Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09MONTERREY307
2009-08-07 14:35:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Consulate Monterrey
Cable title:  

LOCAL LEADERS STRUGGLE WITH HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES; CULTURE OF

Tags:  PGOV PREL KCRM PHUM SNAR SOCI MX 
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DE RUEHMC #0307/01 2191435
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 071435Z AUG 09
FM AMCONSUL MONTERREY
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3879
INFO RUEHME/AMEMBASSY MEXICO 4949
RUEHXC/ALL US CONSULATES IN MEXICO COLLECTIVE
RHMFISS/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC
RUEFHLC/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC
RUEABND/DEA HQ WASHDC
RHMFISS/FBI WASHINGTON DC
RHMFISS/HQ USNORTHCOM
RUEABNE/EPIC EL PASO TX
RUEHMC/AMCONSUL MONTERREY 9475
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MONTERREY 000307 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 8/7/2019
TAGS: PGOV PREL KCRM PHUM SNAR SOCI MX
SUBJECT: LOCAL LEADERS STRUGGLE WITH HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES; CULTURE OF
LAWFULNESS PROGRAMS VIEWED AS LONG-TERM SOLUTIONS

REF: A) MONTERREY 274, B) MONTERREY 218

MONTERREY 00000307 001.2 OF 002


CLASSIFIED BY: Bruce Williamson, Principal Officer, Consulate
Monterrey, Department of State.
REASON: 1.4 (b)
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MONTERREY 000307

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 8/7/2019
TAGS: PGOV PREL KCRM PHUM SNAR SOCI MX
SUBJECT: LOCAL LEADERS STRUGGLE WITH HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES; CULTURE OF
LAWFULNESS PROGRAMS VIEWED AS LONG-TERM SOLUTIONS

REF: A) MONTERREY 274, B) MONTERREY 218

MONTERREY 00000307 001.2 OF 002


CLASSIFIED BY: Bruce Williamson, Principal Officer, Consulate
Monterrey, Department of State.
REASON: 1.4 (b)

1. (C) Summary: A joint military/Nuevo Leon state operation to
detain 21 San Pedro police officers (including a commander in
the city's command and control center) on corruption charges has
shocked many in the affluent Monterrey suburb and further
contributed to eroding public confidence in local authorities.
City leaders now find themselves enmeshed in a debate as to what
type of support to offer to the detained officers, as some have
had their legal rights violated, some may have been mistreated
by state authorities while in custody, and some may be innocent.
As the state, buttressed by the military, continues its
campaign to cleanse the various municipal police forces in the
region, other cities will likely find themselves facing similar
situations. Meanwhile, both government and industry leaders
seeking to bolster the rule of law are now looking at NAS-funded
Culture of Lawfulness Project (COLP) programs to strengthen
overall transparency in the long-term. In an August 5 session,
COLP staffer Dr. Heath Grant met with civil society leaders to
coordinate possible joint efforts targeted at police officers,
crime victims, students, and the public at large. The COLP is
pushing for a follow-up meeting with business executives,
perhaps on the margins of the September 2-4 Border Governor's
Conference in Monterrey. End summary.

Arrest of Police Officers Engenders a Host of Problems
-------------- --------------


2. (C) San Pedro city leaders are finding that the effort to
clean-up local police forces has confronted them with difficult
decisions in terms of human rights. At an informal August 5
session of the San Pedro Citizens Advisory Council on Public
Security, held in the wake of the Nuevo Leon state police's
arrest of 21 San Pedro officers on suspicion of collaborating

with the Beltran Leyva cartel (reftel A),attendees told the
Consul General that one officer has been released, four have
confessed, and 16 continue to assert their innocence. City
officials note, however, that the state has disregarded judicial
orders issued governing the officers' detention and that,
according to the defendants' lawyers, some of their clients have
been beaten and tortured while in Nuevo Leon state custody.


3. (C) San Pedro officials are uncertain what to do next.
First, all of the officers detained had passed the city's
confidence screening tests, thereby casting doubt on the
reliability of that process. Second, as arrested police
officers from all over the metro region are being processed at
the State Police Academy, municipal police forces have been
unable to train new officers there and are beginning to lose
manpower due to normal attrition rates. Third, and most
importantly, there is a debate among officials as to what stance
to take vis-`-vis the detained officers.


4. (C) Some note that, given morale concerns, it will be
difficult to establish a top-quality police force if the city
does not support officers who suffer mistreatment while in
custody for an offense which they have not yet been convicted
of. Others point out that, given the public's fervent desire to
clean up the local police, citizens likely would not accept the
use of city monies to defend possible narco-police. (The
original arrests were based, at least in part, on the officers'
names appearing on a payoff list seized during a law enforcement
raid.)





5. (C) Further complicating the picture is the widespread
suspicion among city fathers that the real motive behind the
active state role is the desire to smear the municipality's
model C4 command and control center prior to the state opening
up its own facility. The current San Pedro Mayor and the
Mayor-elect belong to the PAN party; the current Nuevo Leon
state governor and the Governor-elect belong to the PRI.

COLP Programs Emphasize Rule of Law
--------------


6. (C) Meanwhile, On August 5, the Consul General, PolOff, and
Culture of Lawfulness Project (COLP) manager Heath Grant met
with Maurico Ramos, a respected security expert working with the
private industry funded anti-kidnapping organization "Planning
Consultants," based in Monterrey. Ramos heads a
recently-created business effort aimed at bolstering the
capabilities of the state's anti-kidnapping unit, pushing for
changes in the state's governing penal code, and promoting

MONTERREY 00000307 002.2 OF 002


greater transparency and civic awareness (reftel B). Grant,
whose organization is funded under the Merida Initiative,
discussed the possibility of COLP collaboration with Ramos'
organization.


7. (C) Grant outlined both the scope of COLP's current efforts
in Nuevo Leon, working with school children, the state police,
and San Pedro, and major elements of COLP's programs. He noted
the value of reinforcing in children the importance of the rule
of law with projects as basic as a movement against neighborhood
graffiti or instruction on how the purchase of pirated media
supports criminal organizations. Grant also discussed COLP
successes in Sicily, Colombia and Hong Kong as well as an
ongoing project in the Mexican state of Baja California.


8. (C) He cautioned that such projects can take time before
attaining success, often 10 to 20 years. Institutions, such as
the media and churches, must be engaged in the fight against the
corrupting influence of the drug traffickers for any chance of
success, Grant observed. For example, he pointed to the
positive effect of pronouncements by the Italian church
denouncing organized crime.

Outcome Dependent on Civil and Institutional Involvement
-------------- --------------


9. (C) Ramos appeared receptive and agreed that success
depended on participation of government officials, business and
institutions. The education effort, he said, had to be targeted
at youth (citing the statistic that 18-25 year olds commit 76%
of the violent crimes in Mexico),crime victims (urging them to
report incidents to the authorities),the police (explaining how
collaborating with organized crime could ultimately come back to
haunt them),and, of course, the general public.


10. (C) Currently, Ramos stated, the general public had little
confidence in the ability of Mexican authorities to provide
protection as many institutions are riddled with corruption.
Two recent kidnappings of high-profile San Pedro figures had
further shaken society. Some wealthy individuals had brought in
elements to try to locate and eliminate the kidnapping gangs, he
said, but this type of vigilante activity only detracted from
the rule of law and created further problems down the road.

Possible Future Steps
--------------


11. (C) For now, Ramos is moving ahead with his organization's
anti-kidnapping program. He plans to meet with Governor-elect
Rodrigo Medina in the upcoming week to discuss the planned
assistance for the state's anti-kidnapping unit. He agreed to
continue discussions with COLP, perhaps as early as the
September 2-4 Border Governor's Conference, an event which COLP
officials may attend.

Comment
--------------


12. (C) All concerned here, i.e., federal, state, and local
leaders, recognize that, ultimately, civil society will have to
become involved if Nuevo Leon is to be successful in freeing
itself from the influence of organized crime. What bedevils
elected officials, however, is the need for short-term action to
improve security in view of the reality that transparency and
rule of law programs can only yield significant results in the
long-term.
WILLIAMSON