Nicolás Maduro’s regime ceded control of parts of Venezuela to gangs and guerrilla groups

Get out of the zone! Get the kids out! Gang members shouted over loudspeakers as they walked through the El Cementerio neighborhood, northwest of the Venezuelan capital, on the morning of Thursday, July 8. The warning signaled to locals that the shooting was not going to end anytime soon. By this time, residents of the neighborhood had been locked in their homes for more than half a day, many lying on the ground to avoid being shot. Over the next 48 hours, El Cementerio and five other neighboring neighborhoods were crippled by an unprecedented display of firepower from organized crime gangs, better known to their neighbors as “los Muchachos”.

Armed clashes between police and a gang group of at least 300 people in various neighborhoods in western Caracas are a sign that Nicolás Maduro loses control of parts of Venezuela, who are suffering from a deep economic crisis and a long breakdown in the rule of law.

Something similar happened in border states, where Colombian rebels who administer justice in rural areas they spent weeks fighting Venezuelan troops in clashes that killed a dozen soldiers and forced thousands of residents to flee. Inside Venezuela, local gangs also control the territory and establish their laws.

“It is becoming more and more evident that Maduro is losing control inside and outside Caracas,” said Alexander Campos., researcher at the Central University of Venezuela who studies violence in this South American country. “The capacity and ambition of criminal groups, from gangs to guerrillas, is growing, ”he added.

Security experts say the violent operations launched by the Maduro government in 2015 called the “People’s Liberation Operation” (PLO) helped consolidate gang groups. They first operated in the neighborhood of Cota 905 and neighboring areas giving them a common enemy. Human rights groups said it also led to hundreds of extrajudicial executions and that the violence persisted.

In 2017, the gangs struck a deal with Maduro to operate without police in some areas in return for reduced violence. The streets have become safer, some residents said. But gangs have become even more powerful thanks to the increase in drug trafficking and recruitment of childrenresidents said, adding that they are now armed with grenades and assault rifles.

Members of the gang have won favor with some residents by distributing food and hosting live music nights amid the country’s devastating economic crisis, said residents who asked to reserve their names.

Teenagers with shortwave radios earn around $ 100 a week, more than 30 times the minimum wage, to guard checkpoints in most corners of the neighborhood, said José Antonio Rengifo, a 34-year-old teacher. In areas ignored by state institutions, neighbors approach gangs to seek resolutions to disputes ranging from domestic violence to theft.

“Up there is family,” said Wilfredo Corniel, a 45-year-old Catholic priest, pointing to the brick and mortar houses that stretch up the hillside. “The government is losing ground and credibility,” he added.

Although the Cota 905 gang has four leaders, according to neighbors, the group is known as the “El Koki gang,” in reference to the best-known leader, Carlos Luis Revete.

Security experts believe that the expansion of gangs over the past six months in the neighborhoods near El Cementerio and Cota 905, northwest and south of the city, is a strategy to dominate the roads that connect Caracas, which would allow them to control the shipments. to the capital.

Following a shooting on July 7, the government arrested opposition leader Freddy Guevara and accused opposition leader Leopoldo López of working with gangs to organize the shootings as part of a plot to to destabilize the government. They both deny the allegations.

Venezuela’s information ministry did not respond to the request for comment.

Neither the gangs nor the government have said what sparked the confrontation, but it apparently started with police shooting a gang leader allied with El Koki, according to a source familiar with the matter.

On July 8, the government released posters on official television seeking out the leaders of the mega-gang, offering a reward of $ 500,000 for information leading to their arrest. But by then, residents said, they had already fled the area. Security forces, normally visible only on the main commercial artery of El Cementerio, have been deployed in the area. The Cota 905 area was left without power.

Between Thursday and Sunday of last week, representatives of the Caracas-based non-governmental organization Mi Convive, which runs soup kitchens in gang-controlled neighborhoods, crowded inside their homes surrounded by children. , said Héctor Navarro, director of the organization. They only heard gunshots.

For three days they were without light. On Saturday, they ran out of water. In the neighborhood, where most live hand to mouth due to the economic collapse, several residents were left without food. Many fled the region with suitcases in hand.

Residents said police ransacked many homes, stealing food, electronics and household items like pots and pans. Photos of houses after police visits examined by Reuters showed belongings strewn around living rooms and shattered windows.

Clashes between the police and the gang left at least 26 dead, including four police officers, and 38 injured, Miraflores reported on July 10. But non-governmental organization Victim Monitor documented 37 deaths, including four officers and, by stray bullets, 22 people who were apparently not gang members.

The following Monday, the shops were open on the main avenue of El Cementerio with queues around the vendors of fruits, vegetables and empanadas. The only signs of fire were the windows cracked by stray bullets and the “Wanted” signs all around. Police destroyed most of the gang’s checkpoints, but Reuters could see young teenagers at a new stand on the stairs leading to what locals say is one of El Koki’s homes on the border between La Cota 905 and El Cementerio.

Some young men and other villagers have not yet returned home for fear of the security forces, who continue to operate in the town.

Several residents of El Cementerio prefer gangs. “I would much rather live with the Koki than with the police, who only steal”said one of the residents of El Cementerio.

By Sarah Kinosian and Vivian Sequera – Reuters

KEEP READING: