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The Northern Triangle's Drugs-Violence Nexus

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The Northern Triangle's Drugs-Violence Nexus DRUGS & CONFLICT DEBATE PAPERS The Northern Triangle’s NOVEMBER, 2012 drugs-violence nexus NO. 19 The role of the drugs trade in criminal violence and policy responses in Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras Drugs and Democracy Programme TRANSNATIONAL INSTITUTE TNI Briefing Series NoDrugs 2012/1 & Conflict, November 2012 1 The Northern Triangle’s drugs-violence nexus AUTHOR Liza Ten Velde EDITORS Amira Armenta Martin Jelsma Pien Metaal DESIGN Guido Jelsma www.guidojelsma.nl PRINTER Drukkerij PrimaveraQuint Amsterdam FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTIONS CONTACT Transnational Institute De Wittenstraat 25 1052 AK Amsterdam Netherlands Tel: -31-20-6626608 Fax: -31-20-6757176 [email protected] www.tni.org/drugs www.undrugcontrol.info www.druglawreform.info The contents of this document can be quoted or reproduced as long as the source is mentioned. TNI would appreciate receiving a copy of the text in which this document is used or cited. To receive information about TNI's publications and activities, we suggest that you subscribe to our bi-weekly bulletin by sending a request to: [email protected] or registering at www.tni.org Amsterdam, November 2012 ISSN 1871-3408 2 Drugs & Conflict, November 2012 CONTENTS Introduction 2 Violence 3 • Homicide rates 3 • Causes 3 • Gang truce in El Salvador 6 Gangs, DTOs and Transportistas 7 • Guatemala 9 • Honduras 10 • El Salvador 11 Recent debates 13 Legislation on controlled substances 14 • Guatemala 14 Map 16 • Honduras 18 • El Salvador 20 Responses 22 • Mano dura and militarization 22 • Private security and vigilantism 24 US-Northern Triangle co-operation 25 • CARSI 25 • Operation Anvil 26 Concluding remarks 28 Endnotes 29 Drugs & Conflict, November 2012 1 The Northern Triangle’s drugs-violence nexus Introduction and criminal behaviour and have thereby contributed significantly to the high levels of Since the start of Mexican president Felipe criminal violence. For this problem underlying Calderón's military crackdown on drug causes can of course be identified as well, but trafficking organizations (DTOs) in 2006, it should also be noted that the involvement Mexico has occupied the limelight when it of maras in drug trafficking operations is comes to media attention focusing on drug- reportedly growing, taking the form of both related violence in Latin America. However, collaboration as well as competition with while this 'Mexican focus' continues to be DTOs. One of the most important factors prevalent, it is actually Central America's contributing significantly to rising crime levels Northern Triangle1 – consisting of Guatemala, is, paradoxically, the infamous mano dura Honduras and El Salvador – which is (iron fist) responses to crime on the part of currently experiencing much higher rates of the region’s governmental authorities, showing violence and increasing DTO activity, thus that the ‘cure’ might very well be worse than the providing an illustration of the 'balloon effect' disease it is meant to treat. Again, this situation previously experienced by Mexico itself after can be compared to that of Mexico where the the implementation of Plan Colombia which militarization strategy against DTOs has been was conceived at the end of the 90's. Together, accompanied by a severe escalation of violence the countries of the Northern Triangle now in the country. form one of the most violent regions on earth. Both El Salvador and Guatemala have been This paper will first address the particulars experiencing murder rates higher than those of the high levels of criminal violence in the recorded during the countries' civil wars. But Northern Triangle. Then an attempt will be it is Honduras – though having been spared made to map out the extent to which the the kind of bloody civil wars as experienced by drug trade in general, and in particular the its neighbours – which currently occupies first involvement of Mexican DTOs and their place on worldwide homicide rate rankings. part in the region’s criminal violence, are important factors in each of the countries of Although it is clear that the violence in the region. We will then explore the recently Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala is reinvigorated debate on alternative approaches pervasive and able to destabilize these Central to drug control strategies in the Americas. In American societies to a large extent, no spite of the similarities of the challenges posed consensus seems to exist on its exact causes. As to El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras in Mexico, much of the violence is attributed when it comes to drug-related problems and to the increased role of Central America as a criminal violence, the positions occupied by transit region for controlled drugs destined the political leaders of these countries in this for the US. While this is to a certain extent incipient debate differ considerably. Further justifiable, the possibility of involvement in the sections of this paper will go into the drug drug trade as a symptom of underlying social- legislation of these countries, as well as the economic issues rather than a prime cause of main drug control strategies they have been violence and crime in itself should certainly not following to determine how the differences in be overlooked. Another issue often mentioned rhetoric matches actual policies. Then, because is the existence of large gangs, or maras, in the of the US opposition to alternative approaches region, which foster a culture of machismo to the war on drugs, important co-operation 2 Drugs & Conflict, November 2012 Violence frameworks between the US and countries in be insufficient, both on the international as well the Northern Triangle will briefly be described as on the national level. This causes estimates in order to assess US leverage in promoting its of homicides attributable to organized crime preferred drug control strategies in this region. to vary widely, from 10 to 50% for some ten countries in the Americas for the period 2007- 2009.3 Violence While most reports focus on homicide rates at the national level, it is also important to look Homicide rates at the sub-national level in order to create a proper understanding of the situation in the It is common practice to rely on statistics Northern Triangle. In doing so, it becomes regarding a country’s intentional homicide clear that, somewhat surprisingly perhaps, rates to assess the levels of criminal violence of most homicides do not occur in the region’s a particular territory. Reports on such rates in urban areas, but rather, in the provinces, Central America show a widespread consensus especially in Honduras and Guatemala. This that the countries of the Northern Triangle fact sheds more light on the drug-violence – especially Honduras and El Salvador – are nexus in the region, as many of the areas among the most violent in the world with with higher levels of intentional homicides the recent rise in violence causing homicide are precisely those that are of great strategic rates in Guatemala and El Salvador to exceed importance to drug traffickers such as border those of the periods during which these crossings or ports and, by extension, the focus countries experienced their civil wars, which of law enforcement crackdowns on smuggling in both cases ended in the 1990s. The United operations. In particular, border provinces Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) between all three countries, those which offer - relying mainly on data provided by the direct access to both the Atlantic as well as the countries' national police forces – reports that Pacific Ocean, and the Guatemalan Zacapa (94 the homicide rates per 100.000 inhabitants for murders per 100,000 inhabitants in 2011) and 2011 were as follows: 92 in Honduras, 70 in El Petén provinces (much more than other areas Salvador, 39 in Guatemala and 24 in Mexico. on the Guatemalan-Mexican border) have UNODC figures show an increase of 161% been affected.4 in Honduras’ homicide rate since 2005. For the same period, El Salvador’s rate increased almost 11%, while Guatemala saw a small Causes decrease after an initial increase in 2008 and 2009.2 However, the quality of police records It is not uncommon for research into the causes that deal with cases involving homicides varies of these high homicide levels to suggest that widely throughout the region, explaining the relatively recent occurrence of civil wars the existence of diverging estimates but also in Central America has left behind a legacy of the difficulty in determining to what extent violence –with an extensive arsenal of weaponry homicides are related to organized crime and being a very important part of this inheritance gangs. Homicide typology data are extremely – and that as such these conflicts might serve as limited as it is not uncommon for qualitative an explanation for the proliferation of criminal information and levels of detail on case files to violence over the last decade. It may well be Drugs & Conflict, November 2012 3 The Northern Triangle’s drugs-violence nexus that this assumption is to some degree correct, the main causal variables for the violence in at least in the cases of Guatemala and El Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, mainly Salvador. Nevertheless, the need for caution in basing his claim on a comparison of these three designating these armed conflicts as a definite countries with Nicaragua where violence levels causal variable for current levels of violence are relatively low but which scores worse on is well illustrated by the case of Honduras; several poverty and development indexes than a country which, in spite of not having gone both Guatemala and El Salvador. Rather, he through this type of widespread conflict as claims that high levels of migration to the US recently as its neighbours, ranks as the world's and the related high share of remittances in the number one when it comes to homicide rates region’s economies have had an adverse effect per 100,000 inhabitants.5 Another development on social structures and local job opportunities, that has been mentioned as a cause of rising providing incentives for citizens to engage in violence is the region’s transformation to a criminal behaviour and to form connections neoliberal economy which has led to a lack with criminal organizations.
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