The Socioeconomic Benefits of the Legalization of Gangs in Ecuador

[Disir]

TACOMA, Washington — In the early 2000s, Ecuador’s crime and homicide rates were some of the highest in Latin America. Much of the violence seen was due to the amount of gang activity that was present in Ecuador. One group, in particular, the Sacred Tribe Atahualpa of Ecuador (the STAE), was found responsible for 27% of all the homicides in the city of Guayaquil. As a result of these rates, Ecuador’s President, Rafael Correa, sought to end this violence with an unprecedented security policy that legalized several street gangs within Ecuador in 2007. Before the legalization of gangs in Ecuador, street gangs were seen as outcasts and delinquents in Ecuadorian society. By legalizing and legitimizing the street gangs as formal citizens, they have become engaged in Ecuadorian society in a very productive fashion. These street gangs have contributed to the fall in poverty rates and the expansion of youth integration projects. Furthermore, these strategies were highly successful in the transformation of the groups from violent outcasts into “cultural street organizations.”

The Socioeconomic Benefits of the Legalization of Gangs in Ecuador - BORGEN

Ecuador’s president Rafael Correa sought to end gang violence with an unprecedented legalization of street gangs in Ecuador in 2007.

www.borgenmagazine.com

I would demand some stats on that.