Elderly Patrol Schools in Mexican City

Olga R. Rodriguez, The New York Post

Viernes 4 de junio 2005

Mexico

CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico (AP) -- Grappling with a wave of kidnappings and murders, including the brutal slayings of two small children, authorities in the border city of Juarez are recruiting people over 60 to patrol outside elementary schools.

They hope this unarmed "policia adulto mayor," or elder police force, will gain the trust in a city whose police force is widely seen as corrupt.

The elders are armed only with a cell phone and a uniform of black pants and a yellow shirt with a state police logo.

They work in pairs outside their neighborhood elementary schools, watching for suspicious activities and alerting police to any problems. On the weekends, they patrol Ciudad Juarez's three biggest public parks.

"What we want is to have police who are close to the people and at the same time learn about the problems in each community," said Gustavo Zabre, director of Preventive Police for Chihuahua state, where Ciudad Juarez is located.

Some 300 people applied for the jobs, but only 35 retirees ended up patrolling in Ciudad Juarez, a city of 1.3 million across from El Paso, Texas, where crime is as common as police corruption.

The group was sent to a police academy for two weeks to learn observation and description techniques and to receive first aid and physical training.

Ciudad Juarez has become the focus of international attention because of a string of killings against women.

Juarez residents have become inured to the killings and drug-related violence that have tormented them for decades. But the recent brutal killing of two girls, ages 7 and 10, prompted thousands to take to the streets in protest.

Last month, the body of 7-year-old Airis Estrella Enriquez was found in a barrel filled with cement and abandoned in the desert surrounding the city.

Police said Airis, who disappeared on her way to a neighborhood store, had been sexually assaulted and killed by blows to the head.

Two days after Airis was found, the body of 10-year-old Anahi Orozco was found inside her home. She had been sexually abused, strangled and partly burned, police said.

"We haven't had children kidnapped from outside schools, but that's why we focus on prevention," said Zabre, who added the program was being expanded because of its success. "We do believe the elders presence helps to deter criminal activity."

Many of the elders are retired professionals - school teachers and doctors upset that their sprawling desert city has become a violent metropolis known as a base for Mexico's largest drug cartel.

"One of my sons died of a drug overdose, and if I can do something to stop our children from falling into drugs, then I will do it," said 68-year-old Julio Moreno, who worked for an electric company and now patrols at his granddaughter's elementary school in a neighborhood known for gangs.

Mexico City experimented with hiring only female traffic cops, under the assumption that women were less likely to accept bribes and fall victim to corruption.

But the elder program appears to be the first of its kind.

Mexico's elderly are respected, helping the newfound recruits to easily gain the public's confidence.

The program is also helping Mexico battle the poverty and age discrimination that many older people face here.

Members of the new force say they feel useful, even if the job is only 12 hours a week. Many also welcome the $185 paycheck and the $75 worth of groceries they earn every month. Sometimes they are given an occasional blanket or other basic item for their services.

"This is a program that recognizes we can be of service even after turning 60," said Luis Naves, a 61-year-old retired school teacher who also sells clothes door to door. "If we can get a little money helping people, what else can we ask for?"

Patrols began in January, and the biggest battles have been with traffic congestion and unruly parents who double park dropping off and picking up their children.

Juan Duran, a 59-year-old retired school teacher who coordinates the elders, said the new force has reduced the number of stolen cars and assaults of parents outside schools.

"With the negative image our city has, our presence has become like an oasis," Duran said. "People are more trusting of an elderly person than of a young police officer carrying a gun."

The program has drawn nothing but praise from parents and teachers.

"There have always been rumors of people hanging around schools trying to steal children, and as a parent it gives me peace of mind to know they are watching over them," Maria Ramirez said after walking her 8-year-old daughter to her classroom.