According to human rights monitors, political leaders, and the written testimony of alleged victims, the Mexican Army, in their pursuit of key members of drug cartels, are using torture and extortion to find their man.
From The WashPo:
In Puerto Las Ollas, a mountain village of 50 people in the southern state of Guerrero, residents recounted how soldiers seeking information last month stuck needles under the fingernails of a disabled 37-year-old farmer, jabbed a knife into the back of his 13-year-old nephew, fired on a pastor, and stole food, milk, clothing and medication.
In Tijuana, across the border from San Diego, two dozen policemen who were arrested on drug charges in March alleged that, to extract confessions, soldiers beat them, held plastic bags over their heads until some lost consciousness, strapped their feet to a ceiling while dunking their heads in water and applied electric shocks, according to court documents, letters and interviews with their relatives and defense lawyers.
If true, these allegations will further alienate a Mexican people that is growing weary and skeptical of President Calderon’s war on the cartels, while at the same time showing an interestingly high level of sympathy for the top narcos.
The US government has threatened to pull over $100m of anti-drug aid if these allegations are confirmed. It is unlikely that the Mexican government will own up to these charges or even be apologetic if they are proven true. Losing anti-drug aid from the US will hardly rock their operations ($100m compared to the billions the cartels make in profits each year is a meager amount).
I figure Calderon likes this sort of bad PR. It shows him stronger and more cutt-throat than ever before. He might look tyrannical, but maybe that is what he going after. As Dean Acheson used to say (likely erroneously) about the Soviets: “They only undertand one language: force.” Calderon might feel the same way and opt accept the spilled blood with the fear it might instill in the narcos.
You might want to check these out, too:
Tags: drug war · foreign affairs · mexico1 Comment
[...] Mexican Army Using Torture In The Cartel War? – PoliticsMajor.com [...]