Amnesty International: México Has Its Own Problems With Illegal Immigration

Despite protestations by Mexican President Felipe Calderon over the recently signed anti-immigrant bill in Arizona, a report released by Amnesty International blames Mexico for the  rape, kidnapping, abuse, and extortion of tens of thousands of illegal immigrants every year. The majority are Central Americans from Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Honduras making the long trek across Mexico to the United States, a journey that Amnesty International calls “one of the most dangerous in the world.”

According to the report, México does little to stop the abuse of immigrants, and those who perpetrate such crimes are almost never prosecuted. Complicating the situation is the implicit, and often explicit, support of local police and government officials. Of the groups crossing México, one in five are female, and one in twelve are under the age of 18. The report includes dozens of recommendations for the Mexican government to cut down on the exploitation and human rights violations inflicted on this vulnerable group of transients.

Mexican police and government officials are notoriously corrupt, and show little respect for the rule of law. Police forces in México are abysmally underpaid, fostering an apathy towards their position that, when unchecked, leads to other lucrative, albeit illegal, avenues to increase their income. As for the political culture, it is very similar to Louisiana or New Jersey, where politicians are expected to be thieving sons-of-bitches, a status worn like a badge of honor on their sleeves. So suffice it to say that this report from Amnesty International will fall on deaf ears in the Mexican government. What would motivate them to care about a population long looked down upon by the Mexican people (Central Americans), and who don’t have any plans on settling in the country? Nothing.

While living in México, my students shared an apt anecdote about Mexican politics with me that I’ve never forgotten. Every summer in Guadalajara, there are torrential rains that fill the Atemajac Valley where the city lies. Once criss-crossed with streams, the city grew to fill the valley, forcing the old waterways underground. Like most urban areas, the metro zone has exploded in size, leaving the infrastructure severely lacking. And every year without fail, there are horrible floods that take numerous lives, even sweeping people down storm drains and washing away cars and houses. It is a seasonal norm, lamented by residents who cry out for a modernization of the abysmally defunct drainage system. Yet no politician even suggests improving it. Why not? Because nobody would see it. Politicians build public monuments, byways, bridges, tunnel systems, and parks, and provided they are finished before the money runs out and a different project is started, they can slap their name on it and preserve their “legacy” as a provider for the common good. But a drainage system? With no huge signs proclaiming the politician’s name? Then no thank you!

The Mexican government has made a stink about the Arizona law for its injustice, while simulatenously allowing even more sinister abuses to happen on their watch. Come on México, agarra la onda and practice what you preach!

(From Milenio; flooding photo credit: Flickr user Guanatos Gwyn)