Mafia
Mafia is a term used worldwide that refers to a special class of organized crime, extended from its origin in the Italian Mezzogiorno to any organized crime group, with similar characteristics, regardless of their origin or place of action.
The 'Ndrangheta, originally from the Calabria region of southern Italy, is today considered the most powerful and richest mafia in the world.
The mafia originated in the region of Sicily, Italy, where it called itself Cosa Nostra, although similar groups were common in Ireland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Originally it was a confederation dedicated to the protection and autonomous exercise of the law (vigilante justice) and, later, to organized crime. Its members called themselves "mafiosos", that is, "men of honor". The members of the different mafia clans use a series of inviolable "codes of honor", of which the best known is the omertà or law of silence.
Origin
According to the historian Paul Veyne, the Roman Empire had the structure of a great mafia, in which there were no restrictions for the law of the strongest and only clientelism allowed the survival of the weak, poor or small. Fraud, fraud, theft and violence, including rape, were not considered criminal (criminal) but private (civil) crimes and, since there was no police, each citizen had to take the law into their own hands. The judges were dedicated solely to directing the process for a jury to decide innocence or guilt, but the search for the guilty as well as the execution of the sentence was the responsibility of the victim. There was no public power that could set a limit to personal revenge. There was no state as we know it now, the empire was dominated by clans. They were all under the protection of another stronger boss. Roman law was an accumulation of jurisprudence, very different in each region of the empire. The only invariable thing was the process. That is why criminal law was arbitrary.
For centuries, the region of Sicily was dominated by a feudal system that exploited thousands of peasants while a minority enjoyed privileges. These circumstances are considered decisive for the rise of the mafia. On the other, criminal behavior was revealed as the only way to obtain privileges in a society that reserved them only for wealthy landowners allied with political authorities; Because in the absence of an organized government structure capable of protecting the island's inhabitants, they were forced to strengthen family ties as an alternative to obtain security. This is why blood ties are so important in the mafia.
In the 19th century, a key figure emerged: the gabellotti or tax collectors, who administered the properties of the aristocrats. In exchange, they obtained a percentage of the crops obtained, but to increase their profits they divided the land into small areas and leased them to the peasants, who also gave them a percentage of the harvest obtained. In this way, the gabellotti fulfilled the important social function of mediators between the owners and the peasants. Little by little they became more and more powerful and committed acts of corruption: they extorted farmers, misappropriated pastures to feed cattle, and organized groups of thieves and rustlers. At the same time, the food supply in the cities depended on them, which allowed them to carry out extortion practices and speculation in the market. For this reason, the gabellotti are considered a direct antecedent of the mafia and its way of doing business.
With the Italian unification, the situation did not improve and the promises of welfare and development were unfulfilled. Young people were recruited for military service and most of the population lived in misery, at the mercy of the new class that held political and economic power. Once again, he needed to find some way to protect himself from the government and find an effective means of livelihood. The nascent mafia revealed itself as the most effective way to achieve this, gained strength and established itself as an alternate power.
By 1874 crime rates in Sicily had grown to an alarming degree. The Italian government decided to bring order and sent hundreds of military personnel to the island. The conflict caused the fall of the conservative government and the emergence of a left-wing government in which the mafia was well represented. The Sicilian mafia consolidated and offered the government to restore calm in Sicily. In reality, he took the opportunity to wipe out other enemy groups. The mafia, now an ally of the state, crushed labor movements [citation needed] and thousands of people who had not yet done so left the island in search of better living conditions., most to Argentina, Uruguay, and the United States. Italian immigrants translated mafia schemes and practices into illegal activities and closer ties with members of the Italian community. In this way, the American mafia organizations arose, which came to rival the Sicilian. They flourished with the advent of Prohibition, in the twenties. On the other hand, in Argentina and Uruguay, these groups of Italian immigrants sympathized with the anarchist movements and transformed their modus operandi towards the support of this ideological cause beyond any other mafia cause.
Over time, the term mafia has become more widespread and is now used to refer to large groups engaged in organized crime or other suspicious activities (for example, the Russian mafia, the Chinese Triad or the Japanese Yakuza).
Etymology
There are numerous theories about the possible origin of the word mafia, whose use began to spread in the middle of the century XIX. One hypothesis is that it comes from the Arabic word mahya, 'bravado, boastfulness, cockiness'. In reinforcement of this theory, it must be remembered that the Arabs occupied Sicily between the years 965 and 1060. Others believe more likely that this term comes from the old Tuscan expression maffia, which meant 'misery', or from the Arabic noun mu'afah, which means 'protection of the weak'.
According to some versions, its first mention appears in an Italian text from the XVIII century against witchcraft, where he associated it with the ideas of ambition and arrogance. Other etymologists claim that it is a vestige of Arab rule in Sicily in the IX century, since in that language the word mohios means 'rude and aggressive man'.
In the 19th century it took on a new connotation: when Giuseppe Garibaldi, the Italian unifier, traveled to Sicily to integrate it into mainland Italy, he had to deal with rebels he would have called "mafiosi."
Others believe that the concept reached its current meaning in 1862 with the premiere of a play, Los mafiosos de la vicaría. The popularity of the work was so great that in Europe organized crime began to be called mafia and, as early as 1865, the police used the word to refer to these groups.
Others say the 'mafia' is the acronym for the phrase Mazzini Aautorizza Furti, Icendi, Avvelenamenti ('Mazzini authorizes robberies, fires and poisoning'), in reference to Giuseppe Mazzini, promoter of the Italian unit. The mafia would have started as such, according to Charles W. Heckethorn, from an association of indigent Sicilians who, under Mazzini's tutelage, began to organize and carry out criminal activities under the protection of the British fleet.
Another acronym tossed around is the phrase Morte Alla France, Italia Anela! (in Spanish: Death to France, Italy Longs For!), coined as the motto of a clandestine army of peasants, who resisted the invasion of Sicily by Charles of Anjou in 1282.
According to Roberto Saviano, a great connoisseur of the Neapolitan mafia or Camorra, criminal organizations are beginning to use the term "godfather" based on the film The Godfather by Francis Ford Coppola, which is based on the novel of the same name by Mario Puzo. According to him, neither in Sicily nor in Campania had anyone ever used this term, which is a translation of the English "godfather". The word to designate a capofamiglia is compare (compadre). It is after the film when the mafia families of Italian origin and settled in the United States begin to use the term godfather instead of compare and compariello. The influence of the film on the ideas of young Italian-Americans linked to mafia organizations was so great that they began to imitate the characters in the film, incorporating dark glasses, striped suits and even the gestures and expressions that appeared on the film..
The mafia in Italy
In Italy there are four main mafias: the Cosa Nostra (Sicily), the Camorra (Campania), the 'Ndrangheta (Calabria) and the Sacra Corona Unita (Apulia).
Structure of the Mafia in Italy
- Don (family boss)
- Sottocapo (subject, substitute Don in case he is disabled)
- Consigliere (conseminator of Donadvises you on important decisions)
- Caporegime (better than Capodecime)
- Capodecime (manages a dozen men)
- Soldier (sicians)
- Associati (the seekers Soldierwho have not yet been admitted to the family)
Our Thing
During fascism in Italy, Cesare Mori, prefect of Palermo, used the special powers he was given to prosecute the mafia, forcing many mobsters to flee abroad or risk jail time. Many fled to the United States, including Giuseppe "Joseph" Bonanno, aka Joe Bananas, who would come to dominate the US branch of the Mafia.
The main division among the Sicilian Mafia, today, is between those bosses who have been convicted or are in jail, mainly Salvatore 'Toto' Riina and Leoluca Bagarella, the capo di tutti capi from 1993 to 1995, and those like Bernardo Provenzano, captured in 2006, although he has not yet been prosecuted or convicted. In addition to Fabrizzio Molinari "Fab" and Benito Lorenzetti "Pad". Although they are still clandestine, like Laureano Spolanzoni, a henchman, known as "El Tesorero". Imprisoned bosses are subject to tight controls on their contacts with the outside world, limiting their ability to run operations from jail, under Italian law 41 bis. In August 2010, information arrived that "Padrino", known as "Pad" and Fabrizzio, cut business ties, although both remain clandestine.
Antonio Giuffrè, a close confidant of Provenzano, maintains that in 1993, Cosa Nostra had direct contact with representatives of Silvio Berlusconi while he was creating his new party Forza Italia, going so far as to revoke 41 bis in Parliament; but nothing suggests a direct connection between Berlusconi and Cosa Nostra. Even if the allegations are shown to be without foundation, Cosa Nostra members are disappointed by a government they think, rightly or wrongly, has elements in their favor.
Clash
The Camorra, equivalent to the Sicilian mafia, was born in Naples (Campania) around the XIV century. The etymology of the term "Camorra" is quite uncertain and lends itself to many interpretations, but the most accepted is the thesis that "camorra" comes from the Neapolitan dialect term c'a morra (literally with the group, in reference to the street groups that practiced the popular game of morra, in Naples), a name that also identified gangs of criminals who controlled gambling and prostitution in the Kingdom of Naples, from 1300 to 1800. Contrary to the mafia, the Camorra has been (except sporadic cases) away from politics and the armed forces; Only with Fernando IV and Francisco II did he make a timid attempt to collaborate, but in the long run it did not report benefits for either party.
Its members, called camorristi, were involved in smuggling, blackmail, bribery, robbery, and murder. They looted and terrorized the country for many years. After centuries of evolution, they came to the fore around 1830. The Camorra prospered during the riots that broke out in Italy in the struggle for unification. The organization allied with the forces of Italian nationalist Giuseppe Garibaldi and helped drive the ruling house, the Bourbons, out of the country. In the period following the unification of Italy (1870), there was a brief and unsuccessful attempt to employ the camorristi in the police force. The Camorra continued to spread fear across the nation and virtually ruled the city of Naples by the turn of the 20th century. Its power was greatly weakened when its members were accused of murder and put on trial in 1911. This association was eliminated in 1922 by the fascist government of Benito Mussolini. Nevertheless, criminal gangs similar to the Camorra continued to operate in Naples, although since 1984, the confessions of some "repentant" camorrista bosses have led to the dismantling of part of the infrastructure that they had redeveloped since the 1960s.
Al Capone was the extension of the Camorra in the US. However, his only relationship with the mafia was his status as an Italian-American, since the Camorra does not operate as a pyramidal organization and respectful of the hierarchies within of families, but are just groups that manage separately, constantly fighting among themselves and without any central organization, like the one that characterizes Cosa Nostra.
Currently, the Neapolitan Camorra is one of the most powerful mafia organizations, since it controls a large part of the drug trade in southern Italy. She is involved in over 4,000 deaths, mostly inter-clan reckoning. The Neapolitan Camorra network is not only limited to Italy, it also branches into France and the US.
The 'Ndrangheta
The word 'Ndràngheta (or Famiglia Montalbano, Onorata società and Picciotteria) indicates the mafia from Calabria (region located in the extreme south of Italy). Today the 'Ndrangheta is one of the strongest and most dangerous criminal organizations in Italy with a diffusion also abroad (from Canada to some European countries). The origin of the word "'Ndrangheta" It comes from the ancient Greek "andragathos", which means "brave man".
Sacred Crown Unita
Sacra Corona Unita is a mafia criminal organization from the Apulia (Italian: Puglia) region in southern Italy, and especially active in its capital Bari. It is relatively recent: it was born in 1983. The Sacra Corona Unita has connections with the Ndrangheta, Camorra and Cosa Nostra. It operates with the sale of drugs, prostitution, extortion and money laundering.
Other European mafias
The term mafia has been included in common parlance as a synonym for organized crime and mafias are often used inappropriately to refer to non-Italian criminal organizations.
Albanian Mafia
Albanian Mafia or “Albanian Organized Crime” are general terms used for various criminal organizations based in Albania or ethnic Albanians known for their ferocity, violence and cruelty. Their criminal spectrum is very active in the United States and the European Union, and they participate in a wide range of criminal activities such as drug and arms trafficking. Although the term "mafia" is often used as a description, it does not imply that all Albanian criminal activities in Albania itself, Kosovo, Macedonia and elsewhere are coordinated or regulated by a single body.
Irish Mob
The Irish mob is the second most evolved in New York and part of Las Vegas. It is strongly linked to the Italian, due to its coexistence in the neighborhoods of the Bronx and Queens. The former don Hköpe Gah died in 1956. His present don Maärk Hkölk occupies his estate. The Irish mob is seen portrayed in some American films, such as State of Grace, starring Sean Penn, Ed Harris and Gary Oldman, Road to Perdition, starring Tom Hanks, Jude Law and Daniel Craig and The Departed, starring Matt Damon, Leonardo DiCaprio and Jack Nicholson.
Russian mafia
The mafia in the United States
At first, there was the Gambino, the Genovese family and the Lucchese family.
Each family is ultimately led by a Don, who was insulated from actual operations by various levels of hierarchy. According to popular belief, the closest and most trusted adviser to the Don was the so-called consigliere (Italian for 'advisor'). Actually, the consigliere was in charge of mediating in internal disputes. He also dealt with the economics of the "business," although a second might as well. Then there were a few regimi with a variable number of soldati ('soldiers'), who carried out the actual operations. Each regime was led by a caporegime, who reported to the chief. When the chief made a decision, he never gave the orders directly to the soldiers who would carry them out, but instead passed the instructions down a hierarchical chain of command. In this way, the higher layers of the organization were safe from being implicated if members of the lower layers were captured. This structure was immortalized in Mario Puzo's famous novel The Godfather.
The initiation ritual that emerged in Sicily in the mid-XIX century has hardly changed until today. The Palermo police chief reported that the mobster who is about to start is brought in the presence of a group of chiefs and deputy chiefs. One of these men pricks the arm or hand of the being initiated and tells him to spill the blood on a sacred image, usually a saint. The loyalty oath is taken when the image is broken and burned, symbolizing the annihilation of the traitors. This was confirmed by the first Pentito, Tommaso Buscetta.
A hit or assassination must be approved by the heads of the family, as there is a danger of retaliatory attacks that could possibly start a war. In a state of war, families "go to the mattresses" (empty rental apartments in which a few soldiers would sleep in turns on mattresses on the floor while the rest were posted at the windows ready to shoot at members of the military). rival families).
The American Mafia eventually came to have a larger number of non-Sicilian Italian members among its most die-hard and forged good relations with mobsters of other nationalities, thus distinguishing itself from the original Sicilian organization.
The Mafia in Cuba
History of the Mafia in Cuba
Lucky Luciano chose Cuba as an intermediate point to supply the heroin market to the United States and his representatives in Havana were Corsican, Amletto Battisti and Lora. The Jew Meyer Lansky was the founder and the leader of the Havana empire, the architect of the political relations between General Fulgencio Batista and the American mafia since 1934. Lansky organized a colossal empire in Havana, the most important center in the world in its time for illegal money laundering from the United States, the processing of smuggled diamonds and gold, as well as a network of casinos, famous hotels, cabarets and restaurants.
Connecting businesses and criminal activities but mainly the juicy business of cocaine, it was aimed at corrupting American society in this city full of tourists, where many of them came with all expenses paid: transportation, hotels, food and drinks. In addition, some traveled invited by some personality or celebrity to enjoy large parties. That was the main use of Havana by George Raft, who used to bring guests to the Hotel Capri to offer them cocaine, sex and gambling, all well organized and controlled.
Mob Summit in Cuba
In December 1946, at the Hotel Nacional in Havana, Cuba, one of the most crucial meetings of all the mafia bosses in the United States and those who carried out their businesses on the island took place. This historic event came to be even more important due to the participation of one of the most famous Capo di Tutti i Capi of organized crime, Lucky Luciano, who after spending several years in prison in the United States and being deported to Italy, his homeland, met for the first time with his family. This meeting was organized and orchestrated by his consigliere Meyer Lansky, who had created great ties on the island between organized crime and the elite of the Cuban government, awaiting them not only a solid foundation in business but also security to roam Cuba at will. and use it as a springboard for their dirty business to the United States. Among the bosses who attended the meeting was Vito Genovese, the first to arrive on the Island and be invited to eat at Luciano's residence, in Miramar, on 3rd Street. The meeting, on December 21, was attended by Albert Anastasia, Tommy Lucchese, Joe Bonnano, Joe Profacii, Giuseppe Magliocco, Mike Miranda, Willie Moreti, and Augie Pisano from New York and New Jersey; Steve Magaddino, from Buffalo; from Chicago, Tony Accardo and the brothers Charlie and Ronconi Fischetti, the last two representatives and heirs of Al Capone, who did not attend the meeting because he was deathly ill at his residence in Miami, after being released from prison. From New Orleans, Carlos Marcello and 'Dandy Phil' Kastel; from Florida, Holy Trafficante Sr., who sometimes used the names Doc Harris or Baldy Stacher and was Lansky's second in all business. Amadeo Barletta and Amletto Battisti attended from Cuba. Lansky, Costello, Genovese and Adonis were also present. It was a whole night: drinks, a delicious menu and finally Frank Sinatra, the godson of the mafia, sang to close that meeting with a flourish.
End of the Mafia in Cuba
When the Cuban Revolution triumphed on January 1, 1959, the revolutionary government took strong measures against the mafia and against all types of criminal organizations or delinquents, nationalizing or closing all their businesses, prohibiting gambling and gambling, thus making the mobsters leave Cuba.[citation required]
Mafia in Argentina
An investigation published in Italy affirmed that La Santa ('Ndrangheta) has subsidiaries installed in Argentina called 'ndrinas, in charge of the illegal export of cocaine to Europe. Another important group settled in Brazil, including the Vitale family and the Cappola, from Arezzo, and the dangerous Camorra mafia from Naples.