Mexican Military Deserters Go To Organized Crime

Mexico's military denied that its soldiers are deserting in high numbers and joining organized crime groups. It also said that low pay plays no role in any such defections. Desertion rates in Mexico are no different from what they are in other countries, including the United States, a military spokesman said.A faxed letter was the response to questions posed by the News last month for a report on concerns expressed by U.S. officials about corruption in the Mexican military. "It's strange that American officials would express worries over the situation because just a few years ago soldiers there served for only a year, after which they became inactive . . . such as occurs in various countries in the world," the letter stated. " . . . Any soldier who commits the crime of desertion and runs from the law for more than three months is discharged from the military . . . as a result of which, this ministry has no link with them, or with any activity they engage in afterward, which makes it impossible to express an opinion on that subject," said the spokesman, who wanted anonymity. Asked to provide desertion rates for the Mexican army, the spokesman declined, saying that he needed time to obtain figures. But he added that the 18,033 desertions posted on a military Web site for September 2004 to June 2005 were considered official. Mexico's active military force is 194,000, according to Defense Minister Ricardo Clemente Vega Garcia, so 18,000 desertions would be about 9 percent of the total. Last month, four senior U.S. officials, a senior Mexican intelligence official and three independent analysts said there are new signs that drug corruption is spreading within the Mexican military. Mexico's military has long been regarded as more professional and less prone to criminality than the country's law enforcement agencies. The officials expressed concern about the expanding role of the Mexican military in the nation's efforts against drug traffickers. Some officials said low salaries make personnel vulnerable to offers from cartel leaders.During testimony before a subcommittee of Mexico's Senate in September, Vega was asked about desertions. "The majority of them are deserters, and they move unfortunately in the life of the drug trafficker. . . . I can tell you from our intelligence information that there are 18 deserters in Tamaulipas (state) and about 15 to 20 in Sinaloa." The military spokesman said pay scales are authorized by the Finance Ministry and that those wages include benefits such as life insurance, housing and medical coverage. "As a result of that (pay and benefits) we don't believe this is a determining factor for those who decide to end their active service," the statement said. "The majority of desertions are a result of the difficulty of the individuals to adapt themselves to military life, especially recruits."