More on “Plan México”

From: México Independent Media Center (translated with Google)

The Plan Mexico, also known as Plan Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, Security Initiative Regional Initiative officially called Merida, known in the United States as Mexico and Central America Security Cooperation Initiative, a plan for collaboration in the fight against organized crime between Mexico and the United States, assistance programme to eradicate the production and trafficking of drugs, as well as the fight against terrorism. It is implemented by the governments of Mexico and the United States-similar to Plan Colombia, in the framework of the Partnership for Security and Prosperity of North America (SPP).

Overall the plan is intended to take greater control of telecommunications and airspace in Mexico through the financial support of the United States for military training and technological elements of Mexicans. Among the American institutions that will be involved are the Department of State and Justice, the Ministry of Internal Security, the Pentagon, the CIA, the FBI, DEA and the anti-drug agency on the part of Mexico, the Congress, Secretariat of National Defense, the Navy, the Ministry of Public Security, the Attorney General and the Center for Investigation and National Security.

The Plan consists of an agreement on military assistance and financial support for the fight against drug trafficking and organized crime which “does not include” the presence of American troops, military installations, or foreign agents in Mexico, but it does involve the use of new technology, training Military personnel and exchange of information. Initially thousand United States will provide $ 400 million over three years, and 50 million in Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, for its part, Mexico is committed to an investment of 7 billion dollars, the budget approval will be delayed until American before July 2008. The first investment will be $ 500 million to be distributed into four categories; narcotics, anti-terrorism and border security, public security and police, strengthening of institutions, and support programmes, including the distribution will be as follows:

* A) combating drug trafficking and border security (306 million)
* B) public safety and law enforcement (56 million)
* C) construction of the institutional legality (101 million).

The above figures do not mean Mexico provide cash, but equipment and training to use the scanner gamma rays, devices for measuring densities, devices to detect smuggling of people or weapons, helicopters, light aircraft, armored vehicles or programmes to improve prison system or the legal process. Finally, the 37 million used directly for the American government to administer the program and make sure everything is handled “appropriately”, ie monitor how the government of Mexico uses investment from the United States, thus violating Sovereignty National.

Although it has not been clarified what actions and strategies of the initiative, but it is believed that one of his intentions is to lift in southern Mexico antimigrantes complementary to a wall already constructed in the north, which combines physical barriers, tech surveillance, police and military.

In this way the United States government intends to take this juncture, violence, drug trafficking and discredit the Mexican justice system to intervene in the redesign of Mexican institutions and strengthen its security policy, and to ensure the safeguarding of its security requires the imposition of “the rule of law” in Mexico and Central America, so the Merida Initiative can be a mechanism to achieve this easily, thanks to the support of the government of Felipe Calderon, which has enabled the American government is introduced legally in strategic areas of decision-making processes in Mexico, which like the United States policy seeks to militarize the country rather than advancing prevention policies.

Despite that time and again has shown that the use of the military is only one police task basically leaves a trail of human rights violations, and encourages further violence in producing countries, as well as the destruction of its social fabric .

The initiative is successful, Mexico would be placed as the second country that has received more money from Washington for security, behind Colombia, with 5 billion dollars.

In the context of the criminalization of social struggle, the Plan Mexico strengthened the War of Low Intensity and other counterinsurgency activities, as in Colombia.