The Latin American Report # 546

When organized crime decides to take to the streets in Latin America, it is difficult for government security forces to contain it. When we see a spike in violence like the one occurring in the Ecuadorian provinces of Guayas and Manabí, it is usually not the State that stops the bleeding, but rather a natural retreat or an agreement between the criminal groups involved in the fierce confrontation—if they see fit. If we look at the cartel war that erupted last September in the Mexican town of Culiacán, Sinaloa, the authorities themselves shamefully acknowledged they could not resolve the situation. Thus, it was the warring cartels who held the power to decide whether the macabre pile-up of corpses—some decapitated, adorned with decorative hats or pizza boxes nailed to their chests—should end. And, unfortunately, it has not ended.

In the first month of the war between followers of "Mayo" Zambada and the sons of "El Chapo" Guzmán, 189 homicides were recorded. In an assessment shared last June, marking nine months since clashes began between these two main factions of the Sinaloa Cartel, the average indicates that around 160 people were killed monthly—including nearly 50 minors—, at a rate of over five per day. While it is true that the vast majority of casualties belong to organized crime itself, the fact remains that this makes it very difficult for society to develop safely. On June 29, authorities found 16 bodies abandoned in a van—one decapitated—and also four decapitated bodies hanging by their limbs from a bridge, alongside a bag containing the five corresponding "cephalic extremities."

Playas

In Ecuador’s case, it is clear that the military and police deployment ordered since last year by President Daniel Noboa to confront the "internal armed conflict" has indeed struck criminal structures. However, it has fallen far short of pacifying the most violence-prone areas, located on the coast. When crime decides to go out for a "walk", apparent peace hides fearfully inside homes.

Last Saturday, a massacre occurred at a pool hall in General Villamil Playas municipality, Guayas, where nine people were brutally gunned down—including three municipal officials, one of whom was the son of a councilman. Do you know the main problem here? All the victims were collateral damage—the gunmen had stormed the establishment hunting just one man on the run, who had hidden there but ultimately escaped. Indeed, the majority of those fatally shot were young people with no known criminal records. Their bodies—except in one case—were collected by their own relatives and local residents due to the forensic personnel’s shameful delay. About 80 bullet casings were found at the scene. This is also Latin America, my friends.

Meanwhile, in Mexico 👇