2016年经济学人 玩火自焚 自发群众运动遏制失败墨西哥厝火积薪

 

Bello

贝优

Dallying¹ with a monster

玩火自焚

In failing to snuff out vigilantism, Mexico is running big risks

自发群众运动遏制失败，墨西哥厝火积薪

THE rule of law has long been a stranger to the sweltering lowlands known as the Tierra Caliente in the Mexican state of Michoacan. The site of battles over land in the 1940s and 1950s, the area suffered an exodus² of migrant workers to California. In the 1970s the drug trade took root there, attracted by the proximity³ of the por to fLazaro Cardenasand the remoteness of the federal government inMexico City. Not content with trafficking methamphetamines, the latest mafia to lord it over the Tierra Caliente, the whimsically named “Knights Templar”, established a tight grip over its invertebrate⁴ society, co-opting local authorities, extorting⁵ protection money and raping⁶ women.

在墨西哥米却肯州名为Tierra Caliente的闷热低地，法律法规早为人熟视无睹。20世纪40年代至50年代，这一地区饱受土地战争洗礼，大量工人涌至加利福尼亚。因毗邻拉萨罗卡德纳斯港，远离墨西哥城联邦政府，70年代毒品交易于此根深蒂固。最近，“Knights Templar”黑帮在此盘踞，其名称极为古怪，继冰毒走私无法满足其胃口，又紧锣密鼓的占领了这一软弱无力的地区，选出地方政府，敲诈保护费，凌辱妇女。

That proved too much for the Tierra Caliente's ranchers and lime-growers. A year ago they rebelled, forming “self-defence groups”. These vigilantes now control 26 of Michoacan's 113 municipal districts. When earlier this year they threatened to storm Apatzingan, a town of 99,000, President Enrique Pe?a Nieto dispatched a federal official, Alfredo Castillo, and a squad⁷ of federal policemen. Mr Castillo struck agreements with the vigilantes: they will be vetted⁸, in theory at least, and then join an ill-defined “rural defence corps” under the army's aegis⁹.

当地的牧场主及酸橙种植户忍无可忍，于一年前揭竿而起，成立自卫组织。如今这些自发群众已控制米却肯州113个地区中的26个。今年伊始，他们威胁称着手攻克阿帕钦甘—一99000人的镇。总统裴纳尼托派遣联邦官员Alfredo Castillo以及一中队联邦警察处理此事，Castillo与自发群众达成协议，至少从理论上而言，他们要接受审查，并编入农村防卫军接受军队保护，但该防卫军定义模糊。

The vigilantes have attracted sympathy from right and left inMexico, which see them as legitimate¹⁰ expressions of popular desperation in the face of mafia violence and official neglect. The government seems perplexed¹¹. Mr Castillo said he would restore order “in 15 days”, but there is no sign that he has a thought-out strategy to deal either with the vigilantes or the lawlessness that spawned¹² them.

墨西哥左派和右派对自发群众深为同情，认为他们在黑帮的暴力与政府的不作为中，以合法的方式，传达出普遍的绝望。政府似乎手足无措，Castillo称他将在15天内恢复秩序，但他并没有一个经过深思熟虑的方略，处理这些自发组织的群众，解决酿成此事的法律缺失。

That is alarming, especially since the germ of vigilantism has appeared elsewhere inMexico. Experience in other Latin American countries suggests that Mr Pe?a's people risk dallying with a monster.Colombiais the most notorious case. In the 1980s landowners and ranchers, faced with attacks by left-wing guerrillas, organised vigilante groups. These quickly mushroomed into the United Self-Defence Forces of Colombia, a national organisation¹³ of over 20,000 paramilitaries who slaughtered¹⁴ tens of thousands of civilians¹⁶ and stole their land while morphing into drug-trafficking outfits¹⁷. Although most disbanded after a government security build-up, remnants have murdered more than 60 farmers to thwart¹⁸ efforts to restore stolen land to its rightful owners.

自发运动在墨西哥其他地区出现之后，尤其触目警心。其他拉美国家的经历表明墨西哥人民将玩火自焚。哥伦比亚便是一个臭名昭著的例子。80年代，地主和牧场主遭到由群众自发组织的左翼游击战攻击，后来发展为哥伦比亚联合自卫队，这一国家组织由超过2000名准军事成员组成，并逐渐演变为毒品走私组织，屠杀了成百上千名平民，夺走了他们的土地。虽然政府安全部队建立后，自卫队大多解体，但残余势力仍杀害了60名农民，企图阻挠土地回归合法拥有者。

On the face of things, Peru's experience of vigilantism was more successful. Villagers in Cajamarca, in the country's northern Andes, formed rondas campesinas (a sort of neighbourhood watch) in the 1970s, to tackle cattle-rustling and rural crime. Further south, around Ayacucho and theApurimac valley, in the 1980s and 1990s the army fostered lightly armed peasant self-defence committees. These helped defeat the Shining Path, a Maoist guerrilla group.

表面来看，秘鲁的群众自卫组织经历更为成功。70年代，该国安第斯北部Cajamarca省的群众自卫组织对周边起到了一种监视作用，处理偷牛及其他农村犯罪案件。在80年代和90年代的Ayacucho和 Apurimac 山村，在军队的支持下，这里成立了轻武装农民自卫委员会，这对抵御光辉道路游击队，即毛派人游击队大有裨益。

Although the Shining Path has long since faded, the vigilantes are stronger than ever. In the Apurimacvalley, they have turned into well-armed militias¹⁹ of coca growers. In Cajamarca the rondas are now led by rural schoolteachers from a far-left party; they battle mining companies and are the real power in the land, says Rubén Vargas, a security consultant²⁰.

虽然光辉道路游击队很久以前就衰弱，但自那以后群众自卫组织的势力日趋强大。在Apurimac山村，他们已成为武装精良的古柯种植者。在卡哈马卡，监视部队如今受极左党派的学校教师领导，安全顾问Rubén Vargas说，他们与矿业公司对抗，独霸一方。

The common element in all three countries is the weakness of law enforcement in rural areas. That is what tempts²¹ governments and security forces to ally themselves with vigilantes. This can bring short-term results against guerrillas or drug-traffickers, but in the long run it makes things worse. As Mauricio Romero, a political scientist at Javeriana University in Bogota, points out, once vigilantes acquire coercive power, the temptation to use this for private ends—revenge attacks, drug-trafficking or other criminal activities—is simply too great.

三国的共同点在于农村法律缺位，这也是政府和安保部队与自发群众部队联合的原因。短期内，此举有助于抗击游击部队和毒品走私贩，但长远的境况只会江河日下。如Bogota Javeriana大学政治学家Mauricio Romero所言，一旦这些自发部队获强制权，为己所用，从事复仇行动，毒品走私及其他犯罪行为的诱惑无从遏制。

The embryo²² of the monster is already implanted in the Tierra Caliente. The self-defence forces turn out to have members with dubious²³ pasts and the kind of weaponry—assault rifles and improvised²⁴ armoured cars—that is the trademark²⁵ of narcos. They have split into warring factions²⁶, and are imposing²⁷ and ejecting mayors.

恶魔的胚芽已在Tierra Caliente植根，自卫军中，部分人经历可疑，装备有突击步枪类的武器以及拼凑而成的装甲车—贩毒的标志，他们分化成对立的小股部队，欺压和排挤市长。

Mr Pe?a entered office with one big new idea on security: speedily to set up a rural gendarmerie of at least 40,000 troops, retrained as policemen, fromMexico's unnecessarily large army. By putting bodies on the ground and protecting the politicians and judges, this force would have been tailor-made for Tierra Caliente. But the army and state governors killed the plan. Instead, a much smaller gendarmerie of 5,000 civilian¹⁵ recruits will launch later this year. That seems too little, too late. For all its recent successes against drug kingpins, the political defeat over the gendarmerie may come to haunt Mr Pe?a and his administration.

Pe?a总统怀揣着一个有关安全问题的宏伟想法走入办公室，即加快步伐，从墨西哥的冗兵中抽调至少有40000人，建立一农村宪兵队，作为警察发挥效用，抗击威胁，保护政客法官，这支武装力量对Tierra Caliente负责。但军队及州政府否决了这项计划，他们将在今年年底通过平民招募成立一支远远要小的武装，只有5000人来取而代之。此武装似乎力量单薄，成立过晚. 考虑到它最近打击毒枭的功绩，Pe?a政府可能为宪兵队上的政治失利耿耿于怀。

1 dallying   

v.随随便便地对待( dally的现在分词 )；不很认真地考虑；浪费时间；调情

参考例句：

• They've been dallying with the idea for years. 他们多年来一直有这个想法，但从没有认真考虑过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This kind of dallying is, in a sense, optimal. 从某种意义上来说，这种延迟是最理想的。 来自互联网

2 exodus   

v.大批离去，成群外出

参考例句：

• The medical system is facing collapse because of an exodus of doctors.由于医生大批离去，医疗系统面临崩溃。
• Man's great challenge at this moment is to prevent his exodus from this planet.人在当前所遇到的最大挑战，就是要防止人从这个星球上消失。

3 proximity   

n.接近，邻近

参考例句：

• Marriages in proximity of blood are forbidden by the law.法律规定禁止近亲结婚。
• Their house is in close proximity to ours.他们的房子很接近我们的。

4 invertebrate   

n.无脊椎动物

参考例句：

• Half of all invertebrate species live in tropical rain forests.一半的无脊椎动物物种生活在热带雨林中。
• Worms are an example of invertebrate animals.蠕虫是无脊椎动物的一个例子。

5 extorting   

v.敲诈( extort的现在分词 )；曲解

参考例句：

• Corrupt government officials were extorting money from him. 腐败的政府官员向他敲诈钱财。 来自辞典例句
• He's been charged with extorting protection money from the shopkeepers. 他被指控对店主敲诈勒索保护费。 来自互联网

6 raping   

v.以暴力夺取，强夺( rape的现在分词 )；强奸

参考例句：

• In response, Charles VI sent a punitive expedition to Brittany, raping and killing the populace. 作为报复，查理六世派军讨伐布列塔尼，奸淫杀戮平民。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The conquerors marched on, burning, killing, raping and plundering as they went. 征服者所到之处烧杀奸掠，无所不做。 来自互联网

7 squad   

n.班，小队，小团体；vt.把…编成班或小组

参考例句：

• The squad leader ordered the men to mark time.班长命令战士们原地踏步。
• A squad is the smallest unit in an army.班是军队的最小构成单位。

8 vetted   

v.审查（某人过去的记录、资格等）( vet的过去式和过去分词 )；调查；检查；诊疗

参考例句：

• The recruits were thoroughly vetted before they were allowed into the secret service. 情报机关招募的新成员要经过严格的审查。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All staff are vetted for links with extremist groups before being employed. 所有职员录用前均须审查是否与极端分子团体有关。 来自辞典例句

9 aegis   

n.盾；保护，庇护

参考例句：

• Medical supplies are flied in under the aegis of the red cross.在红十字会的保护下，正在空运进医药用品。
• The space programme will continue under the aegis of the armed forces.这项太空计划将以武装部队作后盾继续进行。

10 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

11 perplexed   

adj.不知所措的

参考例句：

• The farmer felt the cow,went away,returned,sorely perplexed,always afraid of being cheated.那农民摸摸那头牛，走了又回来，犹豫不决，总怕上当受骗。
• The child was perplexed by the intricate plot of the story.这孩子被那头绪纷繁的故事弄得迷惑不解。

12 spawned   

（鱼、蛙等）大量产（卵）( spawn的过去式和过去分词 )； 大量生产

参考例句：

• The band's album spawned a string of hit singles. 这支乐队的专辑繁衍出一连串走红的单曲唱片。
• The computer industry has spawned a lot of new companies. 由于电脑工业的发展，许多新公司纷纷成立。

13 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

14 slaughtered   

v.屠杀，杀戮，屠宰( slaughter的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The invading army slaughtered a lot of people. 侵略军杀了许多人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Hundreds of innocent civilians were cruelly slaughtered. 数百名无辜平民遭残杀。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

16 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

17 outfits   

n.全套装备( outfit的名词复数 )；一套服装；集体；组织v.装备，配置设备，供给服装( outfit的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• He jobbed out the contract to a number of small outfits. 他把承包工程分包给许多小单位。 来自辞典例句
• Some cyclists carry repair outfits because they may have a puncture. 有些骑自行车的人带修理工具，因为他们车胎可能小孔。 来自辞典例句

18 thwart   

v.阻挠，妨碍，反对；adj.横(断的)

参考例句：

• We must thwart his malevolent schemes.我们决不能让他的恶毒阴谋得逞。
• I don't think that will thwart our purposes.我认为那不会使我们的目的受到挫折。

19 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

20 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

21 tempts   

v.引诱或怂恿（某人）干不正当的事( tempt的第三人称单数 )；使想要

参考例句：

• It tempts the eye to dream. 这种景象会使眼睛产生幻觉。 来自辞典例句
• This is the tidbit which tempts his insectivorous fate. 就是这一点东西引诱它残杀昆虫。 来自互联网

22 embryo   

n.胚胎，萌芽的事物

参考例句：

• They are engaging in an embryo research.他们正在进行一项胚胎研究。
• The project was barely in embryo.该计划只是个雏形。

23 dubious   

adj.怀疑的，无把握的；有问题的，靠不住的

参考例句：

• What he said yesterday was dubious.他昨天说的话很含糊。
• He uses some dubious shifts to get money.他用一些可疑的手段去赚钱。

24 improvised   

a.即席而作的,即兴的

参考例句：

• He improvised a song about the football team's victory. 他即席创作了一首足球队胜利之歌。
• We improvised a tent out of two blankets and some long poles. 我们用两条毛毯和几根长竿搭成一个临时帐蓬。

25 trademark   

n.商标；特征；vt.注册的…商标

参考例句：

• The trademark is registered on the book of the Patent Office.该商标已在专利局登记注册。
• The trademark of the pen was changed.这钢笔的商标改了。

26 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

27 imposing   

adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的

参考例句：

• The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。
• He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。