Global Courant
San Pedro Sula, Honduras.
Carlos, as he will be called from here on out by request of anonymity, at the age of 50 works grueling days in one of the most conflictive neighborhoods due to violence in the southeast of San Pedro Sula.
Although the strong sun caresses his face and arms daily, unprotected due to lack of official attire, in addition to some residents who occasionally treat or ignore his greetings, he tries as much as possible to remain calm and be cuts.
When approached by LA PRENSA Premium in one of the dusty passages of the neighborhood in which he watches, he harmoniously agreed to recount some intimacies of your work and certain experiences that the guards in this country experience firsthand.
Carlos was born in Islas de Bahía, but grew up in San Pedro Sula, from where he emigrated to El Salvador, where he studied a bachelor’s degree in Electronics and Electricity, in addition to receiving computer training. Around 1980, he was recruited by the guerrillas, it is the beginning of an armed conflict that lasted more than a decade and had an impact on the history of that country. There he learned the use of weapons and how to deal in moments of crisis.
With the passing of time, he arrived in Honduras and worked as a private escort, but now, due to the ups and downs of life that he did not want to explain, he works with a low profile as security guard for a local company. He recalled the importance of the essence of the security industry in any society.
“Our job should be limited to treating the people who enter with courtesy, asking where they are going and the reason for their arrival,” he began by saying during the interview, while car horns were heard in the background as a warning signal for them to open the door. entrance gate.
Carlos is well informed of the multiple events that have occurred in the country where security guards have participated. “Look, these confrontations occur because sometimes whoever has just arrived is rude (rude) and the guard repels the attack, or on the contrary, the guard is wrong, he doesn’t get angry and grabs the resident,” he exclaimed in a whisper. while he raised his dark glasses to the side of the cap that he wore with the legend in capital letters “SECURITY”.
Hard
He indicated that the guards work an average of 12 hours. “Some are awake or have not slept well at home, perhaps even with personal problems and then they take it out on the citizen; they are tense, ”she argued. He immediately interrupted slightly, pointing out that he has provided security even to high-ranking officers of the Honduran Army. He assured that the company where he works for now “is legal”, but clarified that there are others that are not, “worse in these parts”.
Three deaths linked to guards so far in 2023:
On May 24, a security guard killed an engineer in a shopping mall. On May 31, a guard was found dead in strange conditions in a commercial premises. On March 13, another was found dead in the La Guardia neighborhood of San Pedro Sula.
He commented that those who work double shifts face more difficult situations in terms of state of mind, “we walk in touch and if you see that suddenly the guard puts his hand towards the weapon while arguing, it means that at any moment he will shoot, then it is better to walk away ”, he warned during a conversation with this medium.
Carlos said that, personally, he has a weapon, but in most cases they don’t even receive protective equipment such as a bulletproof vest or sometimes they are given poor quality weapons capable of not working during an emergency or causing an incident that even threatens their lives. He also confessed that they almost never give them self-defense training or interpersonal talks to subtly deal with critical situations that on multiple occasions end with bullets discharged through their own service weapons.
Deaths: A large part of the deaths have occurred during discussions between guards and citizens.
He also complained about the lack of rigorous hiring, since they are usually hired only with identity and who know how to read and write, they do not receive social security or private medical insurance either. “The only thing we have for sure is death,” said the man with irony.
Their salaries range between 7,000 lempiras and 13,000 lempiras per month. “In this job, one risks their lives for low pay, long hours, poor nutrition and many problems at home,” he concluded.
