twice the ever salary guatemala. and it's the money the officers desperately need for equipment the. young. me about a $125.00 for the want you going to see going to go and 90 for the nights. a live. chicken. at the end of the month the police station becomes a marketplace for weapons and other accessories. the former arms dealer sells the officers everything that isn't provided by the authorities on the job when i was careful. there are no good coke with no metal i'm on one. use component boom they buy over again for me bulletproof fasts belts holsters for their guns. includes ammunition to all of us busy no more users with their own money yes even for their uniforms when you put it was something

is it the policeman lack vital safety equipment when preparing for a mission only one of the males for the kitted out. of. this is a bulletproof vest. but if he gives me protection but what is an important show it's very important place in the scene but not everyone gets one element. here the only one who has one yeah. normally the 54 officers have one bullet proof vest in one machine gun to go around . this off road vehicle has been waiting to be repaired for 2 years. and. the unit has only one function. if you think you

should move. below this is expected carlos i'm on my way to the bus terminal they wouldn't there might be nothing on the bangle or phone. inspector carlos is in charge today. but i will close the most i mean let's meet by lima ok at the location ok florian let him. what's happening you know the. we've been informed that a 14 year old has a firearm. every post but apparently he's already fired this morning that. he could kill someone so we're looking for him and. like many criminals in the city the surest still a minor inspector carlos receives a tip off about the boy's address although you know it's in an area that locals

call like east la in the heart of the popular. it's an extremely rundown area controlled by the barrio 18 gang. put it in the 3rd house. this one here. get over here you know here. coming up. the house is a half collapsed corrugated iron heart with clear signs that people live here. there's no trace of the armed boys. the police call off the operation.

it seems the boy go to way we think he was in the house with a ditch running alongside it. that's where he must have fled. but whatever happens we'll keep searching for him and we'll get him eventually. ok. despite the unit being undermanned and under equipped inspector carlos remains optimistic. better be in a cemetery in guatemala city the scene of a never ending series of funerals. i. lease works here for him the somber procession so just

a part of the day to day routine. of what is really there are 20 or 25 funerals every day. one burial directly follows the next most of the deceased were minors as evidenced by the young faces adorning the gravestones. the range of their young 14161819 year old boy in the yeah yeah. it's just me rarely bury old people here. these are young people just kids get letters. every year several 100 murders are committed by young gang members in guatemala. the victims are mostly rivals from other groups. but ordinary citizens are also killed if they refuse to pay protection money. one group

particularly at risk are bus drivers. i. got up i. got to work sing one of all a city. for 12 years he's been driving the bus route from the last florida neighborhood to the center of the city. the buses on time. every time he gets behind the wheel he's afraid. that when we leave the house in the morning we pray it's a very dangerous job or. best believe us that. it's ok he turned off. doing the same either but it has failed we look in the wing mirror whenever a motorbike gets close they ride up to the front of the bus and then bang. that

they'll shoot from the front and up with all through the window all the doors as it was 9 a hole they come in a pen a guy and a girl sit in the back they take out a gun and shoot you in the head was a lad must have to read about this he only we've been seeing a lot of ways that we can. get. 2019 gang member shot dead 73 bus and taxi drivers in guatemala. got himself narrowly escaped that fate. in 2015 he was targeted on his way to the bus depot. was no i mean i goes out and was walking around the house. when i got to the corner i still thought. i was right here. bring home a bottle. i saw this guy pull out a gun. he looked at me and then boom boom he shot me 6 times in

a he shot me another 5 times in the battle i don't think i was able to shield my head. then i collapsed i go. 11 shots in total. miraculously he survived but not everyone is so lucky. that. you are your best when they shot me on a saturday the following monday they shot another driver out there whether he didn't make it he died on his way to work in the movie. time and time again bus companies find themselves in a modest sites. if the firms refused to pay protection money it's not long before the gangs take action. osgar was attacked because his boss refused to be blackmailed. back up how's it going.

i'm not done yet. you have to take care here ok they let you do whatever it takes to have it back on the streets today it is the way the buses have to be up and running and this is going no never be an interview or goes beyond l.b.s. runs this bus company which has a fleet of 14 vehicles she took over the business after her husband was murdered he too was killed because he didn't pay the gangs on time. and elementary 5 years ago my husband lost his life in an attack. the message the situation in guatemala is really very serious he come we don't allow the olympiad to the violence is getting extreme so to be a. dobies now does pay the protection money to keep our driver safe every month it's the same for the wouldn't you.

say i could look at this is how it works a person we've never seen before comes and hands over a piece of paper with the price and that's it we're not them as in the come one boy it is one month we pay $10.00 euros then 20 and then 30 it changes all the time went by a bus into the no i do not. know about how if we don't pay it gets complicated very complicated they ask where their money is. what is complicated mean. death. c.n.n. was yes an ambush and in some cases death was one of the. legal gun sales in guatemala have increased by about 20 percent in one year. there's often a line outside the local arms control office people of all ages stand in wait to apply for a permit. the requirements are lax. it's

a good visit one out of radio way by law to be able to buy a new gun but you need a receipt for the gun and i deal with that clear on the criminal record and electricity bill as proof of address but i get it that except that meant the world that i see this little day when. people take advantage of the flexible regulations with one in a quantum all it's now carrying a gun and some take things a step further forming vigilante groups to enforce law and order. this is the boss of the neighborhood to be in the way of not far from the capital. in the local soccer stadium allen's whistle has the final say on his turf. he's a referee responsible for the regional championship. all i.

was. over on the touchline is this trusted companion a 9 millimeter pistol. the 34 year old doesn't leave home without it. oh wow. he has the gun to protect his family. for 16 years alan has been fighting the threat from the city's gangs. the father of 4 leads a vigilante group in his neighborhood. so we got together when they started extorting children but every child starting at school was threatened. all the neighbors agreed that if we saw any mosques we

kill them. today we're not just 40 or 50 people in this neighborhood there are 500 of us. the mothers have been terrorizing the streets of bias in our streets for years but since the vigilantes mobilized the gangs have barely ventured into the neighborhood. allen's wife johannes relieved. him of the louse in other areas they even lobbed poor people but not here thank god there are lots of stores everything safe oh son the usa are where like the kids often play outside. and they go to school and come home without us having to worry see a link in the basket and. to keep his children safe alan goes out of control every evening. to put

on your masks. twice a week he takes his sons with him alan junior is 13 and yorick 15. ready. for their armed and masked in order to prevent reprisals. they then set out on their 4 hour patrol. shop i don't know. it's 9 o'clock in the evening they meet fellow vigilantes from the neighborhood. who are. not. the group is made up of shopkeepers office workers and even schoolchildren from a monolith. you try out the walkie talkie tell you where you are you sure you tell you tell you. what i don't think i'm what

i say we're going to patrol on the other side. some of the men carry guns. letter after 5 minutes they reach a central square. deal because i was already doing over there going along with a lot of hands up turn around there's another term for them for we're rooting for terrorism. this is. going to the federal government and i don't want them to go besides their pockets. check their shoes or look at them. on the part of our own northern illinois brother because the bulk of. the boys have drugs on the. it's part of the one. where did you get us home. we gave it to you know. to put that on top don't smoke that crap around here from

iraq even from the government who job though. so. it's always the same idiocy. we won't do it again. get out of here in the heart of. cannabis as a banned substance in guatemala. el and confiscate the drugs and sends the 3 boys home. half an hour later they spot 2 more suspects. we don't want to see with his crap again get out of here look at the 2 teenagers were smoking joints. they quickly disappear. at the edge of the neighborhood allen's group meets another patrol.

at this checkpoint anyone who wants to enter but so night night has to identify themselves. with everything ok. the local residents have installed 5 checkpoints like this one they control who enters the neighborhood. the strategy seems to be working as the area has become safer. but sometimes the gangs do find a way and. in july 2803 men attacked a delivery van leaving 3 people injured because of the attack was filmed by a surveillance camera. one of the attackers sent a message to allen's vigilante group. having a safe neighborhood comes at a cost. in just 3

years 5 members of the vigilante groups have been murdered by the moderates. on the day of one funeral the other members fire their weapons in honor of the dead. cause. thanks to the nighttime patrols peace has returned to the neighborhood. on the streets of the capital empty in the evening no one in. the store stay open after dark and residents walk the streets without fear. but. such a welcome development for business owners to prove that. they keep the criminals

away greens or. that end because it is everyone here happy about it and it was. yes everyone's happy when we'll stick together there aren't any problems. but the security guarantee isn't free. business owners have to pay around $4.00 heroes per week to have their stores protected. with some accuse the vigilantes themselves of running a protection racket. but the amount is only a fraction of what the modest demand plus there is now peace. because the state is incapable of protecting its citizens they've taken the law into their own hands. and it's likely to stay that way for a long time to come. a modest continue to recruit members not difficult in a country where more than half of the population lives in poverty. young people

with no prospects find a new family in the form of the gangs. and they're happy to embrace the notorious lobby of. the crazy life of violence robbery and murder. who are these young people. we meet with mario our intermediary. he describes himself as a former gang member. he still maintains close contact with some members of particular 18. yeah it's me i'm by the corner but on the hurry up it's getting late. and yes i'll wait for you having. this. 15 minutes after the call 4 young men pull up in a car. with

a loyalist on it 1st they're suspicious then i don't know but after a half hour or intermediary is able to convince them to talk to us for the interview we follow them to a nearby squat. 2 women and 4 men live here in a simple to a link in a back yard. they're all around 20 years old. he says. it was one of those years boy's death when your kids are at. this. for these for becoming a gang member is a childhood dream come true yes so this you go oh it was good not be good i mean for you if you got it well let me tell you when you join the gang things are good

they gave you clothes food and lots of money to do anything as possible when body 018 supports him but on the night it was a little it is a only a little for sure we love the gang that's why we do everything the boss sun sets. you buy them most of the money away with it with. in just a few years they've risen through the ranks of their gang from mere helpers to contract killers. to. most of the dozen but. we always carry a gun for protection thinking about it but i get out we can shoot anyone the minute we get the order. we don't ask why. it was one of you know my friend i have a lot of guns i have one of them here. or just one type of gun as it. is on the 9 millimeter. and that's

the deal here. that. the young men seem happy with their gangster lifestyle almost and i. feel is that. there is more than a little fatalism in their voices for one that isn't how do you see your future and if. your nose to be honest i don't believe in having a future in the quarter that is where i know that i risk my life every day i live in the here and now and that's what matters. to. the kids not. if someone like and still does the philosophical more because life of risk and adventure lobby don't look. for most young men like them one of 2 fates awaits them prison or premature death. hardly anyone manages to escape the clutches of the gangs. one person who did lives in la you

will know. it's one of the most violent fight realizing guatemala city. here we meet next gang member christiane. the 28 year old is a paraplegic and lives with his parents. one day in 2010 christiane's love yoga came to an abrupt end. he was robbing a bus when he was shot in the spine. being in a gang has taken everything from him except his life. maybe i was seeking refuge with them. i like the way they dressed and. i wanted to be like them. i never imagined a joining a gang would bring me so many problems in my. life and.

bring one for your wife to. christiane has left barrio 18 he now works as a tattoo artist a skilled profession that had earned and respect in the past. looking at these colors i couldn't quite get the same result for you it will be darker here and completely black than. some of his customers are also former members who now want to get rid of their gang affiliation tattoos. it's not their money. i used to have diamonds and stars the diamonds formed a figure right i covered them up with roses. i had to cover up the tattoo so that people would no longer identify me with the gang. you know represent that is some

people change their attitudes. some even burn the young girls. so christiane's tattoos are a way to overwrite one part of a brutal past. and that's not the only thing he does to challenge the games so. every sunday he joins us father and the rest of the family in the kitchen. to make lunch for children in the neighborhood. on the menu today. fried chicken with potatoes and sour. christiane and his father want to offer the children an alternative a few hours respite from the violence on the streets.

they're still waiting for 2 of the children to arrive. it's a moment of humanity the teachers the children something important they don't have to be again number to have friends. get them was that. one of the children here is ha he told people i know his father from the old days. he died when hockey at all was very young. one day hot utah came up to me and said . i want to be a killer like my dad. always a look at that's exactly what we want to avoid that i could children follow the bad example of their fathers i love you look at the you know males we want to foster the good in them. this embody out of all. efforts by citizens in the state to secure peace. seem to be bearing fruit. the murder rate in

guatemala has been steadily falling over the last few years. $29000.00 it drop by almost 10 percent. at the very least it's a glimmer of hope not. to own. or not to uomo. but what about assuring economy instead. of a change in thinking is changing the economy to create something new. economics magazine radio in germany. in 30 minutes w.

conflict zone with terms of best i'm feeling britain could still free trade deal for the post directly to you now at least in the u.k. they're so full of realities to deal with my guest this week from now the dean in scotland goes on to bali conservative m.p. and vice chairman of the conservative party was boris josue so you can no make over the choose the money break so many from the conflict zone. 90 minutes. every day counts for us and for our planet. global mind is on its way to bring you more conservation. how do we make see the screamer how can we protect. now to tonight's what's in the with all our

waste in the. way we can only difference by choosing smaller solutions overstrained sit in our way or you see the warning to those in the entire series of you know the hours in the long morning the good to have a bit of that. this is news and these are our top stories joe biden has taken up office as the 46th united states a president signing executive orders including rejoining the paris climate accord and stepping up measures to fight the coronavirus pandemic and comma harris has become the 1st woman to be vice.