"Paramilitaries may have entered Mexico's drug wars."

Here is an excerpt from Tim Johnson's article for McClatchy Newspapers:

"The gruesome discovery of 32 bodies scattered in houses in the port city of Veracruz this week is the latest sign that Mexico's drug-fueled violence is entering a new phase in which murky paramilitary-style squads are carrying out mass exterminations... It was the latest ghastly event to send shudders through Veracruz. Two weeks ago, gunmen dumped 35 semi-nude, mutilated bodies along a freeway underpass in Veracruz in broad daylight. Authorities said at least some of the victims in both instances were members of Los Zetas, a violent crime group whose reach now stretches beyond Mexico's borders... The Zeta Killers group, which also calls itself New Generation, first came to light in a YouTube video in late July... The manner in which four vehicles maneuvered along the highway, blocked traffic and dumped the bodies led some experts to see a unique style to the recent killing spree... 'These were people who had military training,' said Alberto Islas, a security analyst and chief of Risk Evaluation Ltd... A public security specialist at the Mexico Institute of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Eric L. Olson, said too little evidence exists to draw conclusions that the killings are anything but violence between rival gangs." Link to Full Article

Analysis: Just the mere speculation that paramilitary groups may exist inside Mexico is exasperating. It makes me wonder what some people define as a paramilitary group, and how much knowledge those people have of paramilitary groups in another drug trafficking capital, Colombia.

Back in the 1980s when Pablo Escobar ruled Colombia, he started seeing a threat being posed to his territory and operations by leftist guerrilla groups - the FARC and the ELN. He formed a personal army, called MAS for Muerte a Secuestradores, or "death to the kidnappers." Soon, other drug lords started doing the same thing. In 1997, three men - brothers Carlos, Fidel, and Vicente Castaño - started an umbrella group to sort of unite these various paramilitaries, under the name Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia ("United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia"). Over the next decade, the AUC racked up more murders than the FARC and ELN combined, and displaced hundreds of thousands of Colombian citizens in an effort to thwart their support to the FARC and ELN.

There is no doubt that many members of the Colombian government secretly supported the AUC's efforts because they had a shared goal - the elimination of FARC and ELN terrorists. But where things got complicated was when the United States designated the AUC a foreign terrorist organization in 2001, despite the fact that the AUC had no political or religious ideology; they existed solely as the private armies for Colombian drug lords. Well, technically they did try to straighten out in the mid 1980s before becoming the AUC and formed a political party called the Union Patriotica. But after several of their members were killed or kidnapped by the guerrillas, they gave up and went back to paramilitary action - that is, defending their employers' turf and operations, and getting into the drug trade themselves. This is actually what led to several cracks in the AUC before they started to disintegrate - and partially disarm - in 2003; the fact that some groups were getting into the drug trade, and some were opposed to that.

Now let's move over to Los Zetas. They were recruited and created by Gulf cartel capo Osiel Cárdenas Guillen in the late 1990s to defend his turf and operations from the Mexican authorities and rival cartels. They soon started racking up an impressive body count, and introduced beheadings and dismemberment as the new drug war norm in 2003-2004 during the battle with the Sinaloa Federation over Nuevo Laredo, and the battle over control of Acapulco. Just like the AUC, Los Zetas come from former military stock (many some members of the AUC were also former Colombian police officers). Also like the AUC, Los Zetas have no ideology to speak of. While they were still working for the Gulf cartel, they existed to fulfill Cárdenas Guillen's wishes. Now, they exist to serve their own.

Moving to the present day, I'm speechless when the Mexican government says no paramilitaries exist in Mexico, and when the media even speculates as to their existence; especially since Los Zetas weren't the only private army working for the TCOs. The Sinaloa Federation has Los Pelones and Los Negros, run by Edgar "La Barbie" Valdez Villarreal before his arrest, and the Beltrán Leyva Organzation has La Linea, made up almost exclusively of former police officers. What does the Mexican government and the media think these groups are?

Here are a couple of definitions of paramilitary groups: "A group of personnel with military structure functioning either as a civil force or in support of military forces," and "A force with military structure conducting armed operations against a ruling or occupying power." I think a strong argument can be made that Los Zetas (in their former iteration under the Gulf), Los Pelones, Los Negros, La Linea, and the latest version of the Mata Zetas are operating with a military structure and conducting armed operations against an occupying power - their rivals that are occupying a desired piece of territory. The Mata Zetas aren't some vigilante group; they're working for the Jalisco Cartel/New Generation, so they're no different than the other private armies.

And who knows how they Mexican government feels about these groups? Los Zetas are a different animal now because they're their own TCO, and fighting the Mexican army and police like everyone else. But the other groups are primarily killing rival TCO members; something that inadvertently helps the Mexican government's cause.

So let's move beyond the silly question of whether or not paramilitaries exist inside Mexico; we need to move more towards the question of what the Mexican government wants to do about their growth and expanding activities.

Comments

[David Krug]

A couple of errancies here I'd like to point out.

1. La Barbie is in solitary confinement in jail so he is not "running" anything.

2. There are only two main groups left. Thus the violence is ever more so regionalizing into contested zones of drug sales. Zetas want to own entire plazas for drug sales, and extortion. Sinaloa would like to own drug sales and keep the Zetas from the extortion industry. Sinaloa doesn't do extortion period, nor do they tolerate it.

3. Matazetas work for the Sinaloa Cartel to allow local drug gangs like La Gente Nuevo to gain control of local plazas so they can continue being the nation's distributor.

4. Your point about La Linea is kind of not so true. La Linea is pato frito. The Zetas and the Sinaloa Cartel are doing battle over Juarez now with Julian Leyzaola cleaning up the plaza for the Sinaloans.

The arrest of El Flaco this week signified a major turning point in the war on drugs IMO. I believe it could escalate into more organized executions like the ones we've seen recently.

The violence will become more organized not less like so many analysts have said. Executions of all members of an opposing cartel will become commonplace. With no signs, no intimidation. Just execute and replace.

It's all about control now not propaganda.

[Daniel S]

The problem about zetas in Monterrey, Mexico (where I live) its that they were a military structure, but now its too weak, but they are recruiting every day, with the gangs in the poor neighborhoods like Independencia or Cerro de la Campana. And whats the problem with that? that they are recruiting gang teenagers. And its the dream of all gangster, money, firearm, and power. But they cant control the AR-15 they are too stupid and they dont have the experience, but they have the guts. What Mexico need is education, and sports centers to take away from the street all the gangs.
I dont think that there ar paramilitaries in Mexico, just stupid teenagers with arms. They start as paramilitaries, but now the 80% of the ones who started the zetas organization or whatever, are dead.
And if you dont have a lot of money, you are not a drug dealer or junkie, the possibilities to get caught by a bullet are too low. I´ve been in two "narco bloqueos" and nothing happend just take a U-turn and find another way.

[Beltonwall]

"Los Zetas (in their former iteration under the Gulf), Los Pelones, Los Negros, La Linea, and the latest version of the Mata Zetas are operating with a military structure and conducting armed operations against an occupying power - their rivals that are occupying a desired piece of territory."

I think that this is where the controversy lies. Are they operating with a military structure or are they just carrying arms and executing orders for the drug dealers? What is the difference between military structure and regular ordinary structure? Do these Mexican gunmen implement military training and tactics?

And does that definition of 'occupying power' imply solely 'political power'? Or can the definition also be expanded to include a any power? If so, then are the armed gangs of New York, LA and Chicago also paramilitaries? They are in a turf battle with each other, after all. What about Al Capone back in the 1930's, then? He was organized and was fighting for power--were his gunmen paramilitaries?

Until I know the distinctions between these groups, I will have a hard time believing that Mexico has paramilitaries.

[Jose Angel de Monterrey]

There are some worrisome signals surrounding the events in Boca del Rio. First of all, dumping 35 bodies to a central avenue is actually escalating the war.
A few weeks before the events in Boca del Rio several Marines were kidnapped and executed by Zetas (http://www.borderlandbeat.com/2011/10/zetas-linked-to-kidnapping-and-murder.html), the Marines had begun a series of operatives to counter the strong presence of Zetas in most cities in Veracruz, but the kidnappings of Marines triggered a strong reaction from the Marina. They took down lots of communication equipment established by the zetas also.

Then during the same month there were simultaneous mass prison escapes from prisons, underscoring the incredible levels of corruption of the state authorities (http://www.borderlandbeat.com/2011/09/thirty-two-escape-in-simultaneous-jail.html).

My reading is that the Marina's strategy is terminal, that the killings are somehow related to all these events and that this would have never occurred had the zetas not kidnapped the marines, had they not escaped from jail, had they not exposed the huge networks of corruption that made it possible.

Because in order for the zetas to be able to kidnapped the three Marines, they had to resource to their network of informants in the streets of Veracruz, and it was them and the zetas who killed the Marines, they perfectly know that many people participated in the kidnapping, from street vendors to local transito or police officers, to prostitutes and local dealers.

Among the 35 people dead were some people who reported to zetas and were probably informants, like Brigitte (http://www.mundonarco.com/2011/09/brigitte-el-famoso-sexo-servidor-entre.html).
Why was he/she killed? Clearly she was not a gunmen. But she was probably an informant of the zetas, an halcon, part of the spying network of the zetas.

My feeling is that some sectors of the Marina have grown tired of this war, that they don't see any hope in detaining or arresting criminals anymore, because they sense they will either be set free by corrupted judges or MPs, or escape from prison in great numbers thanks to a corrupted government structure.

In many ways the Marina, the Army and the Federal Police forces have been left alone to their own resources in this war.

I have a growing feeling that what we are seeing here is the massive elimination, termination or the entire network, not just the leaderships, but their entire network of informants, vendors, etc.

[Beltonwall]

Jose,

Very interesting analysis. It all sounds very logical.

We *might* be seeing the introduction of a force similiar to 'los Pepes' who dismantled Escobar's network in Columbia. They did it by doing just what you say--taking down the entire network. It was messy, extrajudicial AND effective.

[David Krug]

Yes it's messy, extrajudicial but like in Colombia it worked. And the remnants that remain most undoubtedly will be whatever is left of the Sinaloa Cartel based on sheer manpower and numbers.

[Juan Hernandez]

Well based on your information part of La linea is not true and for example in one of your coments about Juarez supposedly La linea wants to protect Juarez from sinaloa because they want to take the control over Juarez. On one of the the chanle news in el paso they were discussing about this topic. What they said about La Linea being one of the lowest gangs. I think this is why they want to protect juarez now.