Mexico's death cult protests shrine destruction

200 worshippers of the 'Sante Muerte'(Death Saint) marched against the government today against what they saw as religious perscution. However the religion is popular with drug traffickers and soliders often see shrines to the saint on raids. Practioners though believe the saint protects them from a violent death.  Officials have denied claims that they are targetting sante Muerte, but in the past month 30 shrines to the saint(which  consist of marble structures and the sketal figure) have been destroyed.  Protestors carried portable shrines and signs proclaiming their faith to the belief. 

Obviously the government's attempts to crack down on drug violence have become to use more desperate measures creating  negative feedback in an already dissatisfied population. Unforunately there has not even been a positive side to this perscution against 'cultists'. This weakens an already frail sense of legitmacy for the government, which in its struggle for the country is acting against the wishes of some of the population. This suggests to me that the Mexican goverment is willing to sacrifice civil liberites if it means that they can keep a hold on the country.

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President Calderon Defends his Nation Against Dire Predictions

"Stark assessments of the threat that drug crime poses to Mexico's stability have put the government of President Felipe Calderon on the defensive as he tries to forge a relationship with a new U.S. president.Rising violence, spurred in part by Calderon's 2-year-old offensive against drug traffickers, has prompted some officials and analysts in the United States to warn that Mexico faces a risk of collapse within several years."

With the recent inauguration of President Obama, he sought to quickly reconcile his neighbours with tough talk of civil reform and a new face for the internecine "War on Drugs" that is spreading police brutality, gang uprisings, and local-level corruption. With the recent prediction of Mexico collapsing within the few years by the US Government, Mexico's President Calderon has promised a new method of management and offers proof of success for his new anti-drug policies. Calderon continues to propose that while drug trafficking is a problem that is in the process of being handled, the core governmental system of Mexico has been able to side-skirt these damming issues, staying largely free of corruption and general incompetence.

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