Local civil defense forces patrol along a mountain road in rural Huehuetenango, Guatemala, September 1, 1982. Organization of the Patrullas de Autodefensa Civil, civil defense patrols, PAC, began in 1981 under Lucas García's military regime and was institutionalized after the coup d'état that brought Ríos Montt to power. The PACs were composed of members of rural communities particularly in the heavily indigenous northwest of the country and were directed with coercion and force by the Guatemalan Armed Forces.