Wow. I certainly wish them all the best, and hope their need to arm and band together is soon no longer necessary.
Yeah, the vigilantes are just great...
It’s not hard to see why the authorities are trying to reign the militias in, as they’ve become a new, distinct but loose-knit faction in the drug war, spread across at least 13 of Mexico’s 31 states and heavily concentrated in the country’s rural south and southwestern regions. They’ve expanded rapidly in recent months — the vigilantes claim it’s out of necessity owing to the threat from the drug cartels — with UPOEG reportedly declaring plans to move against the cartels operating in the resort city of Acapulco Local cops, meanwhile, have been accused by the UPOEG of being corrupt and slow to respond.More practically, UPOEG and militias like them function as volunteer cops, and armed with machetes, hunting rifles and shotguns instead of service pistols.
Their job: chasing out drug traffickers, and handing captured gangsters over to the authorities — if they hand them over. The militias are also known for dispensing a sort of street justice, with their own jails, courts and allegations of executions, beatings and torture of alleged criminals.
It wasn’t too long ago when the vigilantes were more likely to seize towns than agree to stay local. After a UPOEG commander was killed in late March, more than 1,500 vigilantes assembled around the highway town of Tierra Colorado, between Mexico City and Acapulco. The fighters reportedly set up checkpoints around the town and arrested 12 police officers, including the town’s former police commander, who was later freed. They also shot a tourist who didn’t stop at one of their checkpoints.
Bad as that sounds, it’s fairly tame compared to what’s happened elsewhere.
In February, Mexican troops raided jail used by another militia in the state of Michoacan, arresting 30 militiamen and freeing six police officers who were to be put on a “public trial,” according to Proceso. The militia retaliated by capturing 47 soldiers, who were later freed after the government agreed to appoint public defenders for the militamen.
This doesn't exactly fit here, but it's at least closely related:
The War on Drugs Is Over. Drugs Won.
The war on drugs could not have been a bigger failure. To sum up their most important findings, the average purity of heroin and cocaine have increased, respectively, 60 percent and 11 percent between 1990 and 2007. Cannabis purity is up a whopping 161 percent over that same time. Not only are drugs way purer than ever, they're also way, way cheaper. Coke is on an 80 percent discount from 1990, heroin 81 percent, cannabis 86 percent. After a trillion dollars spent on the drug war, now is the greatest time in history to get high.
I knew it! Malor is really a plant here to do advertising and sales!
This doesn't exactly fit here, but it's at least closely related:
The War on Drugs Is Over. Drugs Won.
The war on drugs could not have been a bigger failure. To sum up their most important findings, the average purity of heroin and cocaine have increased, respectively, 60 percent and 11 percent between 1990 and 2007. Cannabis purity is up a whopping 161 percent over that same time. Not only are drugs way purer than ever, they're also way, way cheaper. Coke is on an 80 percent discount from 1990, heroin 81 percent, cannabis 86 percent. After a trillion dollars spent on the drug war, now is the greatest time in history to get high.
Drugs haven't won! We've just pulled them into a false sense of security! It's time for a troop surge!
Thanks for bringing this event to my attention Mex.
I'm sorry to hear this continues to happen with such regularity.
Does it feel like there's been any progress yet?
So they re-captured "El Chapo" Guzman this week, wonder if he'll help spill the beans on the Venezuelan "Cartel de los Soles".
Things like this bother and worry me.
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