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El Salvador Guatemala prohibits the maras, Guatemala fears a flight of just killers

The all new law banning Salvadoran maras, gangs feared members tattooed from head to toe, creates skepticism of judicial circles and concerned neighbors, who fear a flight of offenders to their territory. "Those who join such a band shall be punished by 4 to 6 years in prison, organizers or leaders of 7 to 10 years" , said the decree implementing the new law, effective Sunday.

Crime is soaring in El Salvador, with an average of 13 murders a day and numerous armed robberies committed by gang members. The Mara 18 and Mara Salvatrucha, the gang's most famous, were born in the 80 districts in the "Latino" Los Angeles, then the phenomenon has spread to Central America with the expulsion of hundreds of young U.S. States to their countries of origin. Although 7,000 of their members are in jail, they could always rely on 9000 20 000 men recruited disaffected youth in poor neighborhoods, according to the Salvadoran police. "Maras", short for "marabunta", a carnivorous Amazonian ant, are also tens of thousands of members in the United States, Honduras and Guatemala. In El Salvador, the Mara 18 and Mara Salvatrucha, involved in drug trafficking and weapons, extortion and kidnapping, also showed off their weight at the beginning of the month by blocking for three days to try public transport prevent the enactment of the law interdisant.Le Attorney for Human Rights, Oscar Luna, but in perspective the impact of this text, by calling the authorities not to give "false hopes" about its effectiveness.


Ci-cons in photo: Oscar Coronado, a member of the gang Mara 18, during his trial in Guatemala, September 16, 2010.

The two neighboring countries, Guatemala and Honduras, they do not hide their concern.

"We will not let the thugs in El Salvador using Honduras as summer camp or come in spa" , said Monday the Honduran Minister of Security, Oscar Alvarez. Of "special units" are on alert at the border, he added. Guatemala also strengthens the controls at the border of El Salvador, especially since it has much to do with Mexican gangs. "We are full of Zetas, they began to settle in Guatemala in 2004 and the trend intensified in 2007" says the president, Alvaro Colom, in an interview with Mexican newspaper La Jornada. The Zetas, created in Mexico in the late 90s by deserters from elite troops of the army and held responsible for the recent massacre of 72 illegal immigrants near the U.S. border, are "already managed to control four regions" Guatemala, Colom says. Two regions, however, were "recovered" by the government, "he adds. "We have 47 in our prisons, some Guatemalans, the majority Mexican , says he.

The Mexican cartels have long established their "relay" through Central America, natural crossing point for cocaine produced in Colombia and mainly consumed primarily in the United States.