Tijuana, Baja Norte Mexico
[date unknown]
Posted on 10/17/2002 5:26:52 AM PDT by madfly
As part of an international demonstration focusing primarily on immigrants’ rights, advocates from the Rio Grande Valley and Matamoros gathered at both ends of Brownsville’s Gateway International Bridge Saturday morning to voice their concerns.
"Whether we are residents of Mexico or the U.S. side of the border, we suffer similar injustices: poverty, violence, unemployment, low salaries and poor public services such as education, health care, electricity and water," said Helga Garcia-Garza, reading from a statement released by the Southwest Network for Environmental and Economic Justice (SNEEJ), which organized the demonstration.
Garcia-Garza is a member of Tlapalcalli Inc., a group under the umbrella of the SNEEJ organization that is based in Albuquerque, N.M.
Saturday’s protest involved 30 protesters on the U.S. side of the bridge and about 15 on the Matamoros side.
The event was simultaneously held along the U.S.-Mexico border in Juarez-El Paso, Nogales-Nogales and Tijuana-San Diego. It lasted about two hours and was upstaged by a group of motorcyclists in the Valley for this weekend’s BikeFest 2002 who loudly drove their bikes across the international bridge into Matamoros.
Holding up placards and dressed in red and black T-shirts, the 30 protesters, between 20 to 60 years old, represented several human rights, farm workers and religious grassroots organizations, The shouted: "Enough is enough," "We want border justice" and "United without a border."
Saturday’s demonstration particularly focused on the U.S. immigration policy, including Operation Rio Grande — a government initiative began in 1997 to curb illegal immigration.
"Thousands of people are participating right now (in the protest) to demand that the border agenda be brought back to focus for both governments (Mexico and United States)," said Ruben Solis, one of the protesters.
On Sept. 5, 2001, Mexican President Vicente Fox met with President George W. Bush in Washington, D.C., to discuss immigration. The talks included the possibility of legalization for 3 million undocumented Mexican citizens living in the United States, including thousands in the Valley.
There was even talk of opening the U.S.-Mexico borders to free-flowing traffic and trade.
However, immigration reform soon took a back seat to national security concerns after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
"The problems we face on the U.S-Mexico border region are common to both sides of the border," Solis said. "We’re too far from Mexico City and too far from Washington, D.C., and that’s the reason we have problems that include human rights violations related to the immigration policies of Operation Rio Grande. It has resulted in the deaths of hundreds of immigrants (who are trying to enter the United States)," he said, referring to illegal immigrants who fall victim to the often harsh South Texas climate and other factors in their attempts to reach such locations as Houston and Dallas.
"We are just trying to send a message. We want to draw attention to the human toll and cost of people trying to immigrate into the United States," Solis said, adding, "everyone has a right to dignified work, housing, free education, social security and health care."
The border protest also included topics ranging from low wages to maquiladoras, violence, lack of adequate health care and an unavailability of necessary water for farmers.
Saturday marked the second straight year for the protests.
"This year we’re back on track (after the Sept. 11 attacks) to building a common borer agenda that takes into account the problems border residents face every day," said Petra Mata from Fuerza Unida, another of the groups represented at the protest.
Richard Moore, SNEEJ director, said protests will continue.
"We are on a five-year plan to impact the policy of the U.S-Mexico border," he said. "In 2004 we have U.S presidential elections and in 2006 we have elections for president in Mexico."
Meanwhile, Immigration and Naturalization Services Spokesman Art Moreno said deaths of illegal immigrants were an occurrence long before Operation Rio Grande was implemented in South Texas.
"While Operation Rio Grande has helped to reduce the flow of the traffic of the people who try to illegally enter the United States, the operation also has helped to save lives," Moreno said.
Regarding alleged human rights abuse by INS personnel and other U.S. law enforcement officers, Moreno said, "On several occasions we’ve met with advocacy groups to talk about this. In fact, if there is a concern regarding a violations of human rights, they can file a complaint."
People who jump off bridges often fall victim to the harsh force of the water below and die.
The guy can't count ---apparently there were 30 on the US side, 15 on the Mexican side --that's only 45.
What a liar ---people from the US aren't the ones dying trying to get into Mexico, Mexicans aren't having to provide a living for millions of Americans. There isn't much in common for both sides of the border and that's much of the problem. The corrupt class of Mexico doesn't want improvements.
It works in reverse as well, if ten million conservatives showed up in D.C. it would be reported that the count was 2,000, if you heard about it in the news media at all that is.
"What a liar" (Fitz said)
I don't agree - the first comment is entirely accurate - it just means something other than intended.
There are too many mexicans on both sides of the border and it's too easy for them to commute.
Sounds like a common problem to me.
No one having enough *stuff* appears willing to step up to the plate, and do what's needed to put a stop to this kind of bullshit, either.
...no one.
So why aren't these people outside Fox's office protesting? After all he's the president of their country and he's the one responsible for their plight. Oh, yeah I forget he's a criminal just like the rest of them.
I suppose it was too much to expect that the Border Patrol was there checking papers on the American side huh? Bush will never get another vote from me..he is determined to make America a borderless country..
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| Threats to National Security: The Asylum System, The Visa Lottery, and 245(i) Testimony prepared for the U.S. House of Representatives By Steven A. Camarota When Hesham Mohamed Hedayet murdered Victoria Hen and Yaakov Aminov at Los Angeles International Airport on July 4 of this year, many observers mistakenly saw his crime, like the attacks of September 11th, as either unpreventable random acts of terrorism or as representing failures only of intelligence, law enforcement, or perhaps even airport security. While it is extremely important to consider possible failures in each of these areas, a careful examination of the immigration history of Mr. Hedayet reveals that fundamental failures in our immigration system also played a critically important part in allowing him to commit his heinous crime. |
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