TOO MANY COOKS IN THE KITCHEN; DIFFERENCES EMERGE BETWEEN SELF-DEFENSE LEADERS

The municipal president of Paracuaro expresses support for the Cinco5

DD Note;
The citizens self-defense movement is entering a crucial phase.  As it has grown and expanded very rapidly, several strong leaders have emerged.   Overall that is good thing even though there will inevitably be tensions and disagreements between strong leaders.   That is the natural course of things. 

But the risk is there that personality cults can develop.  As their power increases will ambitions and goals increase past the original purpose of defending their families and property?   
The self-defense movement has not been an insurrection against the government, it has been an insurrection against the lack of government.   Could the movement evolve into armed groups trying to seek political change through force?   
I applaud the citizens in other states that have shed their apathy and stood up for themselves, but some of them seem to have  a goal based on political change rather than self-defense. That could spell trouble for the self-defense groups don't maintain that distinction.   
A group in Pueblo recently announced their formation of Common Front For Peaceful Civil Resistance (FCRCP).   According to an article in Proceso, The FCRCP emerged out of protests from past local elections, held in July, in which armed individuals who were favoring the success of Rigoberto David Martínez Rosas, nominated by the PT (Labor Party in Mexico), as mayor of San Gabriel Chilac.

In addition to announcing that they’ll be monitoring the entrances and exits of the municipality, Alfaro also said that they’ll also be preventing the swearing in of Martínez Rosas as mayor on February 14. 

That sounds more like a revolutionary talk than self-defense.  There have been times that I have thought that a revolution might be only way to clean out the corruption that permeates Mexican government at all levels.  But then I think back to the consequences of the last revolution – 1,300,000 Mexicans killed and the creation of a government that evolved into PRI.   No one should want to see that happen again.   As hard as it is for me to put any trust in any agreement the EPN administration enters into with the people, maybe the agreement entered into yesterday with the self-defense movement can accomplish some good.  

Self defense is not the same as self management.  With the strong leaders in the self-defense movement involved, maybe this agreement can provide a command infrastructure for a more cohesive  self-defense movement and be a launching pad for the giant leap to self=management.

This article from la Jornado (translated by Mexico Voices) shows the differences of some of the leaders and tension that has arisen in the self-defense movement.

 

Jan. 27, Morelia, Michoacán - Eleven months after the self-defense movement began in regions of the Tierra Caliente [Hot Land], the western highlands and part of the [Pacific] coast of Michoacán, leaders of the community guards today expressed serious differences. The so-called Comandante Cinco [Commander Five] said that Hipólito Mora is a television icon,

''but he never left the town of La Ruana, he didn't venture out even 20 meters in order to continue advancing.''

Hipolto Mora

Meanwhile, Mora said that the movement was contaminated with people whose interests are different from those of the initial struggle. Even more serious, he said, is that the comunitarios [community members] are quarreling among themselves.

Comandante Cinco, who heads the expansion of the self-defense groups into Tancítaro and Parácuaro, said in an interview that

"the self-defense groups were not born with Hipólito. He joined us but never left the town of La Ruana. He remained stuck (in that area). We, natives of Tepalcatepec, we have advanced, because first the people of Coalcomán, Aguililla, Chinicuila and the others asked for our support.''

According to Comandante Cinco, Hipólito Mora became a television icon because he was the one who showed his face all the time, and he relies on government support, which keeps him shielded.

''We are cleaning up the region with Simón El Americano, El Burrito, and with the people of El Aguaje, with Misael and Felipe from Coalcomán,'' he said.

He also maintained that in his movement there are no personal interests; thus arose the idea of ​​forming citizen councils in the municipalities in order [for them] to take responsibility for the security of their families,''because we're leaving." He explained that while it is stated that he is involved with the New Generation Jalisco cartel, that's a lie.

''If we had wanted from the beginning for another cartel (opposed to The Knights Templar) to move in, we'd have opened the door and said to them, 'Come on in, have at it with them [The Templars]'. But we are fed up. We don't want any other cartel whatsoever.''

He said that Tepalcatepec was once a town very damaged while two cartels, The Knights Templar and The Millenium, operated there. He said that this municipality is a crossroads toward Colima, Jalisco (neighboring state), and Michoacán.

Papa Shorty, On Alert

Estanislao Beltran Torres, known as Papa shorty with Knights Templar confiscated sword.

 On January 4, the coordinator of the self-defense groups, the physician José Manuel Mireles, had an accident in the plane in which he was riding and was temporarily out of the movement. Into his place stepped Estanislao Beltrán Torres, known as Papa Shorty, who shares responsibility for events with Comandante Cinco.

When Tepalcatepec and Buenavista Tomatlán took up arms, on February 24, 2013, the surgeon José Manuel Mireles was just involved in the self-defense movement,

''but one day it was our turn to talk with a military commander, and he and Mireles understood each other. We saw that he had a good dialogue, then we decided that he was the spokesman for the self-defense groups,'' said Comandante Cinco.

First Spokesperson: A Templar

In the first days of the movement, the one who showed his face to the communications media was a person who later turned out to be a hitman for The Templars. When they [self-defense members] discovered him, he barely had time to escape.

So Hipólito Mora appeared. Hipólito Mora, head of the self-defense group from the village of Felipe Carrillo Puerto, known as La Ruana, in the municipality of Buenavista Tomatlán, is a recognized and respected person in this city of more than 10,000 residents. Mora saw that the federal forces had first detained 37 members of the self-defense group in La Ruana and then another 17 from the municipal seat of government, of which 45 are still in prison. 

el Americano showing pistol taken from Templars

Almost from the beginning, Mora took charge of La Ruana, coordinated by other people who were joined by Simon, El Americano, who later joined Mireles's group.

Don Polo, who also knows Mora, said that he has confidence that the federal forces will assume control of public security, and that they will arrest The Templars' most important bosses. But he also made clear that their weapons cannot be delivered before [the drug bosses are arrested]. Similarly, he reserves his right not to accompany the other groups in expanding the movement.

Hipólito has not been clear in stating why he didn't accompany the self-defense groups during the process of expansion. He only says that it was contaminated by the entry of dozens of people with other interests.

What the press sees is that there are no comunitarios [community members] from La Loma, Jalisco [stronghold of New Generation Jalisco Cartel]. There are some repentant former Templars and some people who manage weapons very well, as if they might have received professional instruction. Mora and Estanislao Beltrán are the closest to ordinary citizens from this region of Tierra Caliente.

One, a Physician; the Other, a Horse Breeder

  

On the other side, of the group from Tepalcatepec, Mireles and Comandante Cinco

 --the first, a physician; the second, a horse breeder--say that their struggle is genuine and that they seek liberation not just of one town, but of all Michoacán.