The Culture of Peace, Public Security and Armed Forces

The price of apathy towards public affairs is being ruled by evil men.

Plato

Now that the ruthless Russian bombardments against the civilian population of Ukraine have intensified and that Mexico denied its support in the OAS Assembly, it is revealed in Russia that our government signed an agreement for the installation of the Russian “Glonass” system and a system optical-electronic system for the prevention of dangerous situations in Mexico, systems that already operate in Nicaragua, Venezuela and Brazil. These blunders are new provocations to our trade allies, the United States, Canada and the European Union, as well as to other countries and organizations that are in favor of Ukraine. Without a doubt, it is another source of conflict that will spice up the consultation process on possible violations of our country to the T-MEC.

Turning to our inner reality, despite the fact that article 21 of the Mexican Constitution orders that public security institutions, including the National Guard, be of a civilian nature, it has always been military. The constitutional text of article 21 has been breached since the creation of said police force. Since its inception, it has been led by a military man and in its body there are around 73,000 elements from the armed forces and less than 16,000 elements from the former federal police, the latter – by the way – are being forced to accept the “voluntary discharge ” despite being the only ones with police training, a measure that is part of the plan of the Ministry of National Defense to replace all the civilian elements of the National Guard.

For its part, article 115 confers responsibility for public safety on municipalities. However, it must be recognized that the vast majority of city councils assumed it in a precarious manner due to the lack of sufficient fiscal resources and that the corresponding budgetary transfers, to have the indispensable police forces, were diminishing or were eliminated, especially during the current government.

The militarized National Guard has shown little capacity to carry out operations based on minimal elements of intelligence. Soldiers who have replaced civilian agents have not been well trained for police tasks, which they have verified by facing situations that they never saw in the two-month express course they were given. Some have stated that they feel confused because they signed up to be military and not police, in addition to the fact that their command has told them that the National Guard uniform is a costume and that they are military.

The tenant of the National Palace has encouraged an increasing participation of the army in all kinds of activities that should continue to be attended by civilians and the private sector, in such a way that the armed forces today are omnipresent and are more than exceeded.

Taking advantage of the fact that the president likes trains and planes, today we see how the military has started a business cartel that will manage airlines, airports, cargo and passenger trains, tourist developments and even foreign trade. Empowered generals close to the president emerge who organize their own business groups through their relatives.

One of the effects of this strategy has been that the military today is interested in imitating the style and customs of the new rich, they have become the new “little aspirations” by grace of the president.

Regardless of the means of making money, they are known to support huachicoleros and human traffickers, selling tactical equipment, weapons and grenades, as well as mobility information and military and National Guard operations to criminal organizations.

The vulnerability of the armed forces and the certainty that Mexico is a country without national security have shown that the official strategy has only encouraged the strengthening of drug cartels and organized crime, for whom the government strategy has translated into “ letting go, letting go” regardless of how violence escalates to the detriment of citizens.

Sadly, it was revealed that, as a result of the army’s investigative actions, the military have had timely strategic information on the action and attack plans of criminal groups, without these data being used to prevent the commission of crimes resulting in massacres. confrontations and assaults, among other criminal activities.

These are some of the characteristics of the authorities responsible for public security that should consist of safeguarding the life, freedoms, integrity and property of people, as well as contributing to the generation and preservation of public order and social peace.

The personal project of the president has not stopped at anything, not even before the Constitution or the rule of law, he expands his power practically without obstacles, as well as a very dangerous deinstitutionalization of the Republic and the Nation, whose objective has been to dismantle more than transform and less build.

At the beginning of the last two-year period of the current government, we are experiencing an emergency situation in terms of public security, aggravated by the disclosure of classified information from the cyberattack on the Ministry of National Defense.

It is now known that the military has done everything from predicting the victory or defeat of candidates for popular election positions, to making friends and associates with organized crime. However, we have witnessed how armed and unarmed civilians in the service of criminals make soldiers, sailors and National Guard agents run and flee, subjecting them to acts of humiliation and humiliation with increasing frequency, because they must obey the line presidential give hugs, not bullets.

It is natural that the question arises: how much confidence can one have in the armed forces? Above all, when observing that the tenant of the National Palace has created a monster that threatens public freedoms and human rights, in addition to not being accountable and lacking limits, even before his supreme commander.

It does not seem prudent for the president to be the shield of the army, since it makes him seem an accomplice of those who violate and allow the Law to be violated.

In these almost four years of a supposed transformation, with the strategy of giving hugs, not bullets, the power of drug cartels, organized crime, other criminal organizations and the military has grown.

Throughout the country, tensions are increasing in various areas of social interaction that affect more and more people, more families, more populations and practically all sectors of society with spirals of violence

The formula of combining bureaucracy and militarization seems to have failed, resulting in mediocrity and destruction. It is extremely urgent to act to prevent the increasingly serious conflicts from continuing to escalate.

A responsible public security strategy must be aimed at preventing impunity for organized crime and applying the law to criminals, strengthening local police forces, halting the deterioration of the social fabric and promoting its restoration.

What has been revealed so far would generate a scandal in many countries, but here it seems that no one cares. It is serious to confirm that we Mexicans have become apathetic and indifferent, sometimes we seem dehumanized and even cowardly.

Let us avoid becoming a failed society, in which everyone is only interested in what happens in their own little world, because the more divided, the weaker we will be.

*The author is a lawyer, negotiator and mediator.

phmergoldd@anmediacion.com.mx

Twitter: @Phmergoldd