Violent crime
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Summary:•We exploit the 1992 Mexican counter reform to document the connection between land reform and violent crime.•The land reform significantly increases the number of murders.•Clearly specified land rights reduce gains from violence. We document the connection between land reform and violent crime in Mexico using the counter-reform carried out in 1992 that liberalised the ejido sector. Using data at municipality level, we exploit the fact that municipalities have different exposure to the reform. We report a significant impact of the land reform on the number of murders: in those municipalities with a higher proportion of social land, and therefore more exposed to the land reform, the number of murders decreased more than in those municipalities less exposed to the land reform. Our results suggest that clearly specified and consistently enforced land rights reduce gains from violence, leading therefore to lower levels of violence, as measured by the number of murders.
ISSN:0167-2681
1879-1751
DOI:10.1016/j.jebo.2016.08.013