El Universal: Mexican Community Self-Defense is Not Viable Over Time El Universal
go to original February 2, 2013

Mexican militia creates court to try detainees (MinWashingtonNews)

In more and more cities in the country's southwest, the villagers are taking up arms and establishing roadblocks in order to prevent the kidnappings, robberies and extortion that have devastated them in recent years. It is the responsibility of the authorities that [the situation] has arrived at this point. It is a noble intention that is, however, not viable in the long term because mobs are governed by emotion, not by rationality.

The law exists for a reason: to ensure society's protection by enforcing order, such that further abuses are not committed when it is sought to prevent and punish crime.

The police can break the law (which they have done), but the response to that problem is not better if they are replaced with entities that are not even formally subject to any legal mandate.

The courts, the public defenders, the government's watchdog offices are the only agencies that can curb the abuse of power.  As an example, take the cases of innocents freed after years in prison.  If your presumed guilt were to depend on a criterion of simple appreciation, rather than investigations, what the police would do are smear campaigns against detainees.

The lynching in San Juan Ixtayopan in the south of Mexico City in November of 2004 is well remembered.  At that time, federal police were killed by a mob convinced that the agents were actually child abductors. The only evidence that the instigators had was that the individuals were taking photographs outside a school.

All community justice acts with similar simplicity.  The courts, the police and investigative police [Public Ministry] may be incompetent, but at least their actions can be scrutinized. Eventually, as has happened, they may be removed or prosecuted according to the level of legal responsibility for their actions. In community assemblies and guards, however, the loudest opinion is imposed, prejudice.

If an innocent seems to be guilty, in the midst of a crowd will he be given the benefit of the doubt? In case an error is proved, will the judges be prosecuted? There are no community defenders or popular commissions of human rights. The distance is not much between this and the paramilitaries that have done so much damage in this hemisphere.

The most basic of the obligations of the Mexican State is security, which is not simple but necessary.  When this obligation is not fulfilled, the citizens defend themselves as they are able. Even so, there is no other choice but to improve institutions or create others. The other alternative, self-defense, brings us closer to chaos.

See Spanish original

Posted by Jane Brundage at Mexico Voices

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