In The Press -- Border Control
2005
Who's Trying to Cross Our Southern Border? Everyone
By Michael Flynn, The Washington Post, December 11, 3005
The U.S. border with Mexico, according to this article, "is no longer just a border with Mexico. It is a global frontier that has become a conduit for illegal immigrants from all over the world."
Officers from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) found on one trip to Mexico City's migrant detention center some 630 people from nearly 60 countries. All had been caught trying to use Mexico as a gateway to the United States.
To deal with the growing problem of transmigration, Mexico now maintains more then 50 migrant detention centers across the country and will have detained more than 200,000 undocumented migrants by year's end.
Chertoff Says Illegal Migration "Threat"
By Jerry Seper, The Washington Times, December 10, 2005
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff says illegal immigration is a "severe and growing threat."
In a December 9 to the American Legislative Exchange Council's (ALEC) policy summit in Washington, D.C., Chertoff is quoted as saying: "Illegal migration ... undercuts the rule of law, it undermines our national security, and it imposes public safety and economic strains on our borders, states and communities....
"'The reality is that this problem is 20 years in the making," he said. "It's going to take a little bit of time to dig ourselves out, but we are going to start digging ourselves out, and we have started in the last few months with some very aggressive planning and approaches to the issue of how to control border migration."
See the full text of Chertoff's speech.
Border Wars
By Angie Marek, U.S. News and World Report, Dateline Yuma, Arizona, November 21, 2005
The number of illegal border crossers has been steadily increasing after a brief drop immediately after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
Marek writes: "(T)he cost of protecting the nation's borders has increased 58 percent since 9/11, but in three of the four years since the attacks, the number of people nabbed by the Border Patrol still increased. In the fiscal year that ended in September, the Border Patrol reported 1.19 million arrests, compared with 932,000 in fiscal year 2003. The Pew Hispanic Center, a think tank tracking the Latino experience in the United States, estimates that the number of illegal immigrants in the United States has grown from 8.4 million in 2000 to 11 million today."
According to this report, Admiral James Loy, who formerly was the second highest ranking official at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, has said that intelligence reports strongly suggest that al Qaeda considers the U.S. border with Mexico as an easy entry point for future strikes inside the United States.
Chertoff Offers Multiyear Plan To Secure U.S. Borders
By Merle D. Kellerhals, International Information Program, U.S. Department of State, November 3, 2005
The United States has set a goal to catch and remove every person who crosses the nation's 7,000 miles of shared borders illegally, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said in a November 2 speech in Houston.
Chertoff introduced the Secure Border Initiative, which represents a transformational approach to securing U.S. borders from terrorism, but also to reducing illegal migration.
See the full story.
Frustrated Ranchers Take Over Border Security
By Jerry Seper, The Washington Times, October 31, 2005
Ranchers along the New Mexico-Mexico border are saying that human smugglers and drug dealers are growing more violent and destroying more property.
Frustrated by what they perceive as a lack of U.S. government response, many are joining the Minuteman Civil Defense Crops, which began civilian patrols along the 1,940-mile U.S.-Mexico border October 1 this year.
In August, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson declared a state of emergency in four counties along the Mexican border. Richardson is quoted as saying the region had been "devastated by the ravages and terror of human smuggling, drug smuggling, kidnapping, murder, destruction of property and the death of livestock."
Violent Border Clashes Surging
By Richard Marosi, Los Angeles Times, Dateline San Ysido, California, October 31, 2005
Assaults against U.S. Border Patrol Agents have nearly doubled -- from 354 to 687 -- in the past year.
Border Patrol agents have been shot at with guns as well as high-powered slingshot devices loaded with softball-size rocks. People smugglers tend to favor the rocks and other low-tech weapons; drug smugglers seem to prefer guns, according to this article.
No agents were killed, but at least 23 were hospitalized for with injuries.
Tougher border restrictions might actually be fueling the violence. Agent Jim Hawkins, spokesman for the Border Patrol's Tucson sector, is quoted as saying the smugglers may be feeling "they have to fight their way through now.... We're taking their livelihood away from them, so they're getting angry and desperate."
U.S. Officials Outline Efforts To Curb Illegal Immigration
By Scott Miller, Washington File, International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State
Illegal immigration is a severe and growing problem, and the United States is taking aggressive and innovative steps to address it, says U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff.
In October 18 testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Chertoff told lawmakers that ending illegal immigration requires tough law enforcement, as well as action to reduce the demand that draws illegal migrants into the country.
U.S. officials believe a three-tier comprehensive approach to curbing illegal immigration is necessary, Chertoff added. This approach involves establishing better control of the border, a more robust interior enforcement program and a Temporary Worker Program (TWP) that would match willing employers with willing workers.
See the full story.
Illegal Aliens Outpace Legals
By Stephen Dinan, The Washington Times, September 28, 2005
and
Decline Is Seen in Immigration
By Nina Berstein, The New York Times, September 28, 2005
Legal immigration to the United States has decreased and the proportion of illegal immigration has increased since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, according to a report released September 27 by the Pew Hispanic Center, a nonpartisan research group.
Jeffrey S. Passel, a researcher at PEW, is quoted by the New York Times as saying that the proportion of authorized immigrants has gone from more than half to just 4 out of 10 immigrants entering the United States.
See: Rise, Peak and Decline: Trends in U.S. Immigration 1992 – 2004
DHS Lets Go "Other" Illegals; Non-Mexican Numbers Soar
By Jerry Seper, The Washington Times, September 23, 2005
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security will be increasing its efforts to deport non-Mexican illegal immigrants, according to this article.
Seper writes: "Federal law-enforcement authorities said thousands of foreign nationals, including a rising number of Brazilians facing high unemployment at home and having access to a growing number of sophisticated alien smuggling rings, are coming into the United States to seek work -- then surrendering to authorities after they cross the border because of this country's (the U.S.) inability to detain or deport them."
Homeland Security Chief, With Nod to Public Discontent, Tells of Plan to Stabilize Border
By Eric Lipton, The New York Times, Dateline Washington, August 24, 2005
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff says the federal government is toughening its operations regarding illegal immigrants in response to the "rightly distressed" American public.
Although the U.S. Border Patrol arrests more than one million illegal border crossers each year, many of the aliens escape because they are released on their own recognizance due to insufficient space to hold them at detentions centers.
Chertoff told reporters that he intends to bolster the deportation process so that overcrowded detentions centers are not obliged to set illegals free. He also said he will expedite deportations by making more judges and lawyers available to process the cases and intensify efforts to track down illegal immigrants who do not appear for their deportation hearings.
Chertoff condemned civilian militias attempting to patrol the borders themselves. "The Border is a very dangerous place," Chertoff is quoted as saying. "This is not a place for amateurs."
He supported President Bush's proposal for a new temporary worker program, saying it would allow law enforcement officials to focus on criminals and terrorists.
Citing Violence, Two Border States Declare a Crisis
By Ralph Blumenthal, The New York Times, Dateline Deming, New Mexico, August 17, 2005
Citing a surge in violence connected to drug and human smuggling on the border with Mexico, the governors of Arizona and New Mexico have issued state of emergency declarations. They said the federal governments of both the United States and Mexico have failed to address the problems.
Governor Janet Napolitano of Arizona and Governor Bill Richardson of New Mexico said the declarations will make millions of federal and state dollars available to pay for additional law enforcement costs incurred by their states.
Mexico's President Vincente Fox blamed an increase in organized crime on both sides of the border and said the problem is a "shared responsibility for both governments." He is quoted as saying: "Instead of each of us working on our own sides, we must work together."
Living on Border Inspires Documentary
By Amanda Baillie, Associated Press Newswires, Dateline Sierra Vista, Arizona, August 17, 2005
When Robert Maharis and his wife Mercedes retired to their "dream home" on a mountainside in Sierra Vista they expected peace and quiet. Instead, they find they are living in fear in "a war zone."
Illegal immigrants use their property on a regular basis as a rendezvous and pick-up point. Border Patrol helicopters fly over their house nightly.
Mercedes is quoted as saying: "One night there were two cars parked below our house and we got up and turned on the porch lights. These men just started yelling, then they got into the cars, which backed down the path and tore down a fence as they took off."
Mercedes, a retired producer and director, felt so strongly about what was happening, she put together a documentary film she entitled Cries from the Border. For the project, she interviewed authorities from different agencies and organizations dealing with illegal immigration issues along with local residents and even some of the illegal border crossers.
She is hoping the film will get wide dissemination to expose "an extremely complex social situation" that "needs more attention."
Authorities Believe Immigrant Smugglers Have Shifted Routes
Associated Press Newswires, Dateline Arivaca, Arizona, August 14, 2005
Because nearly a third of the dead illegal immigrants discovered this year have been found in a 45-mile stretch from Three Points to the Arizona-Sonora border, authorities believe human smugglers have shifted their routes to the eastern side of the Baboquivari Mountains 50 miles from Tucson.
Geronimo Garcia, an investigator with the Mexican Consulate's Tucson office is quoted as saying: "Before we'd see numerous deaths in Little Tucson, Sells and Big Fields" on the Tohono O-odham Indian Reservation.... Now Three Points is the route the smugglers have chosen."
Highways See Heavy Traffic in Human Cargo; Immigrants Cross Louisiana on Illicit Pipeline
By Michael Perlstein, Times-Picayune, August 1, 2005
Louisiana's improving economy is attracting more illegal immigrants looking for jobs -- mostly in construction, according to this feature story.
David Ware, a New Orleans immigration attorney, is quoted as saying: "Smuggling now is an extremely well-organized business. We're not looking at a bunch of indentured servants. If they're a skilled carpenter or a skilled mason, they're making what anybody else would make, $15 to $20 an hour."
The illegals pay more than $1,000 for a comfortable trip to the United States in modern passenger buses.
Michael Gonzales, assistant chief patrol agent with the U.S. Border Patrol, is quoted as saying: "These are actual tour buses that operate with all the proper licenses and manifests. When they crop up on paper, they're legitimate. But when you board them, you find that most or all of the passengers are non-English speaking Hispanics. There's a good sign that it's an illegal operation."
Louisiana's Interstate 10 and 12 are named in this story as being popular highways for smugglers.
Immigration Overhaul Seen as Key to Domestic Security
By Nicole Gaouette, Los Angeles Times, Dateline Washington, D.C., July 14, 2005
In a speech delivered July 14, Michael Chertoff, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, vowed to step up efforts to fully control U.S. borders and prevent illegal immigration and security breaches.
But he also called to improve the current immigration system via President Bush's Temporary Worker Program.
See the full text of Chertoff's speech.
See the Bush Administration's policy on immigration reform.
Now Departing for Mexico: One-Way Flights for Illegals
By Danna Harman, The Christian Science Monitor, Dateline Mexico City, July 7, 2005
A U.S. program begun just last year to return Mexican illegal border crossers to their homes is having some success, according to this article.
Last summer, 14,071 people were flown back to the interior of Mexico. In return for voluntarily participating in the repatriation program, the illegals were spared any immigration proceedings. The cost for each immigrant was $1,100 per passenger for a total of $15.5 million overall.
Harman writes: "Officials on both sides of the border say the program is a small but sure success. According to U.S. Border Patrol statistics, only 18 percent of the program's participants last year were arrested attempting to re-enter the U.S. -- almost half the (Arizona) sector's recidivism rate of 32 percent."
Arizona sees more illegal crossings and more deaths than any other state, due largely to the vicious conditions in the Sonoran Desert. Last year, 330 illegal immigrants died crossing the 261-mile Arizona border; of that number 124 were in the Sonoran Desert. Another 700,000 were caught trying to enter Arizona.
Using staff research and U.S. Border Patrol sources, the Monitor provided the following statistics: Forty-two percent of the 1,600,000 illegal immigrants who were arrested last year trying to cross the 1,950-mile U.S.-Mexico border were caught in Arizona; an estimated 3,000,000 illegal immigrants try to cross the U.S.-Mexico border each year; 65,814 other than Mexican (OTMs) illegal immigrants were caught along the border in 2004; so far this year, 3,769 illegal immigrants have taken the repatriation flights.
Texas Border Sheriffs To Discuss Security Issues
By Abe Levy, Associated Press Newswires, Dateline San Antonio, Texas, July 6, 2005
Sheriffs along the Texas-Mexico border are banding together in an effort to get more federal and state funding to pay for the costs of illegal immigration that country budgets can't afford.
The group, formed this May, calls itself the Texas Border Sheriff's Coalition. They met July 6-7 in Del Rio, a border town about 150 miles west of San Antonio.
U.S. Representative Henry Cuellar (Democrat of Texas) will advise sheriffs on securing federal funds. Homeland Security's state office says $5 million will be sent this year to border counties and cities to help upgrade radio communications among emergency agencies.
Skeptical But Fed Up, Ranchers Meet Minutemen
By Abe Levy, Associated Press Newswires, Dateline Goliad, Texas, June 20, 2005
Chris Simcox believes he can form another four chapters of the Minuteman Project in Texas after establishing a volunteer border-patrol group in Arizona earlier this year.
Simcox, who serves as president of the Minuteman Project, drew international attention -- and controversy -- for monitoring the Arizona-Mexico border in April. Members of the Minuteman Project are trained to spot suspected illegal immigrants crossing into the United States and contact the local police. Some say they serve a useful purpose; others view them as racist vigilantes.
Simcox met with ranchers to speak about forming a new chapter in Goliad, which is located southeast of San Antonio and which is becoming a hub for smuggling illegal immigrants. Some ranchers are favorably disposed toward the Minuteman Project because of the damage illegals often cause to their lands.
The Texas-Mexico border is mostly privately owned, more urban, and populated by many Hispanics. Some wonder how the Minuteman Project volunteers will distinguish legal from illegal residents. U.S. land on the Arizona-Mexico border is mostly public land.
Border Patrol Chief Says No to Vigilantes
By Maria Leon, EFE News Service, Dateline Tucson, Arizona, March 31, 2005
Civilian volunteer border patrol groups do not in any way aid federal border agents, says David Aguilar, the head of the U.S. Border Patrol.
In an interview with EFE, Aguilar, commenting on the arrival of 1,000 "Minutemen Project" volunteers in Arizona, says the U.S. government does not support "vigilantism."
The Minutemen volunteers plan to patrol a 23-mile stretch of Arizona, one of the most porous areas in the U.S. southern border, to prevent crossings by illegal immigrants. At the end of fiscal year 2004, more than 700,000 illegal immigrants were arrested in Arizona -- some 52 percent of the 1.1. million arrests made along the 1,950-mile U.S.-Mexico border.
Aguilar is quoted as saying: "The border is a dangerous area, very complex and for that same reason it's important that the job of providing security be left to the professionals in the Border Patrol and other police agencies." Civilian patrols, he said, "could be a distraction for our agents...."
Homeland Security To Add 500 New Agents to Arizona Border
By Lara Jakes Jordan, Associated Press Newswires, Dateline Washington, March 29, 2005
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is adding more than 500 additional patrol agents to increase security along the Arizona border. About 2,400 agents serve there now.
Jordan writes: "The 370-mile Arizona border is considered the most vulnerable stretch of the 2,000-mile southern border. Of the 1.1 million illegal immigrants apprehended by the U.S. Border Patrol last year, 51 percent crossed into the country at the Arizona border."
The porousness of the southern border and the sheer numbers that cross illegally each day has U.S. officials worried that terrorists will enter the country along with illegal immigrants searching for jobs.
Vigilantes Gather for Arizona Round-Up of Illegal Migrants
By Paul Harris, The Observer, Dateline Tombstone, Arizona, March 27, 2005
About 2000 volunteers, many of whom will be armed with guns, private planes, horses and night-vision goggles, will be meeting on April 1 in Tombstone, Arizona to patrol the border against illegal immigrants.
Their leaders, Chris Simcox and James Gilchrist, say they are committed to peacefully spotting, following and reporting any illegal immigrants they find.
Their plan -- called the "Minutemen Project" after the heroes of the American Revolution -- does not have the sanction of the U.S. government. Michael Nicley, head of the U.S. Border Patrol in the sector where the Minutemen will operate, is quoted as calling the plan "a recipe for tragedy."
Some reports say that the Mara Salvatrucha (also known as the MS-13), a violent Hispanic criminal gang, has vowed it will attack the vigilantes.
Southern Arizona is a major route for illegal immigrants trying to enter the United States. Arizona, which has a population of 5 million, is home to some 500,000 illegal immigrants. It is estimated that 11 million illegal immigrants are now in the United States.
Flow of Illegal Immigrants to U.S. Unabated
By Sylvia Moreno, The Washington Post, March 22, 2005
Increased border security and a slump in the U.S. economy have not deterred illegal immigration -- there may be as many as 10.3 million illegal immigrants in the United States as of March 2004, according to a recently released study by the Pew Hispanic Center, a private research group in Washington, D.C.
Most of the illegals -- 57 percent -- are from Mexico, according to this report. Illegals from other Latin American countries make up 24 percent of all illegal immigrants in the United States; Asians, 9 percent; Europeans and Canadians, 6 percent; and, Africans and others, 4 percent.
See
Estimates of the Size and Characteristics of the Undocumented Population,
by Jeffrey S. Passel, Senior Research Associate, Pew Hispanic Center.
Despite New Efforts Along Arizona Border, "Serious Problems" Remain
By Eric Lipton, The New York Times, Dateline Nogales, Arizona, March 14, 2005
The Bush Administration is investing $2.5 billion over five years in "America's Shield Initiative" to insure terrorists don't sneak into the United States, but some observers feel that although improvements have been made, stopping all illegal immigrants from entering is an impossible task.
According to this article, there are no reliable estimates as to how many illegal immigrants cross the 6,000 miles of U.S. border each year, but it may be more than one million. On just the 261 mile border in Arizona that is part of the "Tucson sector," there were 491,771 arrests in 2004.
Most of the illegal immigrants who cross into the United States along the southern border are Mexican. Of those who are not Mexican, 90 percent are Latin American. But in Fiscal Year 2004, 682 were illegal immigrants from Middle Eastern countries that have active terrorist presences, such as Egypt, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
Lipton writes: "In some cases, people from Middle Eastern countries, after paying smugglers to help them, have adopted Mexican names in an effort to disguise their identities, the director of the F.B.I., Robert S. Mueller III, told members of Congress in early March."
Criminals at the Border Thwarted by Own Hands
By Richard Marosi, Los Angeles Times, Dateline San Diego, February 19, 2005
The use of a new fingerprinting system is helping the U.S. Border Patrol nab thousands of illegal immigrants with criminal records that range from shoplifting to murder.
Detained illegal immigrants have all ten of their fingerprints matched against the FBI's national criminal database through scanners installed at all 137 Border Patrol stations along the Mexican and Canadian borders. The FBI criminal database contains information on warrants and criminal histories along with terrorist watch lists.
From May through December, 29,501 of the approximately 680,000 illegal migrants who were arrested were identified as having criminal records, compared with about 2,600 caught without the benefit of the fingerprinting system during the same period in 2002 -- an eleven-fold increase.
Of that 29,501, 4,912 had committed violent crimes (including homicide, rape and assault), 6,589 had committed drug-related crimes, 5,723 had committed property crimes, and 12,277 had committed crimes such as extortion, fraud, arson, and weapons-related offenses.
Many Illegal Immigrants Cross the Border More Than Once
By Ben Winograd, Tucson Citizen, Dateline Tucson, Arizona, February 7, 2005
In the Tucson sector of Arizona, an estimated one in three illegal immigrants caught trying to enter the United States in 2004 had been arrested for illegal entry before.
Winograd writes: "During fiscal 2004, which ended September 30, the Border Patrol reported nearly half a million apprehensions in its Tucson sector, which stretches from the Yuma County line to New Mexico. The number of individuals was about 325,000, according to Border Patrol statistics obtained by the Tucson Citizen."
Arizona accounted for more than half of all arrests made along the nation's southern border in 2004. In 1993, only 1 in 10 apprehensions were made in Arizona. Winograd writes: "In large part, the shift has been attributed to a Border Patrol strategy that sealed off popular urban crossing points around San Diego, Nogales and El Paso. Illegal immigrants have since flooded across remote parts of the Arizona border."
"Under federal law, crossing the border illegally is a misdemeanor that can land first-time offenders in jail for up to six months," Winograd writes. "But because federal prosecutors are overwhelmed by the number of illegal immigrants, the Border Patrol releases more than 90 percent of the people they catch.
"The process is called voluntary repatriation. By signing a form, most illegal immigrants caught along the border can opt to immediately return to their home countries -- usually at the nearest port of entry in Mexico -- rather than plead their cases before a judge."
Many just go back to Mexico and attempt once again to cross the border illegally.
Attacks on Border Patrols Rise as Security Tightens
By Kevin Johnson, USA Today, Dateline Washington, February 4, 2005
Human smugglers and drug traffickers operating in Arizona's busy Tucson sector have increased their attacks against U.S. Border Patrol agents in the last four months.
Johnson reports that there have been nine shootings since October 1, 2004 -- three of them in the past 10 days -- compared with a single shooting the previous fiscal year.
So far, no one has been seriously injured or killed in the attacks. Smugglers may be lashing out due to tougher border controls -- there are now 2,100 border agents working the Tucson sector compared to 1,850 last year.
February 2, 2005
President George W. Bush
Remarks on immigration reform during his
State of the Union Address
America's immigration system is also outdated -- unsuited to the needs of
our economy and to the values of our country. We should not be content with
laws that punish hardworking people who want only to provide for their
families, and deny businesses willing workers, and invite chaos at our
border. It is time for an immigration policy that permits temporary guest
workers to fill jobs Americans will not take, that rejects amnesty, that
tells us who is entering and leaving our country, and that closes the border
to drug dealers and terrorists.
January 26, 2005
President George W. Bush
Remarks on immigration reform
During a White House press conference
Q. Mr. President, the Senate Republicans recently listed their priorities, and immigration reform wasn't on it. Do you think this means it's dead for this year? And why are you having so much trouble with your own party on that?
THE PRESIDENT: No, I appreciate that question. It will be one of my priorities. I believe it's necessary to reform the immigration system. I'm against amnesty; I've made that very clear. On the other hand, I do want to recognize a system where a willing worker and a willing employer are able to come together in a way that enables people to find work without jeopardizing a job that an American would otherwise want to do.
I also happen to believe immigration reform is necessary to help make it easier to protect our borders. The system right now spawns coyotes and smugglers and people willing to break the law to get people in our country. There is a vast network of kind of shadowy traffickers. And I believe by making a -- by advancing a program that enables people to come into our country in a legal way to work for a period of time, for jobs that Americans won't do, will help make it easier for us to secure our borders. And so --
Q. Why the resistance in your party so much?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, I think -- I'm looking forward to discussing it with members of both parties. I believe it's a very important issue that we need to address. I've had a lot of experience with dealing with borders, as the governor of Texas. I know there's a compassionate, humane way to deal with this issue. I want to remind people that family values do not stop at the Rio Grande River. People are coming to our country to do jobs that Americans won't do, to be able to feed their families. And I think there's a humane way to recognize that, at the same time protect our borders, and at the same way to make sure that we don't disadvantage those who have stood in line for years to become a legal citizen. And I'm looking forward to working with people of both parties on the issue.
L.A. Port Officials Find 32 People from China in Containers
Associated Press Newswires, Dateline Los Angeles, January 16, 2005
Thirty-two Chinese men were found inside two cargo containers that arrived from Hong Kong aboard the Panamanian-flagged NYK Athena at the Port of Los Angeles.
A crane operator spotted some of the men on January 15 as they tried to climb out of one of the containers.
The ship's crew did not appear to be aware of the stowaways, who had hidden for 10 days in containers listed on the manifest as containing clothing.
The Chinese stowaways had food, water, sleeping bags and battery-powered fans with them in their containers and appeared to be in good health.
Bush Vows Push on Immigration
By Joseph Curl, The Washington Times, January 12, 2005
During an interview with editors and reporters of the Washington Times on January 12, President Bush said immigration reform, including a guest worker program, will be among his top priorities for his second term.
Bush is quoted as saying: "Whether or not you agree with the solution or not, we have a problem in America when you've got 8 million undocumented workers here.... A solution is not instantaneous citizenship. The solution is something more rational than that.
Bush's plan would give illegal immigrants already working in the United States temporary work visas. The president, in response to critics who say his proposal amounts to granting amnesty, is quoted as saying: "This is not a citizenship. I strongly oppose instant citizenship. I think all that would do is cause the problem to occur again. I believe that if they want to be a citizen, they need to get in line like the other people have done...."
But he added: "We've got people living in the shadows of our society, and we've got a border patrol that's over stressed because we've got people streaming across.... The system has broken down. ... And I think by legalizing work, we take a lot of pressure off our borders."
See the White House web site for more on the Bush administration's immigration reform proposals.
Border Patrol Grabs 1.15 Million Illegals in 2004
By Jerry Seper, The Washington Times, January 10, 2005
The U.S. Border Patrol apprehended 1.15 million illegal aliens in 2004 -- 24 percent more than in 2003.
The U.S. Border Patrol also helped identify and arrest 23,000 criminal suspects using a new biometrics fingerprint identification technology that allows agents to search the Automated Biometrics Indentification System maintained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) along with the criminal fingerprint database maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
2004
What It Will Take To Terror-Proof Border?
By Kris Axtman and Peter Grier, The Christian Science Monitor, Dateline Houston, December 10, 2004
This front page report discusses the just-passed intelligence bill, which calls for an additional 2,000 Border Patrol agents and 800 immigration and customs agents every year for the next five years.
The bill also calls for tests of advanced sensors, videos and unmanned aircraft surveillance along the U.S.-Canada border and mandates closer surveillance of the U.S.-Mexico border with unmanned aerial vehicles. It strengthens visa application requirements, and requires states to use a common electronic format for the strip that stores data on driver's licenses.
According to this article, 1.2 million illegal immigrants were caught attempting to cross U.S. borders in 2003 -- an estimated 33 percent of total crossings.
Arizona Apprehensions Higher Than Other Border States Combined
Associated Press Newswires, Dateline Tucson, Arizona, November 26, 2004
The U.S. Border Patrol released statistics that show more illegal immigrants were apprehended in Arizona during the fiscal year than in California, New Mexico and Texas combined.
Since 1994, illegal immigrant apprehensions in Arizona have jumped from 16 percent to 52 percent.
Tougher border controls in other states bordering Mexico have resulted in declining numbers of apprehensions, signifying, some believe, that fewer people are attempting to cross the border illegally. According to this article: "While the Border Patrol says it has taken the same approach in Arizona as in California and Texas, the results have been markedly different."
U.S. Deported Record Number of Criminal, Illegal Aliens in 2004
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement news release, November 19, 2004
The United States has removed a record number of 157,281 criminal and other illegal aliens from the United States in fiscal year 2004, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) largest investigative arm.
See the full text.
November 9, 2004
Secretary of State Colin L. Powell
Excerpts from remarks at the inaugural of the 21st Binational Commission
Mexico City, Mexico
The United States is proud to be a nation of immigrants, but too many of those immigrants living and working in our country today have no legal status. Early last year, President Bush proposed a temporary worker program to match willing foreign workers with U.S. employers and to offer legal status to immigrants who contribute to our economy as they work to support their families. But the President remains committed to comprehensive immigration reform as a high priority in his second term, and we will work closely with our Congress to achieve this goal. Together, we can work together to make North America more globally competitive.
How best do we do that? By working cooperatively to improve education so that our citizens can be successful in a 21st century world by improving the infrastructure on both sides of the border to meet the needs of people and commerce while making it easier to start new businesses in both of our countries. At the same time, we must also be innovative in our efforts to stop those who abuse the openness of our societies along the border, who would use this openness to harm our citizens through trafficking in drugs or trafficking in human beings or by committing acts of terrorism.
November 9, 2004
Secretary of State Colin L. Powell
Excerpts from an interview with Leonardo Valero of Reforma
Mexico City, Mexico
MR. VALERO: Everyone in Mexico hopes that now in Mr. Bush's second term the immigration reform will be an easy cake. Would it be that easy to get?
SECRETARY POWELL: Well, it depends on what kind of a cake you're baking.
MR. VALERO: Right. (Laughter.)
SECRETARY POWELL: Some cakes are easier to bake than other cakes. And the President has made it clear in the speech he gave on January 7th that he wants to move forward with the temporary workers program. We have a new Congress that was just elected. They will come in early January. I told Secretary Derbez today that we wanted to take this temporary workers program idea, proposal, and get an assessment with the new Congress as to how hard it would be or how easy it would be, what kind of cake we could get out of this.
It's important for us to go after that which is doable and not go after something that we know it is beyond our reach or we don't have a hot enough oven to bake it in. And so we don't want expectations to be too high, but we do want to make progress. The President has made clear to me, and he has certainly shared his view with President Fox, that we want to see progress on migration. We didn't see the kind of progress we hoped for in his first four years because of 9/11, because of the difficulties we faced in our Congress, to be frank.
But 9/11 is behind us now. We want to move forward. The President has a mandate as a result of the election and he wants to move forward on migration, and we had a good conversation about that today, President Fox and myself and Secretary Derbez, and I and Secretary Creel and Secretary Ridge.
Ridge Outlines Progress in Security Cooperation With Mexico
U.S. Department of Homeland Security press release, November 9, 2004
The United States and Mexico are making progress in efforts to secure their common border and are working together to dismantle terrorist and criminal networks, according to Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge.
Ridge traveled to Mexico to participate in the 21st meeting of the U.S.-Mexico Binational Commission (BNC) and in a November 9 joint press conference with Mexican Secretary of the Interior Santiago Creel, he outlined progress made in securing the two nations. See the full text.
U.S. Cites Immigration Reform with Mexico as a Priority
Fact Sheet, United States-Mexico Binational Commission, November 9, 2004
Secretary of State Colin Powell and Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge announced November 9 that immigration reform with Mexico will be a high priority during President Bush's second term, according to a U.S. State Department fact sheet.
The two cabinet secretaries stressed the importance of immigration reform at the 21st meeting of the United States-Mexico Binational Commission (BNC) in Mexico City, Mexico. See the full text.
Al Qaeda Seeks Tie to Local Gangs: Salvadoran Group May Aid Entry to U.S.
By Jerry Seper, The Washington Times, September 28, 2004
According to this report, al Qaeda may be working with a violent Salvadoran gang to smuggle terrorists into the United States.
Al Qaeda leader Adnan G. El Shukrijumah reportedly met in July in Tegucigalpa, Honduras with leaders of the Mara Salvatrucha (also known as the MS-13, because many members identify themselves with tattoos of the number 13) criminal gang requesting help in infiltrating the U.S.-Mexico border.
Seper writes that the MS-13 has established "a major smuggling center in Matamoros, Mexico, just south of Brownsville, Texas, where it has arranged to bring illegal aliens from countries other than Mexico into the United States." The Mara Salvatrucha gang, Seper writes, is actively involved in alien, drug and weapons smuggling and their members in the United States have been tied to "numerous killings, robberies, burglaries, carjackings, extortions, rapes and aggravated assaults -- including at least seven killings in Virginia and a machete attack on a 16-year-old in Alexandria (Virginia) that severely mutilated his hands."
El Shukrijumah, who was born in Saudi Arabia but is thought to be a Yemen national, is known to carry passports from Saudi Arabia, Trinidad, Guyana and Canada. He is said to have been in Canada last year looking for nuclear material for a so-called "dirty bomb." He was named in a March 2003 material-witness arrest warrant by federal prosecutors in Northern Virginia in connection with potential terrorist threats against the United States.
El Shukrijumah is thought to have been involved in the 9/11 attacks and was among the seven suspected al Qaeda operatives identified in May by Attorney General John Ashcroft as being involved in new plans to attack the United States.
Special Investigation: America's Border
By Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele, Time Magazine, September 20, 2004
This long, detailed story is featured on the cover of the September 20th edition of Time magazine. According to this article:
-- In a single day, more than 4,000 illegal immigrants walk into the United States along the 375-mile border between Arizona and Mexico.
-- According to Time's estimates, some 3 million illegal immigrants will enter the United States this year.
-- Most of the illegal immigrants entering the United States are Mexicans. But from October 1, 2003 through August 25, 2004, about 55,890 apprehended illegal immigrants were "other than Mexicans" (OTM). The OTMs who were apprehended came from Latin America (Guatemala, El Salvador, Brazil, Nicaragua and Venezuela), Afghanistan, Bulgaria, Russia, China, Egypt, Iran and Iraq. An estimated 190,000 OTMs entered the United States undetected so far this year.
-- From October 2003 though August 25, 2004, the U.S. Border Patrol apprehended nearly 1.1 million illegal immigrants in all its operations around the United States. But for every one illegal immigrant caught, an estimated three get into the country undetected.
-- The number of U.S. Border Patrol agents assigned to the 1,951-mile southern border with Mexico is now more than 9,900; up from 8,600 in the year 2000.
-- Last year, illegal immigrants sent $13 billion in remittances to their families in Mexico. The money sent back represents the third largest source of revenue in Mexico's economy, after oil and manufacturing.
-- Of the 400,000 illegal immigrants who have been ordered to be deported, 80,000 have criminal records.
The article focuses on the impact illegal immigration has had on the State of Arizona and its citizens. Among the issues:
-- Environment. Illegal immigrants crossing ranches along and near the border "turn the land into a vast latrine," according to the authors, "leaving behind revolting mounds of personal refuse and enough discarded plastic bags to stock a Wal-Mart."
-- Property damage. The refuse left by illegals is often ingested by cattle and horses, which become sick and sometimes die. The illegals cut fences, allowing livestock to escape into Mexican territory. Cattle from Mexico wander into the United States, where they are supposed to be in quarantine for 30 days and tested for disease. However, this seldom happens because there aren't enough cattle inspectors or holding corrals.
-- Health. The small community hospitals are racking up debt from emergency care administered to illegal immigrants whom they are required by law to treat. The illegals frequently suffer from dehydration, auto injuries, tuberculosis, AIDS and hepatitis. One small 14-bed hospital, the Copper Queen in Bisbee, Arizona must deal with some 500 emergency visits each month; its losses this year are estimated to be $450,000.
-- Crime. Smugglers (also known as "coyotes") frequently steal cars to transport their clients. Arizona now ranks first in cars stolen per capita; about 56,000 cars were stolen last year. In addition, the sheer numbers of illegals in some neighborhoods make the people living there feel unsafe.
Mexico Migrant Smugglers Turning to the Sea
By Will Weissert, Associated Press Online, Dateline Mexico City, September 16, 2004
There appears to be an upswing in the number of small boats, including pleasure craft, being used by human smugglers, according to this report.
This year, U.S. authorities in San Diego, which is across the border from Tijuana, have seized 12 boats carrying 48 Mexican and Chinese illegal immigrants; last year the number was three boats and 20 illegal immigrants.
Derek Benner, group supervisor of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's San Diego Marine Task Force, is quoted as saying that most of the boats were "throwaways" valued at some $2,000 to $5,000 each. The small vessels with U.S. registration were steered into crowded beaches and ports in an attempt to blend in with legitimate boaters and fishermen.
Earlier this year, a French-built yacht C'est La Vie was seized near the Los Angeles harbor carrying 50 illegal Mexican immigrants who were picked up at Ensenada.
Although larger U.S. and Mexican ports have tightened security to meet new international anti-terrorism and security requirements, smuggling gangs are adapting by picking up illegal immigrants along empty stretches of coastline.
Rounding Up All Illegals "Not Realistic": Hutchinson Sees Lack of "Will To Uproot" Aliens
By Jerry Seper, The Washington Times, September 10, 2004
During a luncheon meeting with editors and reporters at The Washington Times, Asa Hutchinson, the undersecretary for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, said it is "not realistic" to think that law-enforcement authorities can arrest or deport the estimated 8 to 12 million illegal aliens thought to be living in the United States. "I don't think America has the will," he is quoted as saying.
Seper writes that Hutchinson explained that the goal of his department is to gain operational control of the U.S. border, to include monitoring ports of entry and land areas between.
Mexican Immigrant Deaths Drop in Arizona Desert
Reuters News, Dateline Nogales, Mexico, September 7, 2004
U.S. Border Patrol officials in Tucson, Arizona say the number deaths due to exposure among illegal immigrants trying to cross the Arizona desert to reach the United States from Mexico has dropped sharply.
They credit repatriation flights to Mexico City and Guadalajara for the 70 percent decline in migrant deaths. So far, more than 9,500 illegal immigrants have been repatriated under this trial program which began on July 12.
Charles Griffin, a spokesman for the Border Patrol's Tucson sector, is quoted as saying: "The aim of the program, which runs until the end of this month, was to keep migrants from making dangerous and often repeated attempts to cross the desert, and the numbers speak for themselves."
According to this Reuters report, "the 261-mile (420-km) stretch of desert frontier covered by the Tucson sector is one of the most frequently crossed along the 2,000-mile (3,200-km) U.S.- Mexico border. It is also one of the most hazardous, with summer temperatures frequently topping 49 C (120 F)."
Elizabeth Garcia, the head of Grupo Beta in Nogales, a Mexican government body that gives humanitarian aid to immigrants, is quoted as saying: "The number of migrants passing though Nogales has decreased very significantly and the Tucson repatriation program could be a factor."
U.S. Agents To Get Power To Deport Illegal Aliens
By Rachel L. Swarns, The New York Times, Dateline Washington,August 12, 2004
The Department of Homeland Security announced its plans to give U.S. Border Patrol agents the authority to return illegal immigrants to their home countries without hearings before an immigration court. Illegal immigrants could be deported quickly -- within eight days of apprehension.
See the transcript of the August 10 media roundtable with Asa Hutchinson, undersecretary at the Department of Homeland Security.
Border Apprehensions Rising in Southwestern Arizona
Associated Press Newswires, Dateline Phoenix, Arizona, August 11, 2004
Apprehensions of illegal immigrants are up 61 percent in fiscal year 2004 in southwestern Arizona. A record 9,856 apprehensions took place in July alone.
Federal authorities say the jump is a result of tougher border controls.
Border Patrol Buys Pepper Ball Guns for Crowd Control
By Chris Roberts, Associated press Newswires, Dateline El Paso, Texas, August 5, 2004
U.S. Border Patrol agents will be equipped with pepper ball guns to defend themselves in violent confrontations with illegal immigrants.
Since October 1, there have been 11 physical assaults on Border Patrol officers in the El Paso sector.
The pepper ball guns are non-lethal and use compressed air to shoot pellets filled with chile-pepper-derived powder. The powder irritates and the eyes and nose for about 15 seconds and can be removed with waters.
Heightened Border Security in Arizona Has Led to More Violence by Smugglers, Federal Agents Say
By Amanda Lee Myers, Associated Press Newswires, Dateline Phoenix, Arizona, August 4, 2004
Human smugglers are losing revenue because of tighter controls along the Arizona-Mexico border, and they're responding with more violence.
Border Patrol spokesman Andy Adame is quoted as saying: "We're more forceful along the border than we've ever been, so smugglers are getting desperate and lashing out against agents."
Virtually every day smugglers and their clients try to fend off Border Patrol agents by throwing large, heavy rocks at them. Some have attacked federal agents by trying to run down them down with vehicles.
Officials: Border Drones Producing Good Results
By Amanda Lee Myers, Associated Press Newswires, Dateline Phoenix, Arizona, August 3, 2004
A pilot program launched June 25 in Arizona that uses unmanned aerial drones to spot illegal border crossings is producing good results.
To date, some 248 illegal immigrants have been detected by the two Hermes 450 drones, which use thermal and night-vision equipment that can detect movement from 15 miles up, read a license plate, view a vehicle's occupants and detect weapons. The program is financed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Arizona has become the busiest point of entry for illegal immigrants along the 2,000-mile U.S. border with Mexico.
Sneaking People into U.S. Tougher; Border Security Tighter, Ottawa Says Numbers Smuggled into Canada Still High
By Peter Edwards, The Toronto Star, July 29, 2004
Alex Swann, a spokesman for Canada's Public Safety Minister Anne McLellan, says smuggling illegal immigrants into the United States through Canada is much tougher today that is was before the 9/11 terrorists attacks.
But according to a 2003 report by the Criminal Intelligence Service of Canada, a police information service, the number of people smuggled into Canada remains at the 1998 level.
The report also says Asian-based organized crime groups with international connections ar particularly active in human smuggling and favor the St. Clair River in southwester Ontario, the Niagara River and the St. Lawrence River near Cornwall in Eastern Ontario.
Cheng Chui Peng, the infamous "Mother of All Snakeheads," began her career as a people smuggler when she herself was an illegal immigrant living in Toronto. She later moved to New York City's Manhattan Chinatown and sometimes worked with the Fuk Ching organized crime gang of New York. She was extradited from Hong Kong last summer to face charges in the United States.
Border Patrol Rescues 30 Illegal Immigrants in Arizona
EFE News Service, Dateline Tucson, Arizona, July 22, 2004
U.S. Border Patrol agents rescued 30 illegal immigrants who became lost in the Arizona desert.
A local sheriff's office reported the group, which was initially spotted near the town of Bisbee. Border Patrol agents found the group four hours later near the Mule Mountains, where they were treated for exhaustion and dehydration.
The Tucson sector of the Border Patrol has rescued 439 illegal immigrants from the desert since October 2003.
Unmanned Planes, Fingerprint System Helps Border Authorities
Associated Press Newswires, Tucson, Arizona, July 21, 2004
Since its deployment a year ago, a new fingerprint database has proven to be a valuable tool in helping U.S. Border Patrol agents catch illegal immigrants with criminal records or who are wanted for crimes.
The fingerprint database has helped authorities in the Tucson sector catch more than 8,000 illegal immigrants with criminal records. About 2 percent of the nearly 399,000 illegal immigrants caught in this sector from October 1 to July 15 have criminal records or are criminal suspects.
In their first two months of operation, two unmanned aerial vehicles have been credited with helping agents catch 22 illegal border crossers.
U.S.-Mexico Agree to Plan for Sending Illegal Immigrants Home
By Suzanne Gamboa, Associated Press Newswires, Dateline Washington, June 29, 2004
The Mexican government has agreed to take part in a program that will provide free charter flights home for illegal immigrants arrested in Arizona's deserts.
The program, which is set to begin July 12, hopes to end the cycle whereby illegals deported at the border attempt to reenter the United States through the often deadly Sonora desert region.
The illegal immigrants will be flown from Tucson, Arizona to Mexico City or Guadalajara. The United States is footing the bill, estimated to cost some $13 million.
Mexico's Interior Ministry is quoted as saying the program is "part of the humanitarian efforts by Mexico and the United States to aid and protect migrants who traverse high-risk zones, to prevent deaths and avoid abuses by migrant traffickers."
Border Patrol Unit Makes Arrests Inland in California
By Ben Fox, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Dateline Ontario, California, June 20, 2004
Roving units of the U.S. Border Patrol have apprehended some 420 suspected illegal immigrants since June 1 -- all in communities 100 miles or more from the Mexican border.
While the border itself is heavily patrolled, the interior usually is not. The change in tactics by U.S. authorities, Fox writes, has "spread such fear that some people have stopped going shopping or attending church. Immigrant advocates say some are staying home from work, too."
California has more illegal immigrants than any other state -- some 2 million.
Militia Groups Patrol Borders
By Tyche Hendricks, San Francisco Chronicle, Dateline Douglas, Arizona, May 31, 2004
Self-appointed civilian border patrols are proving to be both a help and a hindrance in keeping any eye out for illegal immigrants trying to get into the United States from Mexico, according to this article.
Hendricks writes: "Some longtime ranchers in southern Arizona, frustrated by the steady stream of northbound migrants crossing their lands, have taken to patrolling their properties and turning over those they catch to the U.S. Border patrol. But in the past few years, a new phenomenon has developed: Ideologically motivated -- and well-armed -- militia groups such as Ranch Rescue have set up shop in border communities from California to Texas and advertise on the Internet for recruits to come down with firearms and camping gear to join border protection efforts."
So far, there have been few legal violations by these groups, this article says. Nonetheless, during the past year, Ranch Rescue along with the paramilitary groups American Border Patrol and Civil Homeland Defense have had run-ins with legitimate law enforcement because of their tactics, such as detaining and handcuffing illegal immigrants.
U.S. Border Patrol spokesman Charles Griffin is quoted as saying: "Every law enforcement agency appreciates a neighborhood watch. I would caution them to be very careful not to violate someone's civil liberties."
Plan Seeks "Control" of Border: Targets Alien Smuggling, Terrorism Near Tucson
By Jerry Seper, The Washington Times, Dateline Tucson, Arizona, May 20, 2004
This article discusses the Arizona Border Control Initiative -- the first of its kind -- set to be launched in the Tucson sector of the Arizona-Mexico border.
The Tucson sector's 260 miles of international border is the busiest in the country: more than 400,000 illegal aliens were arrested there last year.
The initiative will combine the assets of the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Transportation Security Administration, the Interior Department and other federal law-enforcement agencies, including the police at the Tohono O'odham Indian Reservation located on the border. Unmanned aerial vehicles, helicopters, and new sensor technology will be used in the effort to dismantle human smuggling networks.
In charge of the new program is David V. Aguilar, chief of the Border Patrol's Tucson sector.
A similar program launched last year -- "Operation ICE Storm" -- resulted in 2,059 criminal and administrative arrests, 162 indictments, the seizure of 86 assault weapons and nearly $2.5 million in illicit cash. That program resulted in a 30 percent drop in homicides in the last quarter of 2003 in Phoenix, were human smuggling activities had been growing especially violent.
See:
-- ICE's March 16 fact sheet: Arizona Border Control Initiative.
-- ICE's May 18 news release: Feds Vow To Use "ICE Storm" Tactics in Other Cities as Phoenix Sees Progress in Human Smuggling Crackdown."
Human Smuggling a Security Risk
By Jerry Seper, The Washington Times, May 19, 2004
Human smuggling and trafficking into the United States constitute a "significant risk to national security and public safety," says John P. Torres, deputy assistant director for smuggling and public safety at the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
In testimony May 18, Torres told the House Judiciary subcommittee on immigration, border security and claims that well-established routes for smuggling illegal immigrants into the United States could be exploited by terrorist and extremist organizations.
See the full text of Torres' testimony: Alien Smuggling: New Tools an Intelligence Initiatives"
Border Patrol Targets Key Route; $10 Million Dragnet Cracks Down on Human Smuggling
By Michael Martinez, Chicago Tribune, Dateline San Miguel, Arizona, May 4, 2004
In an effort to slow down the $2,000-per-person people smuggling business, the Arizona Border Control (ABC) Initiative has been put into place.
The effort is bringing together staff, helicopters, and $4 million worth of unmanned aerial vehicles on what Martinez reports is "the nation's busiest smuggling corridor.
"About 40 percent of the approximately 900,000 border apprehensions last fiscal year were in Arizona," Martinez writes.
"The ABC Initiative also allows for increased motor patrols in federal wildlife refuges and parks across the rugged terrain on both sides of the border," Martinez writes, noting that many illegal immigrants die trying to cross the remote Arizona desert.
In addition, the ABC is trying to reduce the violent crime related to people smuggling. Tom Homan, a federal immigration agent, is quoted as saying: "You never used to see hostage-taking, raping of women and killing aliens.... This is out of control."
Martinez writes: "That violence prompted the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, which is part of the Homeland Security Department, to deploy Operation ICE Storm, employing tactics against smugglers more typically used on mobsters, such as wiretaps, the monitoring of wire transfers and the invoking of racketeering laws, said Patricia Schmidt, acting associate special agent in charge of Phoenix."
Temporary Worker Plan Called Aid in Controlling U.S. Borders
From The Washington File, International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State, April 5, 2004
President Bush's Temporary Worker Program would allow the United States to gain greater control over its borders, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Robert Bonner.
In April 1 testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security and Citizenship, Bonner said that the temporary worker proposal reflects the reality that there are millions of undocumented aliens in the United States and thousands more attempting to enter the country to find work.
Bonner noted that the president's proposal would regularize the status of these individuals and "allow U.S. law enforcement to get a better handle on who is in our country, and reduce the numbers of people we don't know about and who could present a terrorist threat."
See the full article with transcript.
Slovakia To Earmark 54 Million Euros for Border Protection
CTK (Ceska Tiskova Kancelar) Business News, Dateline Vysne Nemecke, East Slovakia, April 2, 2004
With its entry into the European Union this May, Slovakia will be eligible to draw 54 million euros (U.S. $65.2 million) to buy equipment to improve protection of its eastern border.
Slovakian border police have been successful so far in fighting illegal immigration and smuggling, according to this article. Police chief Anton Kulich is quoted as saying: "Last year, 12,493 refugees were detained on the border with Ukraine and more than 200 people smugglers were arrested. Although only about one thousand refugees have been detained by the police since the beginning of this year, charges have been brought against 72 people smugglers, which is one-third of the number of people smugglers arrested for the entire last year."
Kulich said the point of entry for illegal immigrants seems to have shifted from the border with Austria and the Czech Republic to the border with Ukraine. Most of the border crossers were from former Soviet Union countries; many others came from India, China and Armenia.
People smugglers face five years in prison if they're caught by Slovakian authorities; the penalty is expected to be increased to eight years with 15 to 20 year sentences if someone is killed in the process of illegally crossing the border.
As Border Woes Strain Arizona, U.S. And Mexico Talk
By Eric Lichtblau, The New York Times, March 29, 2004
U.S. officials are meeting with their counterparts in Mexico City to discuss a plan to repatriate Mexican border crossers by sending them deeper into their home countries and closer to their hometowns. The goals is to break the "revolving door" of illegal immigrants who, if they get caught unlawfully entering the United States, just try, try again.
But Lichtblau writes: "The cycle has become so entrenched that some smugglers, or coyotes, offer migrants three trips across the border for a flat rate, usually several thousand dollars, if they are caught on their first two trips, law enforcement officials said.... Nationwide, of those returned to Mexico, nearly half cross back into the United States only to be caught again, federal officials say."
A shortage resources, means that most of the illegal border crossers who are caught are quickly returned without being prosecuted or imprisoned.
With tougher border controls in place in Southern California and Texas, Arizona has seen a jump of 34 percent in illegal border crossings from Mexico. Arizona now has 40 percent of all illegal entries. Lichtblau writes: "The shift to Arizona has brought with it a sharp increase in violent extortions and drug seizures as well as the deaths of dozens of migrants left in the desert, law enforcement officials say."
Caught in the middle are the property owners on the American side of the border between Arizona and Mexico. The surge in illegal border crossings has created "a climate of fear," according to this report. The illegal's have allegedly smashed pipes to get water, stolen cars, broken into buildings for shelter, and accosted strangers for food and money.
U.S. To Launch Operation To Secure Arizona-Mexico Border
Dow Jones International News, Dateline Tucson, Arizona, March 16, 2004
U.S. federal authorities are launching the Arizona Border Control Initiative -- a major push to secure the Arizona-Mexico border against people and drug smugglers.
More border patrol agents, helicopters, sensors and other equipment will be provided for the effort.
The initiative also seeks to reduce the number of deaths among illegal border crossers -- in fiscal year 2003, 154 people died in the deserts.
According to this report, "the Border Patrol's Tucson sector, which covers all but about the 50 westernmost miles of the Arizona-Mexico border, has been the busiest region in trafficking of illegal immigrants for several years."
See the March 16 Department of Homeland Security press release Department of Homeland Security Announces Arizona Border Control Initiative.
More Aliens Try To Enter for Amnesty: Bush Plan Spurs Jump in Illegal Immigration
By Jerry Seper, The Washington Times, February 20, 2004
President Bush's proposal for a guest-worker program that would give legal status to millions of illegal immigrants now working in the United States has caused a surge of new illegal immigrants trying to get enter the country, according to this article.
The National Border Patrol Council, the union that represents 9,000 field agents of the U.S. Border Patrol, reports that apprehensions of illegal immigrants in the San Diego area alone have tripled since President Bush announced his proposal on January 7 -- and many of those caught acknowledged that they had come to the United States seeking amnesty.
The Border Patrol had been surveying detained illegal immigrants to find out if rumors of amnesty had fueled their attempts to get into the United States. But the survey was dropped after January 27, Seper writes, because it "had become compromised."
The Bush plan is not yet law and does not grant amnesty. See the White House fact sheet explaining the Bush administration's guest-worker proposal.
Ex-U.S. Drug Czar: Don't Link Immigration to Terror
Dow Jones International News, Dateline Mexico City, January 28, 2004
Retired U.S. Army General Barry McCaffrey, the drug czar under President Bill Clinton, says that illegal immigration should not be linked to terrorism.
Speaking to reporters after meeting with private groups and security company executives in Mexico City, McCaffrey is quoted as saying: "Don't confuse illegal migration with drugs or terrorism. They are related issues, but separate problems."
McCaffrey, according to this article, said that terrorism inside Mexico has not been significant, but threats of terrorism did exist in Colombia and potential terrorist groups are in Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil.
2003
Haiti: Deterring Illegal Migration
U.S. Department of State Fact Sheet, December 29, 2003
Illegal migration from Haiti is a threat to U.S. national security and endangers the Haitians who attempt it, says a fact sheet released December 29 by the U.S. Department of State.
The United States, the fact sheet says, "supports sending a strong message to all foreign nationals that, consistent with international obligations and policies, the U.S. will continue to interdict and repatriate those who attempt illegal entry, absent valid protection claims."
See the full text of the fact sheet.
Bureau of Diplomatic Security Criminal Program Accomplishments for Fiscal Year 2003
U.S. Department of State, Fact Sheet, December 16, 2003
Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the United States, the State Department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security enhanced its investigative capabilities especially in the area of issuing passports and visas.
According to this State Department fact sheet, the Bureau of Diplomatic Security has already deployed 23 agents to high-fraud posts overseas to work specifically with host government law enforcement in bolstering border security capabilities and to prevent ineligible persons from entering the U.S. illegally. More agents are expected to be assigned to two more high-fraud posts in fiscal year 2004.
The Bureau of Diplomatic Security has also strengthened its working relationship with the Bureau of Consular Affairs "to promote a proactive, zero-tolerance stance on passport and visa malfeasance."
See the full text of the fact sheet.
White House Verifies Immigration Review: Amnesty for Illegals Being Considered
By Jerry Seper, The Washington Times, December 12, 2003
The Bush administration is considering a new immigration policy that might include amnesty for millions of illegal aliens living and working in the United States.
White House Spokesman McClellan is quoted as saying at a December 11 press briefing: "We've taken steps to improve border security -- significant steps, I might add; have made great progress there. We've taken steps to improve the immigration infrastructure. Those are some foundations for moving forward on a more orderly, safe and human migration policy.
"And this is a matter that really is under review at this point. We continue to look at it."
When asked to comment on Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge's suggestion, made recently to Miami audiences (See below: Ridge Revives Debate on Immigrant Status) to provide some sort of legal status to illegal immigrants already living in the United States, McClellan is quoted as saying: "I think he's been looking at the issue of the large number of illegal immigrants that we do have in the country and looking at those that could be threats and those that are here for other reasons.
"And so, he's just talking about the realities that we are facing now."
See excerpt from the December 11 White House briefing.
Ridge Revives Debate on Immigrant Status
By Dan Eggen, The Washington Post, December 11, 2003
and
Ridge Endorses Legalizing Residents But He Says Illegal Immigration Must be Stopped
By Tanya Weinberg and Christy McKerney, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, December 10, 2003
Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge says the U.S. government should provide illegal immigrants living in the United States some sort of legal status.
Ridge is quoted as saying: "As a country we have to come to grips with the presence of 8 to 12 million illegals, afford them some kind of legal status some way, but also as a country decide what our immigration policy is and then enforce it.... I'm not saying make them citizens, because they violated the law to get here. So you don't reward that type of conduct by turning over a citizenship certificate. You determine how you can legalize their presence, then, as a country, you make a decision that from this day forward, from this day forward, this is the process of entry, and if you violate that process of entry we have the resources to cope with it."
Ridge made his remarks on December 9 at the Miami-Dade Community College at a town-hall meeting organized by the nonprofit Council for Excellence in Government. The Council works to develop homeland security recommendations for various levels of government.
Eggen writes: "Homeland Security officials said yesterday that Ridge's remarks were not intended as a proposal or a change in government policy but were meant only to point out an obvious challenge facing the government."
Brian Roehrkasse, Homeland Security spokesman, is quoted as saying: "The secretary was merely acknowledging a very practical problem that exists. There are several million people here illegally, and at some point in time it would be good to have an accounting of these people so we can identify those that might be a threat to us."
Guarding America's Border: Understaffed Patrol Must Balance Safety, Free Trade
By Jerry Seper, The Washington Times, Dateline Blaine, Washington, December 8, 2003
The 4,121-mile-long U.S.-Canadian border has only recently been getting the kinds of border security it needs to monitor the yearly crossings of some 80 million people, according to this report, the first of a three-part series.
Among the improvements: The Vehicle and Cargo Inspection System, which uses gamma rays to inspect the contents of trucks and other vehicles; radiation detectors to scan vehicles in an effort to detect weapons of mass destruction; "smart camera" video-surveillance systems; and, the Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism, which now involves more than 4,000 businesses and requires them to provide information regarding their trucks, drivers, cargos, suppliers and routes.
Although there are no hard numbers for how many illegal immigrants enter the United States from Canada, since 1993, about 28 per day are apprehended. They come from some 60 countries, including China, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Algeria, South Korea, Yemen and Mexico.
According to this article, international terrorists, including al Qaeda members, have "sleeper cells" throughout Canada.
Ahmed Ressam, the Algerian convicted of plotting to bomb Los Angeles International Airport in 2000, entered the United States from Canada, where he lived for years posing as a refugee.
See the full story.
Secretary Tom Ridge Pledges All-Out Federal Effort to Combat Human Smuggling and Related Violence
Press release from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, December 3, 2003
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will do "whatever it takes" to dismantle the criminal organizations behind human smuggling, says Department of Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge.
Speaking December 3 to law enforcement officials in Phoenix, Arizona, Ridge said that human smuggling and the violence it generates pose a significant threat to the nation's security, according to a DHS press release.
He highlighted the initial successes of ICE Storm, the multi-agency operation led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and applauded local agencies for their role.
See the full text.
Tighter Border Yields Odd Result: More Illegals Stay
By Eduardo Porter, The Wall Street Journal, Dateline Stockton, California, October 10, 2003
With stricter policing of the U.S. border and higher prices being demanded by people smugglers, more illegal immigrants from Mexico are choosing to just stay in the United States.
According to a study done by Douglas Massey, co-director of the Mexican Migration Project at the University of Pennsylvania, the average stay of a Mexican illegal immigrant in the early 1980s was three years; by the late 1990s, it was nine years.
In the past, Mexicans would enter the United States illegally to take jobs, make money, and then go home to their families in Mexico. Now they stay in the United States and pay "coyotes" to bring their families to them.
The illegal immigrants who choose to stay in the United States permanently are straining the resources of the communities where they live: Schools are crowded with Spanish-speaking students; local charities face increasing demands; and, hospitals are financially strained by the increasing number of uninsured patients.
Ukrainian Police Arrest 81 illegal Immigrants from Asia, Caucasus
Agence France-Presse, September 29, 2003
Over the past weekend, Ukrainian police arrested 81 illegal immigrants; most were from China, Pakistan, Georgia and Chechnya.
A group of 30 Chinese, who had visas for Russia but not Ukraine, were found in two vehicles near Sumy, bordering Russia, with their four Ukrainian smugglers.
Chinese, along with Pakistanis, head the list of the more than 5,000 illegal immigrants who were arrested in Ukraine last year.
According to this article, an estimated 30,000 illegal immigrants cross into Ukraine each year in an attempt to reach Slovakia, Poland or Hungary.
Those in Distress Seem Happy To Be Caught
By Luke Turf, Associated Press Newswires, Dateline Tucson, Arizona, September 7, 2003
When they're lost, exhausted and sick from the heat of Arizona's deserts, most illegal immigrants are happy to be discovered by BORSTAR -- the U.S. Border Patrol Search, Trauma and Rescue teams.
So far this year, BORSTAR in the Tucson sector of Arizona has rescued 301 people; nationwide these elite rescue teams have rescued at least 959 people.
Ukraine Deports 46 Chinese Clandestine Immigrants
Agence France-Presse, August 27, 2003
Ukrainian border authorities have deported 46 Chinese illegal immigrants back to Beijing at their families' expense.
The Chinese, who had been trying to reach western Europe, had been detained in Ukraine for six months. The Chinese embassy in Kiev had contacted their families and arranged for them to pay the airline fares for their kin to return home.
Another group of 43 Chinese illegal immigrants will be repatriated next week.
Boris Marchenko, deputy head of the Ukrainian border service, is quoted as saying more than 400 illegal immigrants are being held in temporary detention centers.
In 2002, Ukraine authorities apprehended more than 5,000 illegal immigrants, mostly from China, India and Pakistan. Ukraine -- along with Hungary, Poland and Slovakia -- has become a major transit country for Asian illegal immigrants trying to reach the west.
Mexican ID Card Is Gaining Acceptance in Some U.S. Cities
By Rachel L. Swarns, The New York Times and International Herald Tribune, Dateline Indianapolis, Indiana, August 26, 2003
The matricula consular -- an identification card issued by the Mexican government to its citizens -- is increasing being accepted by local authorities in the United States.
Swarns writes: "In March 2002, only a handful of cities and banks recognized the matricula consular, Mexican officials say. Today, more than 100 cities, 900 police departments, 100 financial institutions and 13 states, including Indiana, New Mexico and Utah, accept the cards, which carry the bearer's photo, name and address and are issued by Mexican consulates....
"Illegal immigrants who carry the matricula consular still risk deportation and are still barred from working, by federal law. They cannot use the card to register to vote, change their immigration status or to obtain Social Security numbers or work permits," Swarns notes.
But in places where the cards are recognized, they ease the way for the illegal immigrant to obtain a driver's license, permits and various city services.
Germany To Oversee Future EU Land Border Police Force
Agence France-Presse, August 25, 2003
Germany will supervise a European Union border police force under a European Union plan to patrol the bloc's land frontiers and halt the influx of illegal immigrants.
Under "Project Neptune" -- as the immigration surveillance plan has been dubbed -- Italy would be in charge of immigration through the EU's airports; Spain and Greece would coordinate two checkpoints at sea.
Amnesty Programs Have No Impact on Illegal Immigration, Study Says
U.S. Newswire, Dateline Dallas, Texas, August 21, 2003
The 1986 passage of the U.S. Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA), which granted amnesty to 2.7 million undocumented immigrants but increased penalties and tightened border controls, was only temporarily effective in reducing illegal immigration, according to a study conducted by economists Pia Orrenius and Madeline Zavodny.
IRCA did not lead to a surge in illegal immigration, as some critics have charged, the authors say. But Orrenius is quoted as saying: "Apprehensions were similar before passage of the amnesty and post-IRCA, even though some 2 million Mexicans were legalized. This evidence is consistent with a rise in illegal immigration in the years after the amnesty."
The study appeared in the August issue of Demography, a peer-reviewed journal published by the Population Association of America.
See the full article "Do Amnesty Programs Reduce Undocumented Immigration? Evidence from IRCA."
Rise in Number of Women, Juvenile Illegal Immigrants Reported
By Michelle Rushlo, Associated Press Newswires, August 15, 2003
More women and children are illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, according to this report.
In the U.S. Border Patrol's Tucson sector along the border of Arizona and Mexico, 38,000 women were caught in the first eight months of this fiscal year, compared to 32,000 during the same time period the year before. For children, the figure jumped to 8,000 from 7,000.
In the Yuma sector, which covers the southwestern corner of Arizona, 6,500 women were caught from October through July, compared to 5,362 in the entire previous fiscal year in that sector. Some 4,000 children were caught, compared to 947 in the last fiscal year.
It is assumed that most of the women are trying to reunite with husbands who earlier entered the United States. Tougher border security make it difficult for men who are illegal immigrants to travel back and forth to visit wives and family outside the United States.
Asian Illegal Immigrants Found in French-Bound Polish Lorry
Agence France-Press, June 23, 2003
Polish customs officers apprehended 33 Asian illegal immigrants -- 17 Chinese, 14 Afghans and two Chechens -- in a truck bound for France. The truck driver and two suspected Polish traffickers were arrested.
Poland officials often apprehend Asian illegal immigrants bound for European Union countries, according to this report.
Fact Sheet: A Day in the Life of Homeland Security
U.S. Department of Homeland Security, June 19, 2003
On average each day, U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents apprehend 2,617 people crossing illegally into the United States and rescue 3 people illegally crossing the border in dangerous conditions.
See full text.
EU Leaders Agree Cash to Combat Illegal Immigrants
By Gareth Jones, Reuters News, Dateline Porto Carras, Greece, June 19, 2003
European Union leaders agreed to spend 140 million Euros (about 164 million U.S. dollars) to tighten border security in an effort to control the flow of illegal immigrants.
European Commission President Romano Prodi is quoted as saying: "The (EU) Commission has made an effort to find extra money because our borders are very, very long and difficult to guard."
With eastern enlargement scheduled for next year, the EU will have longer borders with the Balkans and countries of the former Soviet Union.
Migrant Smuggling Undeterred; Tighter Borders Since 9/11 Put Traffickers in Demand
By Alfonso Chardy, The Miami Herald, May 30, 2003
Tighter border controls now make smaller smuggling rings more attractive for illegal immigrants seeking to enter the United States, according to this article.
Jim Chaparro, acting executive director for interior enforcement for the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, is quoted as saying: "Fifteen years ago, you did not need smugglers to get across the border illegally, except maybe a local guide. Now it's a humongous problem."
Federal immigration officials arrested 1,091 smuggling suspects in 2001 (the last year for which figures are available) compared to 350 in 1992. U.S. authorities apprehended 17,984 smuggled immigrants in 2001, compared to 681 in 1992.
Many small smuggling networks focus on a particular ethnic group. Top source countries for illegal immigrants entering the United States are: Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Cuba and the Dominican Republic and China.
Ridge Says Unmanned Drones Could be Patrolling Borders by End of the Year
By Jesse J. Holland, Associated Press Newswires, Dateline Washington, May 22, 2003
Homeland Security Tom Ridge told Congress that unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) could be patrolling the U.S. border by the end of the year.
In testimony to the House Select Committee on Homeland Security, Ridge said the remote-controlled aircraft, similar to those used in the war on Iraq, could help stem illegal immigrants and increase security.
See Ridge's testimony and other information on the website for Select Committee on Homeland Security.
Ukraine Detains 17 Illegal Chinese Immigrants, Traffickers
Agence France-Presse, May 22, 2003
Ukrainian border guards have caught 17 illegal Chinese immigrants and arrested an unspecified number of Russian and Ukrainian traffickers near the border with Belarus.
In the past month, Ukrainian officials have quarantined nearly 700 illegal immigrants, most of them Chinese, for fear of introducing into the country the deadly Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). So far, none have been found to be infected.
Migrants Put Lives at Risk to Obtain Florida Jobs
By Sandra Hernandez, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, May 21, 2003
The routes are getting riskier and the costs higher for illegal immigrants trying to get into the United States, this article says.
Mario Villarreal, a spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security's Bureau of Customs and Border Enforcement, is quoted as saying: "More and more people are turning to smuggling organizations to cross the border. What you are seeing are much more organized smuggling rings that use much more dangerous routes to enter the United States."
Rob Williams, director of Florida's Legal Service's Migrant Workers Justice Project, is quoted as saying: "The risk factor is measured in terms of the price." Smugglers charge more to avoid increased border enforcement, he said.
Hernandez interviewed "Josefina," a 40-year-old Mexican native and illegal immigrant who has been working in an American nursery for four years. She is quoted as saying: "I don't know that (if I left the United States) I could make it (back) again. I remember last time when I got here I was so scared and tired. My body was covered in scars from the cactus needles and all my toenails fell off from walking for three nights straight. It was horrible We could hear the sound of the rattlesnakes in the distance and I just prayed that I would make it.
"People don't leave here (the United States) because we can't earn enough to get home. You come here because you think you will make lots of money, but it's not true. But you only realize this after you have crossed and nearly died doing it. Now we can't leave."
Limbo of the Migrant Worker
By Jason Song, The Baltimore Sun, Dateline Carlsbad, California, May 14, 2003
Illegal migrant farm workers are increasingly staying in the United States year round, this report says.
In years past, farm workers from Mexico and Latin American countries would illegally enter the United States to get jobs harvesting crops. When the harvest season was over, they would sneak back over the border to go home to their families.
But the tougher border security measures instituted since the 9/11 terrorist attacks have made many illegals afraid to return home for fear they might be caught by authorities. Or, if they could return home successfully, they fear they might be caught trying enter the United States the next harvest season. In addition, human smugglers -- known as "coyotes" -- have raised their fees because crossing the border illegally has become more difficult.
The result is hundreds of illegal immigrant farm workers sit out the non-harvest season in abysmal conditions, hiding in shantytowns without electricity or running water or proper sewage disposal. Some of their encampments have been torn down by city officials, because human refuse polluted nearby water supplies.
The farmers who employ the workers part of the year say they are not responsible for housing the workers.
Letter of Barbara Comstock, Director of Public Affairs, U.S. Department of Justice, to the editor of Time Magazine
May 13, 2003
Comstock clarifies a number of issues regarding U.S. policy toward illegal immigrants in this letter to the editor released by the Department of Justice May 14, 2003.
U.S. Toughens Immigration Stance
By Eduardo Porter, The Wall Street Journal, May 12, 2003
In the wake of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, U.S. authorities have been tracking illegal immigrants more aggressively.
"The new Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, part of the Homeland Security Department, says it is concentrating its resources on securing potential terrorist targets such as airports, stadiums, nuclear facilities, and defense plants," Porter writes. "The airport crackdown has rooted out 4,271 undocumented immigrant workers across the country. The Social Security Administration blitzed nearly a million employers with 'no match' letters warning them they had incorrect Social Security numbers on their payrolls, leading many of the workers to be fired or quit.
"The Internal Revenue Service also is considering tightening enforcement of long-ignored rules that allowed it to fine businesses who file employee W2 forms with bad Social Security numbers," Porter says.
Undocumented Immigrant Tally Hits 7 Million
By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, Chicago Tribune, Dateline Washington, February 1, 2003
The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) estimates that the number of illegal immigrants in the United States reached 7 million in 2000. The net growth of that population may be as much as 350,000 each year.
California has the largest number of illegal immigrants, with an estimated 2.2 million, followed by Texas, which has some 1 million.
See the Executive Summary for INS's Estimates of the Unauthorized Immigrant Population Residing in the United States: 1990 to 2000 dated January 31, 2003.
U.S. Cracks Down On Human Smuggling In Effort To Stop Terrorists
Prepared Statement of Johnny Williams, Executive Associate Commissioner of the INS, Before the Senate Committee on Finance, January 30, 2003
In January 2002, the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) began targeting significant alien-smuggling organizations specializing in the movement of U.S.-bound aliens from countries that are of interest to the national security of the United States.
The INS believes that alien-smuggling organizations may wittingly or unwittingly be utilized to smuggle terrorists around the globe.
Since the inception of this operation, eight significant alien smugglers have been arrested and charged with alien-smuggling violations, and significant alien-smuggling pipelines have been severely crippled.
See the full text of Williams' testimony.
Alien Pipeline to U.S. Exposed
The Australian, Dateline Montreal, January 2, 2003
Canadian police arrested a man suspected of helping five Middle Eastern suspects sought by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The alleged people smuggler told Montreal police that his organization was paid handsomely to help 19 people enter the United States illegally from Pakistan via Britain and Canada.
According to this report, this arrest could be "the first concrete achievement" obtained by a U.S.-Canadian anti-terrorist unit set up after the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States.
24,000 Turks and Iranians Arrived as Tourists. Only 1,000 Went Home
By David Williams, Daily Mail (London), Dateline Belgrade, November 26, 2002
Organized crime has made the Balkans the gateway to Britain and Western Europe for tens of thousands of asylum seekers and the biggest new drug route to the West, according to this article. There are also fears that terrorists are using the same routes to move operatives and weapons.
"The United Nations International Organisation on Migration has warned that unless a joint initiative is agreed, Western Europe will be 'overwhelmed by migrants,'" Williams writes.
In 2001, some 24,000 Iranians and Turks came as tourists to the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo, but only 1,000 ever went home. The rest were smuggled out to other countries.
In the last two years, an estimated 50,000 Chinese have crossed from Serbia into Bosnia, smuggled in through Romania and Bulgaria. Belgrade has a thriving Chinese community where the illegal Chinese immigrants can await their chance to move to Western Europe.
Williams writes: "The implications of the crime crisis for the Balkan countries and their fledgling democracies are massive. Mafia rackets are costing nations such as Bosnia more than their entire annual budgets. Customs and tax scams alone are estimated to lose Bosnia at least GBP 400 million (US$625,800,000) annually."
2002
INS Announces Notice Concerning Expedited Removal
Statement, Immigration and Naturalization Service
Fact Sheet, Immigration and Naturalization Service
The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) announced that all individuals who arrive in the United States illegally by sea will be placed in "expedited removal proceedings," and they will remain in detention at the discretion of the Justice Department during the period of time it takes U.S. authorities to review their cases.
INS said the decision is not a change in policy, but the "activation of pre-existing authority."
America's Southern Border -- Terror War's Maginot Line?
By Peter Benesh, Investor's Business, June 17, 2002
This article examines the possibility that terrorists will use the services of criminal smuggling groups to enter the United States via its southern border with Mexico.
Arnaud De Borchgrave of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, is quoted as saying that organized crime and terrorism are merging.
"Mexico is a transit point for major international smuggling organizations," Adele Fasano, director for the Immigration and Naturalization Service in San Diego, is quoted as saying. According to Border Patrol officer Ron Hunter: "Anyone can connect with a smuggler over there (in Mexico)."
For example, San Ysidro, located at the south end of San Diego, is "the world's busiest border point," Benesh writes. In May this year, 120,000 people used San Ysidro each day to enter the United States by vehicle or on foot. In 2001, the INS there stopped people from 73 countries trying to enter the United States illegally.
Although U.S. security measures have been strengthened, smugglers are adapting. Since February, U.S. authorities have found three tunnels in the wilderness areas east of San Diego. "One was 1,200-feet long. It had a railway, electricity and ventilation," writes Benesh. "It was built by the Arellano Felix drug cartel to smuggle drugs and people into the U.S."
U.S. Customs Announces Container Security Initiative
U.S. Customs Fact Sheet, February 22, 2002 See full text.
The U.S. Customs Service released a fact sheet on February 22 describing an initiative that would tighten security on oceangoing sea containers.
The goal of the Container Security Initiative (CSI) is to pre-screen cargo containers at ports of origin and transit rather than waiting for them to arrive at U.S. ports for inspection.
The CSI also calls for using technology to pre-screen high-risk containers and develop "smart and secure containers."
Created: 19 Jul 2004 Updated: 20 Jan 2006
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