Mexican Foreign Minister Jorge Castaneda this week called the failure to secure progress on migration issues was the single biggest foreign policy disappointment of President Vicente Fox’s first year in office. At the same time, Castaneda denied rumors that he was planning to resign. He was instrumental in refocusing Mexican efforts from seeking a widespread legalization of undocumented Mexicans in the US to working toward smaller goals. Despite the personal relationship between Fox and US President Bush, which is frequently characterized as close, progress on migration issues fell victim to calls for increased security after the September 11th terrorist attacks. Problems were also created by Mexican opposition to US positions on other issues, especially on water rights and the death penalty. Former Mexican President Carlos Salinas, whose term ended in 1994, in the US for a ten-year anniversary conference on the North American Free Trade Agreement with his US and Canadian counterparts, said that for Mexico to receive full benefits from NAFTA, freer migration to the US must become a reality.
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The National Park Service has proposed building a steel vehicle barrier along the Arizona border where a Park Service ranger was shot and killed in August. The barrier would run for about 30 miles, at the southern boundary of the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. A similar barrier would be erected on the boundary of the Coronado National Memorial.
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As word spreads of groups in southern Arizona forming militias designed to stop undocumented immigration, people seeking to enter the US undetected are expressing growing fear that they will be the victims of violence. Those starting the militias say they are glad the word is spreading, with one saying the delay will give the “government time to mobilize the troops.”
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In a recent incident a Border Patrol agent fired at a man throwing rocks at him across a fence marking the US-Mexico border in California. The man was part of a group of undocumented immigrants. No one was injured in the incident, which occurred just west of the San Ysidro port of entry. Officials said that the agent did not have time to load and fire his pepper gun, a non-lethal form of defense. The group escaped apprehension.
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A Mexican citizen is facing federal charges of immigrant smuggling for profit and causing the death of four of those involved. If convicted, David Jose-Gonzalez faces the death penalty. The charges stem from a van crash in Utah last week. Prosecutors say that they will not seek the death penalty, leaving the toughest possible punishment as life in prison.
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Border Patrol agents this week arrested seven Chinese nationals being smuggled into the US through Canada. The group included three men and four women. They were traveling in a small aluminum boat across the St. Clair River separating Michigan from Canada. Officials say the group is lucky to have survived the strong river currents.
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The single Border Patrol agent stationed in Bakersfield, California, was arrested this week on charges of embezzling more than $1,000 for a union fund. Mark David Marquez became the only agent in the summer of 2000 when the other agent was suspended following his indictment on bribery charges.
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