On 30 October Paraguay’s President Santiago Peña issued a decree designating Brazilian criminal groups Comando Vermelho (CV) and Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC) as international terrorist organisations.
Analysis:
The designation comes amid growing concerns that following the major clash between Brazilian security forces and members of CV in Rio de Janeiro, the CV and PCC could seek refuge in Paraguay and ramp up criminal operations there as they prepare to retaliate. The move will allow the Peña administration to mobilise more resources against the groups and to coordinate operations against them with security forces from Brazil and Argentina. The hope is this will help to prevent a surge in criminal violence in Paraguay.
- The Rio de Janeiro clashes were the deadliest in years, with dozens of suspected CV members killed. With Brazilian law enforcement insisting that it will continue to go after the CV and the PCC, Paraguayan officials warned that CV and PCC members could seek to retreat to Paraguay and prepare for retaliatory action from there. This prompted Paraguay’s national defence security council (Codena) to announce on 29 October the adoption of extraordinary surveillance measures along Paraguay’s border with Brazil to stop the mass entry of criminal elements.
- Codena - chaired by the president and comprising the interior, defence, and foreign ministers, as well as the heads of the armed forces and the national police - also ordered Paraguay’s security forces to establish permanent communication channels with their counterparts in Brazil and Argentina to monitor the situation and ensure a joint and swift response to any incidents in the triple border area.
- However, yesterday a group of 15-20 heavily armed and unidentified criminals briefly took control of a town in the north-eastern border department of Canindeyú and stole US$910,000 after blowing up a bank vault. In response, Codena announced the imminent designation of the CV and PCC as terrorist groups.
Looking Ahead: Codena permanent secretary, Rear Admiral Cíbar Benítez, said the decision to designate the groups was also expedited by the recognition that the increased cash flows traditionally observed in the final months of the year increase the likelihood of major criminal action in the next three months.
