Thursday, April 12, 2012

A to Z: Kidnap, Kidnapped, Kidnapping


Look at these words--read them to yourself a few times. KIDNAP. KIDNAPPED. KIDNAPPING. Don't they start to look funny? Like... They lose their meaning the more you look at them, right?

That's kind of what's happened in Mexico. And, I imagine, in Colombia during the 80's rampage of FARC-associated kidnappings. We tend to lose perspective when things are too close.


Mexico is no stranger to kidnappings. In the 70's people "of means" took to hiring bodyguards (guardaespaldas, slanged into guarros--yeah, practice that rolled R, people). Children were escorted to and from school by burly frowning suits that filled schoolyards with the crackling of radios.

The 90's brought the secuestro express, or "express kidnapping". And the new millenium brought cash-hungry (and bloodthirsty) drug lords who take their lessons from The Godfather. Severed fingers or ears are delivered with ransom notes, and kidnappees are as likely to be killed with or without payment of the ransom.

It's a different game now, and no one knows the rules.

Kidnapping is an extremely profitable fund-raising activity. As long as there's illegal stuff going on (from drug dealing to guerilla warfare--and why do those two so often go hand-in-hand?), the world won't be rid of it.

Unless, of course, we all go Mel-Gibson and refuse to negotiate. But--really, who has the guts to do that?

The bigger problem, in Mexico at least, is that the justice system has lost perspective, too. When it comes to kidnapping--to the general drug-related violence--they're either completely ineffective or they go overboard.

You might--or might not--have heard something in the news lately about a certain French girl, Florence Cassez, who's been convicted for kidnapping in Mexico. She's the subject of tomorrow's post. Her case is an excellent illustration of everything that's wrong with Mexico's judicial system.

8 comments :

  1. Wow. thanks for bringing this to our attention. Important stuff.

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    1. Thanks for reading, Helen. Glad you found it interesting.

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  2. Very interesting post, Guilie. I was going to click on the link, until I saw you planned to fill us in tomorrow. I'm sure your version will be better written.

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    1. Awww... Thanks :) You might need to click on the link anyway after you read today's post on Ms. Florence, because there's no way I can fit all the info into a single post... Not unless I make it 1500 words long, haha!

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  3. The severed finger of a loved-one must be someone's worst nightmare. They'll never be the same again. To my mind, kidnapping is one of the worst crimes. It goes against the commandment: Love thy neighbor. How could a person use another this way? So wrong. My pity goes to all those who have experienced this themselves or through someone they know. Blog on!

    http://francene-wordstitcher.blogspot.com

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    1. I agree, Francene. Fortunately I haven't experienced that, nor has anyone I know, but you're right--it must be a terrible, terrible thing. And yes, kidnapping is the worst form of depersonalization. To deprive someone of their freedom is bad enough, but to do it for profit seems somehow the lowest of the low. It's not like these people are deluded or psychotic; they know perfectly well that what they're doing is wrong. No excuse. None at all.

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  4. Mexico is in such a state of anarchy right now. I honestly don't even know how to intelligently comment on it, at the moment.

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  5. I live very close to Mexico, and most everyone in my city is from there or has relatives living there. It's just a hot mess. Sad. Sad. Sad. Of course everyone knows the U.S. has issues with immigration from Mexico, but I'm generally like, "If you lived there you'd want out too. At whatever cost."

    Their government is literally useless.

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