Anonymous threatens Mexican drug cartel
Hacktivists wade into bloody narco wars
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The Mexican branch of Anonymous have threatened to expose members of Los Zetas unless the drug cartel releases a kidnapped member of the hacking collective.
In an ultimatum posted on YouTube, Anonymous threatens to publish data on cartel members and affiliates in Veracruz unless an unnamed male victim is freed by 5 November. The kidnapping happened during a street protest in the Mexican state of Veracruz, according to the video. The hackers threaten to expose journalists, taxi drivers and corrupt cops that have collaborated with the cartel.
The Zetas are one of the most notorious of several rival gangs of drug traffickers that have plagued Mexico over recent years. Over recent months, turf wars and escalating attacks have increased the death toll.
The Monterrey casino attack in August, which claimed the lives of 53 people, and the the 2011 Tamaulipas massacre, involving the mass murder of an estimated 190 plus abducted bus passengers back in April, were both blamed on the Zetas. Some Zetas members are former Mexican Special Forces soldiers, the US Department of Homeland Security warns. A woman from Nuevo Laredo, Marisol Macias Castaneda, 39, was beheaded for posting about the Zetas on a local online discussion forum last month just days after two bloggers were found hanging from a bridge in the same northern Mexican border city.
If Anonymous follows through on its threat to expose details of the Zeta's operations, it will almost certainly result in further bloodshed. Analysts warned the Houston Chronicle that outing cartel members would leave bloggers and others more vulnerable to reprisal attacks by the cartel. ®
COMMENTS
The Zetas..
The Zetas are well known for their sense of humour, so there's probably nothing to worry about.
Ooops.. I meant to type that the Zetas are well known for their batshit insane violence, so there's probably everything to worry about.
I'm inclined to back them here.
A more deserving target is hard to think of, and the usual argument against such things -- that it would interfere with legitimate prosecution -- doesn't seem to apply given corruption of the local officials. They're doing what they can to protect their own with the weapons available. More power to them.
The risk of reprisals is something else, but you can't hold Anonymous responsible for it, in the same way you can't hold the police or military responsible for murder when they refuse to bow to the demands of hostage-takers. Moral culpability falls on the bastards who commit such atrocities.
I'm not always a fan of Anon's actions but I think I'm rooting for them here.
--
Not anon. Perhaps unwisely.
There is simply only one answer...
...and that is to legalise drugs.
The cannabis trade through Mexico turns over six billion a year. Because it is illegal then it's only criminals who can get involved - and criminals can't use the courts to settle their disputes.
At least the USA is starting to de-criminalise cannabis by the back door - so-called medicinal use - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_cannabis_in_the_United_States
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