Translated material
They fell into Maraz
Earth Maraz. The first two months of 2010 have become the most bloody in Salvador over the past ten years: if during the Civil War of 1980-1992, he took 16 lives every day, today, at a “peaceful” time, perish daily
12 people. Analysts talk about the "war of the new type." The word "maras" - the so -called local gangs - at the first lanes of Latin American newspapers. What is happening there - I found out The New Times 
“Maraz” is a word not of Spanish, but local origin: this is how criminal groups are called in Central America, which over the past decade have turned from street gangs into a well -armed army of criminals. Maras has cells in almost all countries of the region, their total number, according to unofficial data, is about 100 thousand people. Maras control drug trafficking, do not disdain custom -made killings, abduction of people, and robs. Their most numerous units operate in Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico and, of course, in Salvador.
In Central America, the gangs of Mara Salvatruch and Mara 18 are most famous. Both, curious, arose on the territory of the United States among Latin American immigrants. Desperate there to find a job there, they replenished the ranks of crime. “Mara Salvatruch” was formed by Salvador, in “Mara 18” the majority were Mexicans. In the early 1990s, almost all Salvador illegal immigrants were deported from the States. Returning to his native country with the economy completely destroyed by the war, with poverty and unemployment, the Salvador Maraz established ties with the "colleagues" in other countries of the region and divided the spheres of influence with them.
Now Mara Salvaturcha and Mara 18, which, incidentally, constantly conflict among themselves, in addition to the capital of the country of San Salvador, control territories to the east and north-east of it, as well as the second largest city in the country of Santa-Tepli and the municipality of the same name. The local population is covered by “tax” - only in total, they take more from businessmen. Collect a tribute even from schools. The most dangerous professions in San Salvador and Santa Tekla-a driver and a bus conductor, a store seller. They are more likely to become victims of attacks. On January 16, exactly the grenade exploded in the center of San Salvador on the anniversary of the Civil War: Mara Salvatruch dealt with the 68-year-old entrepreneur David Solomon Cruz, who refused to pay the “tax”.
Crazy life
The study of the phenomenon of Maras was worth the life of Christian Vedveda, a film-documentary of the Spanish-French descent. He lived for 16 months with the members of Mara 18 and eventually shot the film “Crazy Life”. Several heroes of the tape were shot dead during filming. And on September 2, 2009, on the highway north of San Salvador they found the corpse of the behavior itself-he received four shots in the face. They say that Maras became very angry with the director: he went too far with revelations. In essence, the behavior made a film about the everyday life of the bandits and their families. But very soon the viewer becomes clear: it is easy to get into Mara 18, but it is impossible to get out of it. The apostate will kill either their own or strangers: their own - for betrayal, competitors from Mara Salvaturch - for the past facts of biography. And the police will catch rare lucky ones and put him in a prison full of former accomplices and competitors. The circle is closed.
All Maras are swept by a huge number of tattoos, for many they are on the face. Most often it is the name of the gang. The average age of bandits is 16–25 years. “Dedication” usually occurs at 15 years old, but Maraz is actively used by children. Because of this, the Legislative Assembly of Salvador recently adopted an amendment, according to which the maximum term of conclusion for minors was increased from 7 to 15 years. The worldview of bandits is a bizarre mixture of the laws of the criminal world, Christianity and Indian beliefs. Each gang has their own prayers, with which they escort the dead, their identification signs and gestures. In the film, the behaviors appear 16-year-old Eric, who is sent to the colony for illegal weapons. His family lives in poverty, there is no father, he does not study at school, they don’t take him to work. The area where his house is located is controlled by Mara 18. For Eric, a gang is a brotherhood, the only chance to break out of poverty. There are no tattoos on his face and his hands are not stained with blood. But, having served the deadline, he will probably replenish the ranks of Maras again.
One of the heroines of the film Boles, 18-year-old Chuki, proudly declares to the camera: "Yes, I'm a bandit." And smiles broadly.
Guys from Black Street 
Members "Mara 18" are swept by a large number of tattoos, most often it is the name of the gang
Last year, new participants joined the streets. They call themselves "groups of social purification." One of them, Black Street, spread its manifesto on the Internet. The police and the military are not able to defeat Maraz, so “you have to pick up weapons themselves,” it says. And one more thing: “Our actions will include lynching. Beating, murder, decapitation and dismemberment. It will be a sign of the bandits that we are everywhere. ” Of course, this is a sign to the authorities: patience in people at the limit. Each new Salvadora government promises to defeat Maras. From 1992 to 2009, right -wing parties were in power in the country. Their method most often were punitive expeditions. As a result, the number of prisoners is 3-4 times higher than the throughput of the Salvador prisons. And violence, meanwhile, was gaining momentum. Last year, the left politician, one of the most famous television journalists in the country, Maurisio Funes, became president of Salvador for the first time. He promised voters the "new methods" of the fight against Maras. That's just from this, no one can predict today.
Salvador is a state in Central America with a population of 7 million people. The capital is San Salvador. Since 2001, the US dollar has been going on as a currency in the country. The head of state is the president elected by universal vote for a 5-year term. He leads the cabinet of ministers.