Solution?
Obviously, there is no one clean and easy solution to the problem of corruption of Mexican police officers. Current attempts at reform and change are not efficient, because they fail to look at the sources of the problem. Proposed solutions have included firing officials known to be corrupt, and large-scale firing of officers, in order to bring in a new, and hopefully less corrupt force. The required training to become a police officer has become more in depth and rigorous.
There are many changes that need to be made to the Mexican police force, and even these won't serve to eliminate the problem of corruption. The first change needs to be higher education and training. The needs of police officers must be filled by having a respectable salary and to be respected by the people which they are supposed to protect in the community.
Changes to the police force will take a lot of time in order for their effects to become visible. As such, changes must begin as soon as possible.
Attitudes towards police
Most Mexicans have the attitude that they can buy their way out of situations with the police, provided that they have enough money. The practice of morditas results in a lack of respect for the authority of the police. The rich have little to fear when in a situation with the police, and it is common for them to have certain 'agreements' with police officers to overlook certain situations. The lack of respect for authorities only serves to bring down the esteem of police officers and exacerbates the problem.
So, why?
Why is the practice of morditas so common in Mexico?
At first glance, it would seem that the police take morditas simply because they can. Because they want to make some extra money. Once you take a deeper look, it becomes apparent that it is done out of necessity.
The average education of a Mexican is equivalent to a fourth grade education. Police officers undergo very little training, and the majority do not even have a high school degree. Lack of education is definately a factor.
The other thing to consider is salary. A Mexican police officer is usually paid the equivalent to about 5$ Canadian per day. This salary can not sustain the large families that most Mexicans have. Morditas are usually done out of necessity to get money to support their families. One must also consider the dangers that the police officers face on a daily basis.
Another important issue is the fact that corruption exists in Mexico on many levels. Every year there are new political scandals and allegations of corruption. Some degree of corruption exists in practically every business. It serves to speed up bureaucratic processes or to get special priviledges. With corruption being a part of everyday life, the police officers feel less guilt when turning to corruption themselves.
Once the factors are considered, morditas seem much more reasonable.
