Demián Revart
Shouting “Long live our comunitarios!, Only people can defend people!”, inhabitants and a group of organized women of communities that integrate the Juan R. Escudero municipality in the Mexican state of Guerrero, created a whole celebration clime and remembrances on this past February 2 in honor to the Community Police of Tierra Colorada -the capital town of the region- which belongs to the confederalist and autonomous security project “FUSDEG” (United Front for Security & Development of Guerrero State).
On a trucks caravan -some of its have been expropiated from the now inactive municipal and State police- around 160 comunitarios realized a path course along the demarcation villages. Curious were the messages and greetings interchanged between inhabitants and comunitarios, because unlike of government police, the Community Police is conformed by humble people and recognized by their equals, so its effectivity emerges from the bosom of villages. It’s ordinary that population has some family or friends in the Community Police!
On March 26, 2013, people decided to rise up in arms for expell the many drug cartels and its criminal cells -coloquially known as “the maña”– for the reason that “have been many violence by organized delinquency against citizens (..) they were kidnapping, extorting and charging taxes for the floor”, narrates Commandant Maximino, who without let an large weapon that is “more like a symbol because it was expropiated from the bad persons”, received the different groups of comunitarios -as if he had not seen them for years- who joined to the community base of Tierra Colorada for the celebration.
The positive results of this autonomous security project are so visible in a state panorama concerning that “we were already in Petaquillas -Chilpancingo city- and Xaltianguis -Acapulco turistic zone- for give a hand to affected communities by extreme violence levels of carteles, however, they and other ‘community polices’ (1) at the government service were meeting for expell us, due they did not want to lose ‘their conquer territories’ from overnight”.
“Comrades have been attacked till death. Few months ago we were attacked with grenades and high calibre weapons”, says Maximino without hiding indignation feelings in face of this event.
“This struggle is strenous, continous and very dangerous, but it has worth”, comments one of the teachers of advanced age who since morning did the clean up of the place and also cleaned 100 chairs to receive their comrades in the best conditions.
The FUSDEG has presence in La Palma, Las Piñas, Omitlán, Palo Gordo, Potrero, Tlayolapa, Tlachocouite, Villa Guerrero, Garrapatas and other tens of peoples, giving the security “service” (between quotation marks, due the communitarios tell us that is more like a voluntary resistance and with all the pleasure of the world) both in the capital town -of more urban style- as in the rural zones.
“We do not get into territories how other armed groups do it, to help people it must do with all respect together the communities and taking into consideration their local and democratic authorities to they can defend themselves in a autonomus way (…) only it is to give a hand, it is mutual aid”.
Currently, both coordinators and comandants -all of them elected by public assemblies- have tought more that “this is not of acronyms, but is of the people, that bit by bit the idea of community self-defense will expand to national level but not by armed groups already existing, the organization must be from the people, the territories and thus we advance to dignity that how much we deserve here, as Chilpancingo, as Acapulco as the Mexico City”
Thereby, with a popular banquet and music for get the party on, the inhabitants rendered thanks with this simple and subtle detail to all these personas who sacrifice their dreams to defend the dream of an entire town.
(1) Some paramilitary groups in Guerrero are self-calling like “Community Police”, despite poor communities and revolutionary organizations know they have direct links with cartels and State
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