GANGS IN HONDURAS - MARA 18, MARA SALVATRUCHA, THE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 TEGUCIGALPA 000261 SIPDIS SENSITIVE STATE FOR WHA, WHA/CEN, WHA/PPC, DRL/PHD, AND DS STATE FOR INL, INL/LP, INR/I, INR/C, INR/AN/IAA, EB, AND CA STATE PASS AID FOR LAC/CEN AND DCHA/DG/ROL DEA FOR NTRM/BERGMANN DOJ FOR NDIC/ORGANIZED CRIME AND VIOLENCE UNIT (LCASALE) E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KCRM PINR PGOV SNAR SOCI PHUM SMIG ASEC HO SUBJECT: GANGS IN HONDURAS - MARA 18, MARA SALVATRUCHA, THE "WAR TAX," AND CHALLENGES FOR GOH (C-CN4-00878) REF: A. 04 TEGUCIGALPA 2874 ¶B. 04 TEGUCIGALPA 2841 ¶C. 04 STATE 227915 ¶D. 04 TEGUCIGALPA 1843 AND PREVIOUS ¶E. 04 SAN SALVADOR 2232 ¶1. (U) The following cable builds on previous Post reporting on gangs with an eye on the differences and similarities between the two major gangs (Mara 18 and Mara Salvatrucha), the "war tax" gangs impose, and the challenges Honduras faces in confronting gangs. War on Gangs -------------- ¶2. (SBU) The National Program of Prevention, Rehabilitation, and Reinsertion, an NGO specializing in gang activity, reports that there are an estimated 489 separate gang groups (cliques) in Honduras. Although most form part of the two major gangs, the Mara Salvatrucha (MS) and the Mara Dieciocho (Mara 18),there are a number of other organized crime groups to which these smaller cliques belong. An open question is whether all these groups are actively pursuing criminal activities. While the police, led by Minister of Public Security (MOPS) Oscar Alvarez, believe that there are 30-40,000 criminal gang members and 70,000 sympathizers (indirectly connected with their activities),NGOs and other humanitarian-based programs within and outside the country paint a different picture. Save The Children UK, for instance, has said that there are only 5,000 gang members who actively participate in criminal activity, but agree that there are many more who claim allegiance but do not participate in criminal activities. (Comment: MOPS Alvarez admitted that there might be as few as 3,000 hard-core members in a recent meeting with a visiting U.S. official. End Comment.) ¶3. (SBU) Post believes that the number lies somewhere in between, but the great disparity between public and private estimates raises doubts as to the veracity of public information circulating regarding gangs and their activities. Post believes that gangs in Honduras are growing, morphing, diversifying, and becoming more powerful. The recent decline in gang-related crime (notwithstanding the December 23, 2004, bus massacre allegedly committed by MS - see ref A) is due in part to the anti-gang law but is likely only a temporary and unsustainable fix for the problem. ¶4. (U) Gang news floods the local newspapers and television constantly, creating a continuous surge of public fear and demand for hard-line government intervention. Social service providers decry this demonization of the problem. However, to be sure, it is a war. A number of facts support this belief: 1) according to the Honduran government, from January-October 2004, 1,165 gang members had been arrested (with charges filed against 930 and charges dropped against 235) under the anti-gang law; 2) numerous police officers and gang members have been killed in confrontations between the two groups (reliable current statistics are not available), 3) 68 Mara 18 gang members were shot, beaten, or burned to death at the El Porvenir prison outside of Ceiba in April 2003, 4) 107 Mara Salvatrucha gang members died in May 2004 in a fire in the San Pedro Sula prison, and 5) 28 people were massacred on a bus in San Pedro Sula on December 23, 2004, allegedly by the Mara Salvatrucha. How the Gangs Operate/Organize -------------- ¶5. (U) To understand the gang phenomenon in Honduras, one must first be familiar with some distinctions between the two major gangs, Mara 18 and MS. Sources have reported that once or twice a year high-level leaders will convene in San Salvador or other Central American cities to hold meetings to identify policies and goals, and plan missions. It appears as if all the high-level decisions in Honduras emanate from the major penitentiaries, where tattooed, hard-faced gang warlords whisper orders to messengers outside the prison walls. Recently, it was discovered that Mara 18 even has a web page that explains the general gang philosophy and recruitment process. Another example of Mara 18's organizational reach is its push for representation in the courts. A Honduran newspaper reported in late September 2004 that Mara 18 was allegedly sponsoring the education of 20 law professionals in the National University of Honduras (UNAH), who were apparently sympathizers of the gang. Mara 18 -------------- ¶6. (U) Mara 18 has managed to recruit a female contingent into their ranks, which serves very specific roles in the gang's business; jobs for which they are particularly well-suited and camouflaged include the collection of "war tax" (see below for details),according to interviews by EmbOffs with former gang members in rehabilitation programs. Women also find themselves exploited sexually within the highly patriarchal and chauvinistic culture of Mara 18, which, in comparison to Mara Salvatrucha, is more pronounced. Mara 18 is by and large the more regimented, regulated, and structured of the two gangs. The result of this structure is a more efficient, though smaller, organization than the MS, making them able to coordinate more complex missions with higher stakes. ¶7. (U) In December 2004, for instance, Mara 18 was able to infiltrate a public hospital and extract a wounded comrade who had been captured the day before by police. Gang members used disguises and a well-researched plan to carry out the mission, killing two police officers in the process. Their leader, "el Siniestro," who has been connected by police to three other high-level killings, including the assassination of a congressional primary candidate, was the alleged mastermind of this plot. Despite close encounters, he has managed to evade capture, often using well-timed pick-ups and pre-designed escape routes. Post believes the organizational potential of Mara 18 to be strong and growing stronger, especially as a result of the new anti-gang law, which has forced the gangs to adapt to a more clandestine, military-like protocol. Mara Salvatrucha -------------- ¶8. (U) Mara Salvatrucha, on the other hand, draws its strength from different characteristics. On the whole, MS is more flexible and spontaneous. One possible reason for their greater numbers is their less stringent recruiting and initiation processes. MS is composed of smaller, more mobile groups that fall within a less rigid structure than Mara 18, according to former MS members. In other words, there is less bureaucracy. As a result of each clique's geographic mobility and independence, they are far more prone to the whims of each leader. For these reasons, MS has a greater proclivity towards random violence and other unpredictable actions (such as the bus massacre). However, Post notes that major MS activities are still decided by incarcerated gang leaders and, much like the Mara 18, MS utilizes female sympathizers and gang members to run messages in between the prison and respective gang territories throughout Honduras, but principally in Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula. Gang "Missions" and the War Tax -------------- ¶9. (U) Orders descend from the higher levels of the gang hierarchy all the way to the bottom, where for the new recruits, these orders convert into "missions," or daily tasks. One such daily task for those at the bottom is the collection of the "war tax." This represents one of the biggest forms of gang revenue in Honduras. The tax is around 150-250 lempiras ($8-14) per day and is collected from taxis, buses, convenience stores, pedestrians, delivery trucks, and anyone or anything else that happens to be in or pass through gang territory. Lamentably, gangs have even infiltrated local public schools, where they collect the tax from young schoolchildren with already scarce resources. ¶10. (U) For those who faithfully pay their daily gang toll, the gangs theoretically offer security and well being. In response to those that evade this "war tax," the gangs often use death threats. Judging from the number of bus driver murders, this is a serious threat. Each member of the gang will work a particular area all day, collecting this tax and noting violators. At the end of the day, the gang members convene to count and store the proceeds. There are a couple of variations to the collection of this tax. In some areas, gangs force young boys who are not members of the gang to collect the taxes on behalf of the gang. Boys are threatened with death if they refuse this task. Female gang members are also increasingly used as tax collectors. In a recent investigation by a reporter, it was found that one gang operated with a monthly budget of over 66,000 lempiras ($3,850) solely from tax collections, significant given the relatively low cost of living in Honduras. What is done with the money? -------------- ¶11. (U) Gangs use the money, first and foremost, to facilitate their drug dealing. With larger budgets, gangs are able to buy more drugs and sell more drugs. As a result, both personal drug use and involvement in the drug trade has drastically increased. The gangs also use the money to sustain their fellow "homies" incarcerated in Honduras' various jails. This transfer is facilitated by the many gangs that operate near penitentiary walls, acting as middlemen. In addition, the money is used to finance the mobilization of gang members, either to go on missions throughout Honduras or Central America or to promote the spread of gang membership by moving to new, more rural areas, a tactic that is contributing to increasing violence in rural areas. Rural areas are relatively absent of police presence, and thus particularly susceptible to being overtaken by gangs. Gangs a Key Political Issue -------------- ¶12. (SBU) Comment: The war on gangs has become a key political issue in the lead-up to the February 20 national primary elections, particularly in the Nationalist Party Presidential Race. The bus massacre, the MS' alleged responsibility, and the GOH and Congress' rapid tough response (including expedited consideration of pending penal code reforms affecting gang-related crimes),appears to have benefited President of Congress Porfirio "Pepe Lobo. Lobo, who has long trailed Tegucigalpa Mayor Miguel Pastor, drew even with Pastor in a January 28-29 private poll conducted nationally by a reputable polling firm (septel). End Comment. Palmer