Criminal Organizations and Illicit Trafficking in Guatemala's Border Communities (original) (raw)
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Mexican cartels Influence in Central America
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Economic Development Strategies and the Evolution of Violence in Latin America., 2012
This chapter reviews the incidence of violence and inter-group conflict in three countries in Central America: Guatemala, El Salvador, and Costa Rica, to develop a typology of violence and its links with social and economic policies. The root causes of violence in Central America have always been traced to poverty and inequality, which in turn are perceived to be the root cause of the political violence experimented by the region during the 1980’s. El Salvador has made the most concerted effort to address gang violence. Aside from creating an Observatory of Violence, to record and disseminate information about violent crime in the Central American Region, El Salvador has invested human and monetary resources in studying the root causes of violent crime and ways to stop it. So far, there is a broad consensus in El Salvador about the causes of violent crime in the country: a. Violent crime is a side effect of the civil war. After the cease fire the programs designed to incorporate soldiers and combatants to civilian life were incomplete or inadequate; b. Weakness in the judicial system. The level of impunity is high, leading to a mistrust of the justice system by the population. As a result, crimes are not reported, and victims are afraid of retaliation by their victimizers; c. The erosion of values, where violent force is considered a legitimate avenue for redress, especially among those affected by forced migration, the disintegration of their families, and the lack of opportunities for work among the youth; d. The expansion of organized crime, drug traffic and other activities that use gang members as day laborers; e. The easy availability of firearms, which promotes the private settling of scores outside of the law. In Guatemala police repression and activities by paramilitary groups have been more common. The current approach is for citizens to defend themselves and for the government to rely on police action to combat crime. There is little effort to address any of the root causes of youth alienation that leads them into gang membership. In Costa Rica, a consensus has been built around prevention, with the government implementing a multifaceted plan in which several line ministries and other institutions work jointly to prevent drug abuse, sexual violence, street crime, and to reinforce mental health.
Transnational organized crime is a pressing global security issue. Mexico is currently embroiled in a protracted drug war. Mexican drug cartels and allied gangs (actually poly-crime organizations) are currently challenging states and sub-state polities (in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and beyond) to capitalize on lucrative illicit global economic markets. As a consequence of the exploitation of these global economic flows, the cartels are waging war on each other and state institutions to gain control of the illicit economy. Essentially, they are waging a ‘criminal insurgency’ against the current configuration of states. As such, they are becoming political, as well as economic actors. This presentation examines the dynamics of this controversial proposition. The control of territorial space—ranging from ‘failed communities’ to ‘failed regions’—will be examined. The presentation will examine the exploitation of weak governance and areas (known as ‘lawless zones,’ ‘ungoverned spaces,’ ‘other governed spaces,’ or ‘zones of impunity’) where state challengers have created parallel or dual sovereignty, or ‘criminal enclaves’ in a neo-feudal political arrangement. The use of instrumental violence, corruption, information operations (including attacks on journalists), street taxation, and provision of social goods in a utilitarian fashion will be discussed. Finally, the dynamics of the transition of cartels and gangs into ‘accidental guerrillas’ and ‘social bandits’ will be explored through the lens of ‘third generation gang’ theory and ‘power-counter power’ relationships. This presentation will serve as a starting point for assessing the threat to security from transnational organized crime through lessons from the Mexican cartels.