Cleaning Up the Federales

Mexican authorities announced yesterday the expulsion of more than 3,000 Federal Police officers as part of a revision and cleansing process. The number of officers kicked out since May is 4,685, which represents some 10 percent of the total personnel. Federal Police corruption has been a weightier topic ever since dozens of Juárez-based federales rebelled against four of their commanders, the reason being that the commanders were thought to be corrupt (and drugs and illegal weapons were found in their possession). One might think that this was a positive step in the same direction, but the officers who led the charge against their dirty bosses were evidently among the purged, which makes you suspect retaliation for publicly rocking the boat.