For Guatemala gangs, it's violence and rape

[Louisiana1976]

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala — Sandra doesn’t go outside after dark anymore. She lives in one of this city’s most notorious areas, where rival gangs have turned streets into war zones.

“It was like fireworks: pop, pop, pop everywhere,” Sandra, who asked that her last name not be used for fear of her safety, said of gunshots on one particularly busy night a few months ago.

The next day, bodies were found strewn throughout the city and her neighborhood, El Limon, a collection of ramshackle concrete block homes. At least 50 people, mostly gang members, were killed over two days that August weekend. They were shot, strangled and beaten to death.

For comparison, that would be the equivalent of 170 murders in New York City, which has three times as many people but averages about four murders per weekend.

It turned out to be the deadliest day of the year in a city that has become synonymous with crime. And it was also the last time Sandra went out after dark.

snip

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/the-americas/091109/guatemala-gang-culture-rape

[madrchsod]

1. MS13......

we are responsible for spreading the disease into central america. we deported ms13 and other la street gang members back to central america.

[Duke Newcombe]

2. Because we didn't want them here?

I fail to see the issue. Look to other things, such as criminal mores, poverty, and manipulation by drug lords the the root cause of the MS13 troubles.

[Sultana]

10. +1

[gula]

3. Members of those gangs were deported from Los Angeles

and quickly began to spread in Central America.

This is happening way too often. We (Canda, USA, etc.) deport criminals to countries that have no way of dealing with them thereby worsening their situation.

[Hangingon]

5. As I understand it...

we send them back to the country of origin. They could not handle them in the first place so they sent them to us. Is that our fault too? Should we just keep them and let them shoot up this country? Put them in prison - at our expense - where they recruit new members?

[cowcommander]

4. Saw a documentary about the drug gangs there a while back

It was in Colombia, but the situation was similar. They interviewed a former gang member who tried to get out and talked about how killing people was like a drug addiction. It was over stupid crap like turf wars and fighting over who gets to sell the drugs in the neighborhoods, and they would employ hitmen like him who got so addicted to the thrill and rush of taking another person's life. The police don't care either as long as it's gang members killing each other. It's a sad, depressing cycle of violence that won't stop.

[pitohui]

7. sounds like new orleans EOM

.

[a la izquierda]

6. Some of your responses are right...

the USA is at fault because of decades of CIA infiltration in Guatemalan affairs. The economic turmoil that we helped the Guatemalan elite bring to the poor and middle class bred criminal violence, like gangs. They didn't originate in the US, so our initial deportation wasn't the problem. The problem lies with the USA, the Guatemalan elite and unscrupulous criminal bosses.

So, before saying that "they shouldn't be here anyway", blah, blah, blah bullshit, you should probably understand the history of US complicity; and also realize these gangs didn't start here. They're imported with the drugs.

[SpiralHawk]

8. Here's your 2012 Mayan calendar nightmare come real

Ptoooey on the right wing thugs.

[Octafish]

9. Guatemala coup of 1954 was a CIA operation...

The United States overthrew the democratically elected, progressive administration of Jacobo Arbenz. CIA's masters didn't want to lose the rights to rape and pillage the nation for themselves. Thank the Dulles brothers and their cronies in Big Money.



Glorious Victory, by Diego Rivera (please note the macheted babies).