JUAREZ VIOLENCE

Street Gangs Responsible for Killings, Mayor Says

AUSTIN -- Street gangs, not drug cartels, are behind most murders in
Juarez these days, the city's mayor said Monday.

Juarez Mayor Jose Reyes Ferriz told a crowd of more than 100 people
at the University of Texas at Austin that law enforcement efforts
have made it more difficult for drug cartels to transport cocaine
into the United States.

He said the increased patrols forced the cartels to find alternate
routes. That, he said, created a separate battle between Juarez gangs
that are now hunting for additional income.

"For the most part, the killings between the Sinaloa cartel and the
Juarez cartel have ceased in Juarez," Reyes Ferriz said. He blamed
the majority of the 2,600 killings in the city during the past year
on the feud between warring gangs.

He said the Aztecas and their rivals the Mexicles and Artistas
Asesinos (Artists Assassins) are now fighting for control of the
retail distribution of drugs in Juarez. The Aztecas are linked to the
Juarez cartel, and the Mexicles and Artistas Asesinos are linked to
the Sinaloa cartel.

Nearly 5,000 people have been killed in Juarez since 2008.

The killings were initially part of a feud between the Juarez and
Sinaloa cartels over who would control the drug-trafficking routes
through the border city.

The Associated Press last week reported that the Sinaloa cartel was
winning that battle.

Reyes Ferriz said he could not confirm that claim because he is not
privy to such information. But, he said, Juarenses no longer see a
strong effort by either cartel to transport drugs through Juarez.

"I think when they refer to Juarez, they are referring to the entire
region -- Guadalupe, Praxedis (Guerrero), Palomas -- all of that
which is much larger than Juarez," Reyes Ferriz said.

The mayor said law enforcement efforts are helping to slow the number
of murders in the city.

Juarez was averaging about 12 murders a day in August. Last month,
the city averaged about six killings daily, Reyes Ferriz said.

He said the Mexican military, which withdrew from the police
department last week, helped the city build a more effective and less
corrupt police force.

He also defended the Mexican army against reports that its soldiers
have used their power to violate the rights of innocent Juarenses.

Reyes Ferriz said most of those complaining are the parents of
"hardcore" criminals who kill for a living.

"I don't think you can act against hardened criminals like this
politely," he said.

He said Juarez is working to improve its unemployment rate and create
a better social structure to keep students away from the drug war.

The city, with help from the federal government, will build five high
schools on the west side, open another 100 day-care centers for
children between the ages of 4 and 12, and develop free after-school programs.

Reyes Ferriz said an additional 28,000 temporary jobs will be created
to provide a source of income to people who may otherwise be lured
into killing for a meager $40 a week.

But Reyes Ferriz said curbing drug-related violence in Juarez also
requires collaboration between Mexico and the U.S., which consumes
about $35 billion in drugs annually.

He said President Barack Obama's administration has opened the door
to discussions that the previous president did not consider a priority.

"Sovereignty shouldn't be an issue stopping us from working jointly
with the U.S.," he said. "The U.S. has the technology, the expertise,
the police department."

Still, some students who attended the discussion Monday were not convinced.

Armando Martinez, a graduate of Ysleta High School who now attends UT
Austin, said the Mexican government is not doing enough to solve the problem.

"It affects my immediate family and my extended family in every
single aspect, whether it's the economy, jobs, social interaction or
security," he said.

He was among a handful of students who displayed signs that called
for an end to the violence in Juarez.

Some signs called on the mayor to end his "superstar" tour through
the country and return to Juarez.

Other signs quoted the lyrics of a popular Juan Gabriel song but
replaced a reference that called the border city the most fabulous
and beautiful in the world to the most violent in the world.