Mexico's troublesome policías comunitarias will prompt some to argue failed state theories

MGR News Analysis -
"Autodefensas," on the march in rural Mexico

*Jan. 14, 2014 - Michoacán security accord more of the same old song*
Guadalajara -
A political science professor, especially one specializing in comparative governments, would explain to a classroom of undergraduates that one of the classic symptoms of a failed state is the loss of monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force within its territorial boundaries. Governments at all levels - federal, state and local - enjoy by their very existence the exclusive right to conduct policing operations to protect the citizenry. When they fail to do so, or begin to share that monopoly with third parties, circumstances may suggest internal collapse. In recent decades bona fide examples of failed states have been limited to developing continents, particularly Africa. Somalia is a classic illustration.

Mexico is not Somalia, politically or otherwise, but failed state theories often are the subject of news commentary here, such as this one published Mar. 25. And the rapid rise of policías comunitarias, or citizen police forces, in the 130 days since president Enrique Peña Nieto took office on Dec. 1 hasn't helped those in his government who would otherwise dismiss the contention with a wave of the hand.

Local militias first took shape in Michoacán state in March, one of the most deadly of Mexico's 32 entities and one where outlaw forces have proven all but immune to government efforts at subjugation since federal troops marched in on Dec. 11, 2006. MGR wrote about citizen police forces after several dozen members were arrested there six weeks ago. EPN drug war czar says no to Mexican militias.

To be sure, some argue that in the face of rampant drug war violence, especially incipient rural violence, citizens have been left with no alternative but to defend themselves. Even Mexico's powerful Roman Catholic Church - which is supposed to keep its nose out of politics - has suggested so.

In a lead April 7 editorial entitled Desarme mundial, ¿y México?, published in Desde la Fe, a weekly magazine of the Archdiocese of Mexico City, the Church wrote:

"Sabemos que los delincuentes están mejor equipados que las policías municipales y estatales y, en muchos casos, que la Policía Federal, por lo que ha sido necesaria la intervención de las Fuerzas Armadas. En los primeros cuatro meses del nuevo gobierno la escalada de violencia criminal no ha disminuido, lo único nuevo es el silencio oficial sobre el tema -

"We know that criminals are better equipped than state and local police - in many cases better than the Federal Police - as a result of which intervention by the armed forces has been necessary. In the first four months of the new [PRI] government the level of violence hasn't diminished. The only thing new is the official silence about the matter."

Referring to that editorial several days ago, a Michoacán bishop said, "In my state we feel authorities in some respects are simply overwhelmed." That prompted the archbishop of Guadalajara, Cardinal Francisco Robles Ortega, to weigh in on the topic. "I want to have confidence in our authorities, and to see results in the fight against violence. It's critical for the life of our society and for the progress of our country. But there can't be progress without peace, without justice and above all without an end to crime which goes unpunished. At the heart of the problem is crime unredressed."

Those comments, coming from the men who are, respectively, the vice president and president of the Mexican Conference of Bishops, are powerful support for believers in community self-policing. But not surprisingly, the president of Mexico and most state governors see the issue very differently.

In Japan earlier this week, Enrique Peña Nieto noted that citizen militias are "outside of the legal boundaries," and said his government "will have to deal with them." But he dismissed the idea that they are a sign of a failed state or impending social collapse. The PRI president promised that his administration will act "with the law in its hand" as it insists on absolute sovereignty in matters of local law enforcement.

Peña Nieto also referred to the alliance of political convenience forged in recent days between striking teachers in several southern states and community police forces protecting them (Teachers in three states form picket lines). While noting that Mexico's constitution guarantees the freedom of peaceful protest, he said his government will not tolerate violence or acts which are inherently disruptive, such as school teachers' efforts to shut down the famed Autopista del Sol, a main highway running through Guerrero state.

There's no doubt that the autdefensas have become extremely emboldened in recent days, showing no fear of direct confrontation with the government. Earlier this week a spokesperson for the regional Autoridades Comunitarias de Guerrero (CRAC), a community policing group, demanded that state and federal authorities begin negotiating with protesting teachers, "or you'll regret it if you don't." That in turn prompted beleaguered Guerrero governor Ángel Aguirre Rivero to tell militia leaders, "You're not going to bring us to our knees." His revealing choice of words will leave some in officialdom uneasy.

The dissident teachers maintain that they only want their voices heard, while CRAC and organizations of a similar bent insist that they're merely trying to protect fellow citizens from oppressive government police forces. But it seems likely that each constituency hopes to increase its clout by marching with the ranks of the other. That's why politics, it is said, make strange bedfellows.

Jan. 29, 2014 - Legalizar autodefensas, riesgo para México
Mar. 17, 2014 - A Spanish redaction of an editorial by the U.K.'s The Economist calls autodefensas "a monstrous danger" for Mexico.

Related content
2013
May 23 - Fiasco in Michoacán suggests little has changed under new government
Aug. 25 - Civilian militias soar, with citizen police now patrolling 50 counties in 13 Mexican states

Feb. 1 - The Decomposition of the Mexican State (SinEmbargo)
Aug. 16 - Autodefensas y autoaniquilación del Estado (El Informador)

Feb. 6 - Gunmen ambush police patrol in war torn Guerrero state, leaving nine officers dead
Apr. 10 - SEGOB: 4,249 drug war dead in first 120 days of PRI administration, 1,101 in March
Apr. 14 - Policías comunitarias: Mexico's "third army," according to world press

Mar. 11 - Enrique Peña Nieto's three smart decisions
Mar. 30 - The Washington Post has high praise for Enrique Peña Nieto

2012
Dec. 28 - Local police resign or desert posts in Jalisco, Michoacán

2013 updates
Apr. 12 - In Chilpancingo, Guerrero, members of a powerful teachers' union have almost shut down the city, blockading major roads and preventing access to the largest stores, including Wal-Mart and Soriana. The mayor of the city reported earlier this week that the situation is becoming increasingly violent. At least five people were executed in Chilpancingo early Wednesday morning, the result of ongoing territorial disputes among drug cartels and regional gangs. About 2,000 Federal Police are in the area, but their responsibility does not include municipal patrol. The mayor asked for state help. Late today, governor Aguirre said that armed autodefensas would not be tolerated at teacher protests.

A citizen "police force" arrested in Michoacán last month allegedly was armed by major drug cartels

Apr. 16 - Who's really running Guerrero, some will ask. The images below tell the whole story. A local school teacher, it seems, was pulled over by police - real police - in a community called Tixtla. He was ticketed for failing to produce a drivers' license. The teacher put up a fuss, telling the officers that he didn't recognize their authority, because Tixtla was under the control of policías comunitarias. They placed him under arrest and carted him off to jail. When the comunitarias got wind of what had happened, they went looking for the officers and in turn took them into custody, transporting them to the local militia's own jail. The stalemate was resolved when the Tixtla police chief agreed to release the teacher, and the comunitarias agreed to do likewise with the four officers they were holding. This probably won't be the last such event.

Apr. 22 - Guerrero now has 40 cities where policías comunitarias have taken over responsibility for local law enforcement. All of them say they're fed up with unchecked organized crime violence. The county of Juan R. Escudero has 2,000 new militiamen, most based in or around the county seat at Tierra Colorado.

Apr. 23 - With Guerrero and Michoacán on the verge of "anarchy," a respected columnist asks, ¿Dónde está el gobierno?
Apr. 24 - Guerrero on verge of civil meltdown, as teachers riot
Apr. 26 - A bankrupt Acapulco can't meet its payroll

Apr. 27 - "Very chaotic" - that's how Edward C. Luck, dean of the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies at the University of San Diego and a special adviser to the United Nations Secretary General, described the growing presence of autodefensas in Mexico. Luck was in Acapulco yesterday to attend a forum on conflict resolution. Noting that Mexicans lack confidence in legitimate security forces, Luck said, "That confidence has to be rebuilt. The government has to be pressured at all levels, local, state and federal, to do its work and improve domestic security."

May 6 - The government says it will not negotiate with local militias anywhere which carry firearms, such as in Guerrero. Comunitarias in the capital of Chilpancingo are virtually the only police force left.
May 11 - Comunitarias are now disarming real police in some Guerrero towns.
May 20 - Las policías comunitarias de Michoacán
Aug. 7 - Autodefensas ponen en jaque a Guerrero y a Michoacán

© MGR 2013-14. All rights reserved. This article may be cited or briefly quoted with proper attribution or a hyperlink, but not reproduced without permission.