A Mexican border town has "declared war" on the
United States, vowing to clog the U.S. court system with illegal immigrants,
because, city officials say, the U.S. Border Patrol is dumping in their town Mexican
nationals caught crossing the border illegally.
Officials from Agua Prieta, a Mexican city of about 130,000, are also claiming that the
U.S. government has repeatedly neglected to inform them about new waves of immigrants
before they are routed there from points in the U.S. after capture.
Consequently, Agua Prieta leaders are teaching Mexican nationals how to cross into the
U.S. and stay there, by instructing them to request a court hearing -- a tactic sure to
clog the judicial system with possibly thousands of illegal immigrants who want their day
in court.
Every day, Mexican officials complain, U.S. Border Patrol officials round up thousands of
illegals who have crossed the border, then send them right back home, through gates
opening into Agua Prieta. In fact, an estimated 2 million Mexicans jumped the fence and
entered the U.S. illegally at Agua Pietra in the past two years, according to a Fox News
report yesterday.
Ironically, city officials from Agua Prieta complain that the horde of illegals is causing
inordinate amounts of crime, drug abuse and homelessness -- complaints also lodged by U.S.
landowners and ranchers who live on the U.S. side of the border, where illegals are
attempting to gain access to the states.
The difference, say U.S. residents, is that the illegal aliens don't belong in the United
States -- they belong to Mexico, if they have not entered by legal means.
Nevertheless, Agua Prieta officials are advertising offers of free legal advice on radio
and in newspapers to help those that get caught remain in the U.S. "Our plan is to
let people know the rights they have," Agua Prieta Mayor Daniel Noriega told Fox.
Experts say that if only a small portion of illegal immigrants request court appearances,
the system could be hopelessly clogged and the Border Patrol similarly overwhelmed.
The Mexican government, however, appears to be making an effort to complement U.S. Border
Patrol efforts to stem the tide of illegal aliens flowing across the border. A new
Mexico-based counterpart to the U.S. Border Patrol, called Patrulla Fronteriza, has been
formed to interdict Mexican nationals on Mexico's side of the border, before they cross
into the U.S.
This latest development comes on the heels of other incidents that have seen increasing
tensions between Washington and Mexico City in regards to how best to deal with the
problem of increasing illegal immigration.
Earlier last month, Mexican government officials came to Washington to complain about
"vigilantism" being practiced by U.S. landowners who own property along the vast
southwestern border.
Mexican Foreign Minister Rosario Green complained to Secretary of State Madeleine Albright
and other U.S. officials that some illegal immigrants had received poor treatment while
traversing private land. She alleged that the detention of illegals by private U.S.
ranchers -- mostly in Arizona -- had resulted in two deaths and seven injuries since
January 1999.
"The issue of the Mexicans and the Arizona ranchers is seen, without a doubt, as a
red alert that could generate a relatively tense situation," Green said in Mexico
City.
Meanwhile -- against a sinister backdrop of possible bounty hunting by Mexican soldiers --
U.S. Border Patrol officials say they are increasingly worried about "armed
incursions" into U.S. territory by heavily armed Mexican army units. Officials cited
a recent incident in which Mexican soldiers chased -- then fired shots at -- Border Patrol
agents.
On Mar. 14, shortly after 10 p.m. local time, "two Mexican army Humvees carrying
about 16 armed soldiers drove across the international boundary and into the United States
near Santa Teresa, New Mexico," said officials with the National Border Patrol
Council, a nationwide union that represents all 8,250 non-supervisory Border Patrol
employees.
The Mexican troops pursued a Border Patrol vehicle, which was "outfitted with decals
and emergency lights (that were activated for much of the pursuit) over a mile into the
United States."
Mexican anti-drug police and specialized anti-narcotic army troops make routine
"incursions" into U.S. territory, the council said.
By Jon E. Dougherty © 2000 WorldNetDaily.com |
