I have already written about the Yakuza - a traditional criminal group in China. However this organization not far sole representative mafia. There is an even more ancient one - the Triad.
The triad is a much more secretive community, with centuries-old history. They never express themselves, but in society they recognize each other with the help of distinctive signs, special words and gestures.
According to legend, the founders of the Triad were monks who swore revenge for the destruction of the temple. An association of “Man, Earth and Heaven” was created, whose members first took revenge on the offenders, and then generally took control of almost all of China.
Today, the Triad's networks are spread throughout the world. Almost every country has secret organizations, controlled from China itself. Interestingly, distinctive feature group is the fact that all money received through racketeering and other illegal activities, no matter where it is obtained, is sent exclusively to banks in China.
In fact, this is a huge plus for the Triad, which has allowed them to remain in the shadow of the law for many centuries. Everyone knows about them, but no one, including government officials, is in a hurry to bring any charges. 
Meanwhile, the Triad, despite its favorable position, remains a very closed organization, with strict discipline and a certain structure. Members of the group have their own bosses, accountants, combat units and even available women. It's like a state within states.
By the way, the Triad often helps the state. It is known that the organization regularly invests in the development of medicine and sponsors the development of drugs and medicines.
However, its members still prefer to remain in the shadows, not advertising not only good deeds, but even more so atrocities. And there are plenty of them. The slightest disobedience to the boss is punished according to the internal charter and code of honor. And the mafia does not stand on ceremony with those who do not agree with the Triad. 
But even with the support of the state, the organization does everything so that none of the crimes can be proven. They destroy all witnesses and evidence, most often use a cold environment, and do the job cleanly and without problems.
Interestingly, unlike the Yakuza, members of the Triad are in no hurry to show off their lives. They also put tattoos on their bodies, but hide them under long sleeves and high collars. The triad will never “stoop” to mass performances and participation in carnivals, unlike the yakuza, which attract audiences of thousands of spectators.
It is obvious that the Triad is a much more serious organization, although it is difficult to call the Yakuza innocent. They have committed thousands of crimes, but they still enjoy considerable respect from their compatriots.
06/22/2010
In the south of Moscow, a new rag Cherkizon is being built - a Chinatown, which will accommodate up to 80 thousand guests from the Middle Kingdom. According to unofficial data, up to 1 million 200 thousand Chinese live in Russia. Along with the Chinese, customs, ways of life, and mores with the Made in China label are also moving to us. Including - Chinese mafia The Triad is unlike any other mafia in the world.
Purely Chinese murder
The Triad is considered one of the most ancient and numerous mafias in the world. And the most secret.
- Ours law enforcement There is only a sliver of information about the Triad,” complained a police expert on ethnic criminal groups in Moscow. – This is a very secretive organization, which can only include ethnic Chinese and only on the recommendations of other members of the Triad, so it is not possible to infiltrate there. And information spills out beyond the “Triad” extremely rarely, and even then mostly by accident...
...Zhang Faiking came to the police with signs of a noose on his neck. There was wild fear in his eyes, he babbled: “Triad” and “they will kill.” His uncle refused to share the income with the Triad - the appetites of the eastern racketeers were exorbitant: they demanded to give one of the containers to Cherkizovsky market. This unsightly tin box, where traders both work and live, can, according to some estimates, bring up to $1 million in profit to its owner. An amount for which the bandits are willing to do anything. Mafiosi kidnapped the nephew of an intractable merchant and were going to kill him. Faykin, one might say, was killed - hanged in the forest.
“But the rope, apparently, was Chinese, the quality was not so good, it broke, but Faikin was able to get out,” the operatives tell the tragicomic details of the incident. “He correctly decided that now his path was only to us, all other roads would have led him to the grave - the “Triad” would not have misfired a second time...
Noble robbers
The “Triad” originated in China 2.5 thousand years ago. At first, pirates and slave traders united in their “trade union” “Shadow of the Lotus”. And the name “Triad” arose in the 17th century. According to legend, three monks returned from a trip to their native Shaolin monastery and found it destroyed and burned, and the monks killed. At that moment, they decided to organize the “Union of Earth, Man and Sky in the name of justice,” which later included the “Shadow of the Lotus.” The Triads still honor ancient rituals, for example, during initiation, gang brothers drink a cocktail in which drops of the blood of their comrades are mixed with the blood of a chicken. The classic "Triads" still practice tattoos according to the hierarchy - dragon heads, cigarettes on the forearms. For betrayal and apostasy in the “Triad”, a difficult and slow death awaits, and often along with the family and the destruction of the home.
– In Russia, this conspiracy is further strengthened by the isolation of the Chinese diaspora - they go to “their” canteens, to “their” hairdressers, keep money only in Chinese underground banks, and send all the proceeds to their homeland. The colossal turnover of cross-border trade goes abroad in almost its entirety and feeds the Chinese economy,” the director of the Vladivostok Research Center told Interlocutor. organized crime Vitaly Nomokonov.
“Triads,” like any groupings, can be large or small. It is believed that the main “Triads” are Beijing, Shanghai and Harbin. According to operational data, ordinary members of the “Triad” are distinguished by external modesty - to the point of asceticism, strict hierarchy, blind obedience to the “bosses”, ruthlessness, mutual responsibility and a vow of silence. The Triad, with rare exceptions, leaves virtually no material traces.
– Around the world, migration services have an expression: “The Chinese do not die.” Their deaths are not recorded anywhere. A Chinese man just died - according to his documents, someone else lives and works,” the head of the press service of the Federal migration service Konstantin Poltoranin.
The East is a profitable business
If few people within a radius of 1–2 thousand kilometers from Moscow have heard about the “Triads,” then for the Far East this phenomenon is not new. It is even being studied at the Law Institute of the Far Eastern State University, and this year a doctoral dissertation will be defended on the topic of “Triads.” And some residents of Siberia and the Far East became acquainted with this phenomenon not theoretically, but practically.
An entrepreneur from Irkutsk became the main prosecutor in the case of one of the Triads. Natalya Guravleva turned to the police after the Chinese demanded that she pay them part of her monthly income, holding a knife to her throat: “This is our argument.” The businesswoman managed to call the security with a panic button, and with whom she clashed, she only realized at the trial: the unsightly-looking, puny Chinese turned out to be militants of a powerful clan. True, the court did not get to the main “mafiosi” - the small members of the gang did not extradite them. The leaders of the Triad were nevertheless able to be expelled from the country, albeit as relatively decent citizens: for violating the visa regime.
– Most often, the crimes of the Triads occur among their own compatriots. Racketeering, threats, even murders are not included in Russian statistics - there are no complainants. Everything remains within the diaspora,” an operational officer shared with Sobesednik.
Chinese groups on foreign territory often prefer to act by merging with local gangs of “colleagues in the trade” and bribing the authorities. “Triads” operate using this method all over the world, but in Russia, of course, there is the most favorable environment for this.
– The main specialization of Triads in the Far East is timber and smuggling. Some time ago there were still synthetic drugs, but this trend was suppressed in communist China,” Vitaly Nomokonov told Interlocutor.
The words of Professor Nomokonov are confirmed by judicial practice. There are two scandalous criminal cases in the Far East, in one of which customs general Ernest Bakhshetsyan was convicted of participation in smuggling; in the other, a former vice-governor and a member of the Federation Council are wanted. At the trial in the Bakhshetsyan case, figures emerged: the profit of only one group of smugglers was $500 thousand per day. And throughout the Far East, losses amounted to $4 million per day.
“No expensive property was found at all from the “smuggler” Bakhshetsyan and his relatives. There were many publications in the press that the general was framed by real smugglers and the security forces protecting them because he tried to ruin this channel. For which he paid,” lawyer Marat Fayzulin expressed his opinion. – Apparently, this channel feeds very high spheres, if all the appeals, right up to Putin, were answered only by silence.
Facts about the Triads
Hollywood “loves” the Chinese mafia very much - several blockbusters have been made about it with Bruce Lee and Van Damme. IN famous film The Kill Bill Triad is led by a woman. This is possible in China.
Mao Zedong is the only ruler who went on the warpath with the Triads, ordering the shooting of all criminal leaders. Their place was immediately taken by the children of the killed - the post of leader in the “Triads” is inherited. Another leader of China, Chiang Kai Shek, did not get involved with the invincible mafia. When his wife was kidnapped, he paid the requested ransom without discussion.
"Triad" is one of the most patriotic mafias. During international events militants guarantee the safety of foreigners, and during the SARS outbreak they even announced a $1 million bonus to a doctor who finds a cure for this disease.
The Chinese triads are the oldest and at the same time the largest grouping of the world ethnic business, the most organized mafia in the world. The exact date of the organization’s establishment is unknown; historians call it the 17th century.
According to one version, the triads initially arose as partisan detachments from the Ming dynasty, whose goal was to overthrow the Manchus from the ruling Qing dynasty. Later, when representatives of the Ming Dynasty developed a full-fledged underground network, they began to engage in crime.
Then the basic principles of the organization were laid down: protection Chinese culture and business from foreign influence, absolute and unquestioning submission to a higher authority, an ideological component in the form of Confucianism. The name of the organization came from Confucianism: according to Chinese philosophy, man is the center of the universe, connecting opposite poles in the form of heaven and earth, and forms a trinity with them. Moreover, “triad” is not a self-name; this word in relation to the mafia appeared only in the 19th century. It was invented by the British administration of Hong Kong to somehow designate Chinese criminal groups.
Despite its long existence, very little is known about the organization. The reason for this lies in the extreme closeness of the organization. In addition, it is difficult to guess a representative of the triads both in an ordinary fighter and in a high-ranking leader of an organization. Many triad leaders lead a lifestyle bordering on ascetic and do not have as many different body paintings as representatives of the yakuza. It is almost impossible to infiltrate there: only an ethnic Chinese can become a member of the triad, who came on the recommendation of four current members and one leader of the group. Accordingly, the people who vouched for the newcomer are responsible for his actions with their heads. At the same time, ordinary fighters of the gang - “brothers” or “monks” - do not know the leader of their cell by sight, so even under torture they cannot hand him over.
The income of triads is almost impossible to calculate. In the territories under their control, they have a share in virtually all types of businesses, both legal and shadow. The illegal activities of the triads include racketeering, extortion, contract killings, illegal gambling, murder, illegal migration, car thefts, kidnappings, home robberies, loan sharking, theft, arson, fraud, pimping, arms trafficking, human trafficking, money laundering, counterfeiting.
Drug proceeds stand apart. Triads have taken control of the trafficking of opium and its derivatives since early XIX century. Then the Celestial Empire was flooded with cheap drugs, the profits from the sale of which were phenomenal. These events led to two so-called “Opium” wars, when attempts to limit the opium trade led to large-scale military conflicts. To this day, one of the world's three drug trafficking centers is under the control of the triads. The other two - Afghan and Colombian - are under the control of American intelligence services.
Since the beginning of the 19th century, Chinese traders and entrepreneurs began widespread migration throughout the world. Almost every group of travelers included representatives of triads to control and protect Chinese business. Thus, the triads have spread their influence throughout the world: in every country where Chinese business is represented, there are triads.
Of course, Russia, as a direct neighbor of China, could not avoid triad members entering the country. However, the activities of the Chinese mafia in Russia differ significantly from the activities of other organized crime groups. The Chinese act with their characteristic secrecy, avoiding high-profile actions, murders, mass shootings, etc. In addition, the victims of triads are often rebellious members of Chinese communities, who are also secretive and do not turn to law enforcement for help in case of problems.
In Russia, triads operate mainly in the Far East, near the border. The main areas of activity are the export of timber, seafood, smuggling and drug trafficking. According to some reports, the Chinese export about $300 million worth of Russian timber every year. In addition, triads are involved in the theft of precious metals and valuable minerals. In this matter, they closely cooperate with representatives of local organized crime groups: Russian bandits steal the necessary metals from Russian factories, and then resell them to the Chinese, who export the valuable cargo to their homeland.
In essence, the Chinese mafia brings home from Russia everything that is of any value. Some smuggling items include sea cucumber, ginseng, tiger skin, and bear bile.
In return, the triads bring other “valuable” goods to Russia: various counterfeits of equipment from world brands, all sorts of trinkets and clothing. Despite the apparent worthlessness of the product, it is widely distributed all the way to the capital, and its annual turnover is about 10 billion US dollars.
Chinese mafiosi consider it important to cooperate with Russian “colleagues” from among local gangs and corrupt officials. Members of the triads try to avoid any conflicts with Russian gangs, preferring mutually beneficial cooperation to bloody showdowns. At the same time, the Chinese are very subtly playing on the pride and thirst for power of regional gang leaders. Initially presenting themselves as a weaker rival, representatives of the triads very quickly take control over the local “kings”. According to Russian operatives, such a thin psychological techniques members of the triads are trained by representatives of the Chinese intelligence services, who themselves large quantities presented in triads.
Almost every person in his country knows what the concept of “Mafia” is. The mafia is, first of all, a system created by a group of people. As one person said: “The Mafia is immortal.” And this is indeed true. The criminal world will live forever, it has its own laws and orders, concepts. Today we will talk about the Chinese mafia, or as it is also called “Triad”. The Chinese mafia differs in many ways from our Russian lads. They have been operating here for more than 2500 years. strict rules and traditions. A triad is a traditional form of criminal community that has officially existed since the 17th century BC. In 1644, the nomadic horsemen of the Manchu Qing dynasty conquered China in barbaric fashion. Men and small children were killed, and women were raped. At the same time, the Chinese Shaulin Monastery, which was famous for its martial arts, was destroyed. Only three monks survived, who went in search of provisions for their comrades. Returning to the temple, they saw that all their brothers were dead. They decided to avenge their comrades and founded the first “Triad”. Union of Earth, Sky and Man in the name of justice. All merchants were subject to tribute. If someone refused to pay secret society money, died in terrible agony, and his entire family was slaughtered. The proceeds were used to buy weapons and ammunition. The monks, at the head of their society, waged a guerrilla war against the invaders of China. This continued until the monks died and new leaders took their place. The new leaders had a completely different policy; instead of guerrilla warfare, they preferred to engage in the slave trade, piracy, illegal gold mining, and racketeering. It was then that the “Triad” became a mafia to resist the Chinese imperial dynasty.
Nowadays, the Chinese mafia “Triad” is all over the world. Their leaders are well established in Thailand, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Taiwan. In addition, they are available in Europe, USA, UK and Australia. But most of all the eye is on Far East Russia. The Chinese mafia does literally everything; the criminal list is very long. These are extortion, drug trafficking, prostitution, illegal migration, gambling, racketeering and “protection for businessmen.” Accounting at Triad is kept very strictly. At the end of every month, Chinese mafia tax inspectors come to Chinese traders and businessmen to collect the 15 percent of their profits. It is undesirable to deceive the Triad; you should immediately cruel punishment. On the same day or night, the businessman and his family, loved ones, relatives, friends are killed, and then the store or shop is burned down. All living and nonliving things associated with this person are destroyed. So, if you don’t pay, you will turn to dust. The Triad has cruel rules and regulations. Everyone unquestioningly carries out their tasks. At the head of each family there is a boss, subordinate to the boss are foremen, and foremen manage the fighters.
To work for the Triad you need to earn respect and be useful person. If a person is useless, he is just a piece of walking meat. Not everyone is accepted into the family. This is first and foremost a business, there is no friendship here, there is only dedication to your business and your family.
So, for example, if a brigadier or fighter “messed up”, simply put, did not follow the instructions of his boss, severe punishment follows.
There is only one punishment - death. Forgiveness can be earned by presenting your barefoot with a severed finger. Some do this, but such group members lose authority. Someone might say that the author has seen enough films and is writing all sorts of nonsense. So this is it the honest truth like a child's tear. In 2006, there was a “Triad” war in China; in Beijing alone, a group of people hacked more than ten people to death with machetes in one night. Among these people was a young guy who was going on a date to propose to his girlfriend. When they met in the park, a minibus suddenly pulled up and masked people ran out. They started cutting the guy with machetes, and he fought back and protected the girl. In the end, the girl was not touched, but he was cut up in a matter of seconds. Dying on the lap of his beloved, he still gave her the ring. As the police found out, he was a foreman from one of the Triads. When there is a redistribution of power, the police never interfere; it is in their interests that as many members of the criminal community die as possible. When Mao Zedong was in power in China. The Chinese communists decreed that Chinese groups must be rooted out. Criminal leaders were shot in batches, but their sons and brothers took their place. It turned out that you can’t shoot the entire mafia. Thus, over the hundreds of years of their existence, the Triads have accumulated unique experience in confronting law enforcement agencies. According to many veterans of the Chinese police, even if all their leaders are sent to prison, not a single cog in the Triad mechanism will ever fail. One of the Chinese life principles is: “Take your time, sit down and think.” The Chinese “Triad” thinks through everything and plans for many years ahead; it does not live for today. This is what distinguishes the Chinese mafia from ours. They are in no hurry to immediately make huge profits. Why rush somewhere if the work started is right. And no matter how paradoxical it may sound, the Chinese mafia is trying to strengthen the Chinese economy every year. Unlike the Russian “Solntsevsky” or “Podolsk” organized crime groups, which launder money in offshore companies in Cyprus or Switzerland, Chinese mafiosi even transfer the currency “earned” in the United States from the sale of heroin back to China. Thus, they want their country to be richer and more independent. The Chinese mafia has its eyes and ears everywhere. There are people in the police and government agencies. They bribe judges and officials. In a word, they have a way everywhere. The only thing is that this path is bloody and not for everyone. Nowadays, if you visit China, you can easily meet members of the Triad. But it's not quite like in the movies.
In China, there are not groups of pumped-up and tattooed Chinese walking around everywhere. In this form you can only meet fighters who are just starting their criminal career and like to spend gatherings in a restaurant or sauna. Young people most often try to prove that they are worth something.
But meeting real bosses is very rare, and no one will let them near them within a kilometer. Only by tattoos can you understand who is in front of you.
In China, it is customary to take responsibility for your tattoos.
If a simple person from the street gets similar tattoos, they will simply be cut off along with the skin. Also in China, Triad members have an unwritten rule to never touch foreign tourists. They themselves maintain and control order on their streets. Lawless people are severely punished if they decide to rob or kill a tourist.That's actually all I wanted to tell you about criminal world China. The Chinese “Triad” is a criminal tradition that will live forever and be passed on from father to son. Watch an interesting video!
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Of all the existing criminal communities National groups are distinguished by the greatest organization, cohesion and invincibility. We hear about the Italian Japanese yakuza and the Chinese triad. Having grown into local traditions, in their homeland they become an almost ineradicable element public life. And having gone beyond the borders of the country of origin, they seize living space thanks to strict discipline, deep secrecy and special cruelty.
The emergence of triads
The Triad is perhaps the oldest criminal organization in the world. Some researchers trace its history back to legendary times - to the third century BC. Then pirates and robbers with east coast China created a kind of trade union - “Shadow of the Lotus”. Soon after the emergence of the triads, the "Shadow of the Lotus" joined the newly created organization.
When the word “triad” was first used, the mafia had not yet appeared in Italy. It is reliably known that groups with this name existed already in the 17th century. However, at that time the triads were not bandit organizations, but part of the national liberation movement of China against the Manchu invaders.
According to legend, the first triad was founded by three monks from the Shaolin monastery destroyed by the invaders. In the minds of the founders, the triad is “the union of Earth, Man and Heaven in the name of justice.” These symbols were clear to every Chinese.
Initially, the triad militants were financed by ordinary Chinese, dissatisfied with foreign oppression. However, in a poor country, it was difficult for peasants and shopkeepers to maintain a secret guerrilla army. They began to look for triads in criminal trades: robbery, piracy, slave trade. Gradually, noble goals faded into the background, and banditry became the essence of the triads' activities.
Coexistence with the Chinese Communist Party
During the triad they supported Sun Yat-sen. This political mistake led to serious persecution of triad figures after Mao's victory. The Chinese communists were worried not so much about the fact that the triad was a mafia engaged in all types of criminal activities, but rather about attempts to destroy the monopoly of the Communist Party, the only political organization in the country.
Although little is known about the fate of the triads in communist China, it is safe to say that the crackdown on underworld leaders has not weakened the influence of the triads. The militants of the organization still collect tribute from businesses and maintain order on the streets, have informants in the police and their people among party functionaries on the ground.
The leaders of the modern CPC are not worried about this activity: as long as they don’t get involved in politics, don’t compete with communists for influence, and don’t try to promote their people to leadership positions in the country. The triad does not do this - the desire to grab a larger piece than you can chew is not typical of the Chinese mafia.
Hong Kong triads
After Sun Yat-sen fled to Taiwan, many triad leaders followed him or settled in Hong Kong's rapid post-war economic growth provided many sources of wealth for the criminal gangs there. Chinese triad collected tribute from small business, “oversaw” smuggling, drug trafficking, and prostitution. That’s why the most influential and famous gangs, such as “14 K,” grew up here.
During the British Raj, the power of the triads in Hong Kong was unchallenged. With the transition of the territory to Chinese rule, many leaders of the underworld fled abroad. Probably, now the position of the Hong Kong triads is equal to the “status” of their “colleagues” from the PRC.
Structure of Chinese organized crime groups
Let's try to understand what a triad is from the inside. First of all, you need to understand that this is a very secretive organization, so there is not much reliable information about its structure.
It is known that individual triads are rather isolated organizations. There is no person who could be called the leader of all triads. But within each gang the hierarchy is very strict. At the head of the triad is a leader (we will not give all the flowery names for this position), his post is inherited. The leader has two deputies in areas of activity. Security, intelligence, and recruitment services are subordinate to them.
In a large triad between leaders and ordinary fighters - “monks” - there can be up to four links of leaders. Although all members of the gang unquestioningly obey their superiors, each link is quite autonomous in carrying out the tasks that the triad has assigned to it. This provides mobility and flexibility, which is very important for a large organization.
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