Narco-banners: Gang angry Mexican govt won't talk

By GUSTAVO RUIZ, Associated Press,
Thursday, November 25, 2010 at 10:30 a.m.

MORELIA, Mexico — Banners hung on pedestrian bridges in several western Mexican cities Thursday expressed anger that the government has ignored a drug cartel's offer to disband if authorities improve security in the gang's home state.

The "narco-banners" appeared in at least five towns and cities in the Pacific coast state of Michoacan, including the colonial capital of Morelia, the state attorney general's office said in a statement.

They carried the same message: "La Familia Michoacana ... is saddened about the lack of interest from government institutions in our proposal."

The banners refer to a letter, dropped on streets of several Michoacan mountain towns and e-mailed to journalists earlier this month, that said La Familia would disband if the government negotiates with the cartel on protecting Michoacan citizens.

Such banners have become a common way for Mexico's drug cartels to send public messages, though it is nearly always impossible to verify who puts them up.

A captured La Familia suspect, however, said under police interrogation last week that the letter was real.

Sergio Moreno Godinez, who authorities said was the main La Familia trafficker in the port city of Lazaro Cardenas, told police the cartel was in decline and its leader, Servando Gomez, has suggested it give up.

The government has said it does not negotiate with criminal gangs and declined to comment further on the letter.

La Familia emerged about four years ago and quickly earned a reputation as one of the most brutal Mexican cartels. It is known for decapitating rivals and staging bold attacks on government security forces, including an ambush that killed 12 federal police officers in June and a spasm of violence last year in which at least 18 police officers were killed.

La Familia, however, has sought to convince the public that it is defending Michoacan against other drug gangs. It has a set of rules for cartel members that proclaim family values and prohibit consuming - but not trafficking - hard drugs.

The banners Thursday even compared the cartel to Mexico's independence and revolutionary heroes.

The message said the cartel "doesn't care about being called criminals, during the independence and the revolution, those who fought for their ideals and rights were also called that. Now they are considered national heroes."

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