Police reforms: the voice of police and residents in Mexico City

Abstract

Although attempted on a daily basis, it is difficult to truly analyse the problems faced by police today, both as an institution and as a part of society, due to the complex current situation in Mexico. The lack of public safety is not only due to crime, but also to the ongoing “war” between the government and drug-traffickers. ‘Police problems, beyond their objective foundation, have become an ideological tool generating both supporters and critics of an issue that has been politicized and used to promote consent or dissent’. It has become the story of the hour, and everybody has their opinion on the topic, but lacking is a deeper understanding of the sociopolitical process that has led up to the current situation in Mexico. ‘Faced with threats and lack of security, the government and public opinion turned to the first familiar and available option they had: the police. They expected that a more efficient and effective police force would be able to solve the security problem.’ There is continuous discussion about the police, never from a broad-based perspective, but always as if they were an isolated subject existing in another dimension separate from the rest of us. The police are not considered part of society. In our collective imagination the police represent a social group separate from ‘us’. Nevertheless, they are still thought of as the solution to the security problem.

Keywords:

• police reform
• Mexico City
• social perception

Notes

1. Translator's Note: PAN = National Action Party. PRD = Democratic Revolutionary Party.

2. It is important to note that in 1994 the PRI governed the Federal District and since 2000 it has been governed by the PRD.

3. For example, the National System of Public Safety has a dedicated budget item since 1999 for community participation in public safety programs, without ever defining these terms.

4. I define this term as a change in perspective and building the possibility of a new horizon.

5. Translator's Note: Distrito Federal or D.F.=the seat of Mexico's Federal Government, equivalent to Washington D.C. in the United States and often used as a synonym for Mexico City.

6. This woman is referring to the fact that business give out gifts or tips more frequently than residents.