The capture of Joaquin Guzman Loera also known as “El Chapo,” infamous drug lord, has sparked controversy between his supporters and his opponents.
After his capture on Feb. 21, despite his drug lord status many people in Sinaloa and surrounding areas defend El Chapo as a folk hero. El Chapo was said to have protected villages in Sinaloa and built churches. Unfortunately for him, protecting people does not redeem the atrocities committed by El Chapo and his cartel.
His cartel has been responsible for almost 250 deaths for every 100,000 people in one city alone. Juarez City, long plagued with drug violence and murders was turned into a battlefield as the Zetas and the Sinaloa cartels fought for control of the city.
So his capture, despite all the narcocorridos (drug ballads), is a good thing. His ruthless cunning will weaken his cartel. Without his leadership, Mexican security forces might be able to maintain order. Too many people think that he protected people during these cartel battles, without realizing that blood was being spilled because El Chapo was there.
People should stop encouraging the worship of these drug lords. No matter what good deeds they do they are still murderers. Ignoring the deaths and the turmoil only helps the drug cartels.
El Chapo is doing what the American military failed to do in Vietnam, “win their hearts and minds.” That is to say the hearts and minds of the common people.
This kind of thing, this drug lord worship, seems to be deeply engrained in modern Mexican culture.
So much that there’s been protest rallies to free El Chapo. There’s something inherently wrong with people if they can ignore all the horrific things he’s done. Sure he built a church for some villages, doesn’t mean that the hundreds of the deaths he’s responsible for can be forgiven. If these drug lord supporters can move away from this, maybe Mexico can move away from this self-destructive behavior.
With El Chapo’s micro-managing effectively crippled by his capture, maybe his billion dollar empire can slowly begin to decay without strong leadership. Without him, his Sinaloa cartel may be reduced to petty power struggles within itself, weakening its hold on Mexican cities. El Chapo’s capture may not bring immediate peace to the country, but it is a start.
