Announced Medellin ‘social cleansing’ undermines democracy: security expert
Announced Medellin ‘social cleansing’ undermines democracy: security expert
posted by Philipp Zwehl
Jan 17, 2014
An unknown group claimed to have taken justice in their own hands, distributing a flyer in social media platforms announcing to carry out “social cleansing” acts against criminals in Colombia’s second largest town of Medellin, national media reported on Thursday.
The pamphlet occurred in several social media platforms on Wednesday, announcing “social cleansing” acts against criminals committing thefts and robberies in Medellin. The flyer was signed by a yet unknown group calling themselves “Citizens tired of Crime” (“Cicarya”).
Security expert Heidy Gomez from the University of Antioquia told Colombia Reports that incidents like this are worrying, because the claim of carrying out “justified acts of force on behalf of ‘good citizens’” would undermine democracy because they threaten the state’s jurisdiction over the use of deadly force.
“Furthermore acts like this are promoting the proliferation of violence in a city where already violence is considered almost the only alternative for resolving conflicts, a condition that has negatively affected the development of Colombia’s society on local and national level,” the security expert said.
More:
http://colombiareports.co/unknown-group-announces-actions-social-cleansing-medellin/