A month ago, Guayaquil entered the ranking of the 50 most violent cities in the world, according to the Citizen Council for Public Security and Criminal Justice AC, a civil organization that tracks violence on the continent.
Since then, the government has already been talking about a security plan for Guayaquil, a plan that this Friday will finally be announced by President Guillermo Lasso and that tries to contain the wave of hired assassins and other crimes that are registered mainly because of drug trafficking.
The figures compiled by the National Police demonstrate this, since only between January 1 and April 8, 2022 351 people have been killed in Zone 8 (Guayaquil, Durán and Samborondón), 216 more cases than last year, when to date they were 135 violent deaths.
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Nationwide there are 1,042 murders.
Víctor Hugo Zárate, police commander of Zone 8, revealed days ago that the 86% of crimes in its territory it occurs because of drugs; 8%, due to interpersonal violence; and 6%, for theft. He also indicated that 10% has already been resolved and that the rest is under investigation.
Zárate stressed that if the northern border is not shielded and the entry of drugs is stopped, the murders will not stop. “You have to attack the cause of the problem, not the consequences,” he said.
Like the murders, drug seizures also increased. In 2021, to date, they had been seized 35 tonswhile in 2022 they are already 60 tonsalmost 30 of them in Zone 8.
The number of robberies against people also rose, in the same sector it went from 2,194 cases reported in 2021 to 2,540 in 2022. The crime of car theft also went from 645 a 902 cases until April 4.
Even before analyzing these statistics, in January, the president announced from Guayaquil the delivery of $9 million to strengthen the National Police, within the strategies to improve security.
However, the institution still does not receive these resources, as indicated.
It was also assured then that 1,100 uniformed men would arrive in Guayaquil to contain the violent acts, but, according to a police source, only a little more than 650 policemen have arrived.
The General in passive service of the National Police Abraham Correa, security adviser, pointed out that as part of the Government’s security plan, the critical zones in the different localities of the country must be identified. And in those sectors, he said, design comprehensive interventions, but not momentary but permanent, because crime and violence “ramp” every day.
“The uniformed force, the public force has to intervene 24 hours a day with the corresponding relays, so that the personnel does not run out. The personnel cannot be occupied 24 hours a day, because that will reduce their strength”, he commented.
Another aspect that the ex-police officer considered important is that there be an articulation between the institutions involved such as the National Police, the Prosecutor’s Office and the Judicial function.
“But let it not be just today, tomorrow or the day after. Everything has to always be coordinated. The idea is that crime is not allowed to breathe,” Correa commented, adding that at this point the support that the Executive gives to the public force is also vital, something that for now, according to him, is not felt.
“That is why the uniformed men do not develop their full capacity, because they see themselves diminished, because they see themselves as orphans, because there is no one who encourages them, who guarantees them,” said the general in passive service.
Regarding the prison crisis, he mentioned agreeing with the isolation of the leaders of criminal organizations in a special regime, as has happened this week with five inmates from the Turi prison who were brought to La Roca, in Guayaquil, after a massacre. of 20 inmates.
Three weeks ago, Max Campos, then deputy minister of government, told EL UNIVERSO that the new security plan for Guayaquil not only highlights the work that the uniformed officers will carry out in the streets, but also talks about implementing a new policy based on the urban security, in disarming young people, in designing an inclusive urban planning, in getting young people out of drugs and in prevention.
He said that there are 5 objectives, 24 strategies and 79 actions that will be launched in the city, and that he hopes that the coordination between local authorities and the national government will be adequate to carry out various projects.
In terms of inclusive urbanism, the vice minister pointed out that 67% of deaths occur in public spaces that, according to him, are the responsibility of the municipalities, for which he mentioned that in Guayaquil the Mayor’s Office surveys public spaces, especially in critical areas, to find out which are the spaces with the most risks and thus be able to rescue them through urban design.
Colonel in passive service Rodrigo Braganza, current head of Security at the University of Espiritu Santo Specialties (UEES), agrees with the recovery of public spaces, since he mentions that on Saturdays and Sundays what the police do most is remove libators and This is dealt with by personnel who could be patrolling to avoid crimes.
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He believes that buying trucks and motorcycles is not going to solve the situation in Guayaquil, he believes that the causes must be analyzed, among which would be the consumption of alcohol and drugs, the presence of chamberos in the streets, the prison crisis, the lack of technology (few cameras) and little support from the justice system for police work.
Braganza mentioned that reception centers for consumers and recyclers should be created. But he highlighted the technological implementation that is needed in the city.
“Implement cameras with software facial recognition, license plate readers, is super important and it would be ideal to have a single monitoring center. In the university there is a facial recognition system and license plate readers and we have helped to capture several criminals, how is it possible that Guayaquil does not have that”, said Colonel Braganza. (I)
Source: Eluniverso
Mario Twitchell is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his insightful and thought-provoking writing on a wide range of topics including general and opinion. He currently works as a writer at 247 news agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
