Jason Cannon
3/19/14
Mexico
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/13/world/americas/opponent-of-mexicos-cartels-is-detained-in-vigilantes-deaths.html?_r=0
Synopsis:
In Mexico, Hipolito Mora was arrested for the suspected murder of 2 men. Mora is the leader of a "vigilante" group (self defense group) that fights the Knights Templar drug cartel. He is considered to be the "public face of Mexico's vigilante movement." According to the article, he said his goal was "to create a better, more just economy for his town and others." He helped get the Mexican government to provide great resources in the aid of his state, Michoacan. The two men whose death he is suspected of are members of another vigilante group in a nearby town. The group's leader is Luis Antonio Torres Gonzalez, who did not get along with Mora. The two groups have had a tense relationship, which Mora's suspected killings highlight. Accusations of corruption have been made against some vigilante groups. The government of Mexico has a tough situation on their hands in dealing with these vigilante groups and the drug cartels.
Detailed Analysis:
In reading about these vigilante groups, it seems like they are becoming similar to the drug cartel groups they are trying to get rid of. There is tension between the group, suspected corruption, and violence (as this article shows). While these groups can help in fighting the drug cartels, they seem to be adding to the current problem in Mexico. I think that the government should not get rid of these groups, but I do think that the government should become more involved in the actions of these groups and should regulate them more closely. If the government could play a part in uniting the vigilantes groups against the drug cartels, I think they could make significant progress in ridding Mexico of the corrupt influence of the cartels. The problem is that they don't know who is corrupt and who is not.
I agree that if Mexico focused more on uniting the vigilantes groups, so much more could be accomplished. Things like this happen everywhere. You get people who try to help and "improve society", but they do it the wrong way, just like what this guy did. By uniting forces and making the improvements more of a team effort, not only will more things be done, but they will be done the right way. That way, there will be many people involved so that one person won't be allowed to carry it too far. Hopefully, Mexico can get these things under control soon.
ReplyDeleteIt's sad that these vigilante groups aren't united in their common cause. I think maybe if the government got involved with them they could come together in a more effective way and fight this war on drugs rather than fight with each other.
ReplyDelete