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Description
Two Cadillac Gage Commando armored cars of U.S. origin are parked on a street as they patrol a small mountaneous village near Zaragoza, Chimaltenango. Several soldiers can be seen inside the vehicles. A large majority of soldiers forced to patrol, as part of the "Patrol of Self-Defense" program in the 1980s were Mayan men. Patrols were used by military to destroy civil organizing and functioned to control any movements or political networks of rural Mayan people. The military pressured patrols to adopt a vicious stance against "subversive" communities that targeted the Mayan population. The patrolling began under military commander, Lucas Garcia and then after the coup, continued under Efraín ?Ríos Montt. Dos vehículos blindados Cadillac Gage Commando de origen estadounidense yacen estacionados sobre una calle mientras patrullan una pequeña aldea montañosa cerca de Zaragoza, Chimaltenango. Varios soldados se observan dentro de los vehículos. Una gran mayoría de soldados obligados a patrullar, como parte del programa "Patrulla de Autodefensa" en la década de ochenta, eran hombres mayas. Las patrullas fueron utilizadas por los militares para destruir la organización civil y funcionaron para controlar cualquier movimiento o red política de los mayas rurales. Los militares presionaron a las patrullas para que adoptaran una postura viciosa contra las comunidades "sub-servidas" que atacaban a la población maya. Las patrullas comenzaron bajo el mando del comandante militar, Lucas García y luego, después del golpe, Efraín Ríos Montt lo amplió.
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