Oh geez - and a comic book no less for the less-than-literate....
What's next? A superhighway that has flames to dodge or something along the way for the pretense of it being a scary and bad thing to do?
By Olga R. Rodriguez
ASSOCIATED PRESS
8:29 a.m. January 5, 2005
MONTERREY, Mexico The Mexican government is distributing a comic-book guide that warns would-be migrants about the perils of crossing illegally into the United States and offers tips to stay safe enraging some advocates of stricter immigration policies in the United States who argue the booklet encourages illegal migration.
* Migrant guide
About 1.5 million copies of the pocket-size book titled "Guide for the Mexican Immigrant" were published by Mexico's Foreign Relations Department and distributed as a free supplement in comic books popular with adults that are sold throughout the country. The booklets are also available online and at Mexican consulates in the United States.
The comic book's introduction shows an illustration of three men huddling by riverbank bushes accompanied by the statement, "This guide is intended to give you some practical advice that could be of use if you already have made the difficult decision to seek new job opportunities outside your country."
Each year, as would-be migrants start considering a trip north, the Mexican government launches radio or television campaigns to inform them about the risks they'll face along the U.S.-Mexico border.
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This year, the Foreign Relations Department decided to add the guide as a way of "trying to provide the information directly" in the would-be migrants' home communities, said Geronimo Gutierrez, the department's deputy secretary for North American affairs. "Once they reach the border, it's very difficult for them to change their minds."
The booklet, which officials began distributing last month, explains the safest way to enter the United States is with a U.S.-issued visa and a Mexican passport. But it also offers tips on avoiding serious injury or death to those who have decided to cross illegally.
On one page appears a colorful drawing of people walking in the desert near power lines, with the hint that, "If you get lost, guide yourself with light poles, train tracks or dirt roads."
"Crossing a river can be very risky, especially if you cross alone and at night," the booklet warns. "Heavy clothing becomes heavier when wet, and this makes swimming or floating difficult."
The book also recommends adding salt to water to avoid dehydration when making desert crossings and notes it is best to walk during times of low heat intensity.
Critics argue the tips serve more as instructions on how to cross illegally than as a deterrent to would-be migrants.
"With this document the Mexican government not only has not instructed its citizens to obey immigration law but, in rich detail, it has supplied a manual on how to circumvent U.S. immigration law," said John Keeley, director of communication for the U.S.-based Center for Immigration Studies, a group that favors stricter immigration policies. "It's very, very troubling."
Editorials in several U.S. papers sharply criticized the comic book. The Arizona Republic called it "an illustrated guide to Mexico's domestic failures" and The Washington Times asked that the U.S. government file an official complaint.
The Mexican government has been criticized often for not doing more to stop the flow of illegal migrants to the United States. But officials say they can do little because while aiding illegal crossings for a fee is a crime, there's no Mexican law stopping migrants from gathering near the northern border.
Every year, hundreds of migrants die in the desert, where temperatures soar above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) in summer, and many drown while attempting to cross the Rio Grande. In the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, there were 325 migrant deaths along the entire U.S.-Mexico border, according to the U.S Customs and Border Protection Bureau.
Gutierrez defends the guide as an attempt to save lives and notes the book comes with a disclaimer saying it does not promote undocumented migration. The guide also explains the consequences of entering the United States without the proper documents, he says.
"The Mexican government has an obligation to take all actions possible in order to avoid the loss of lives and that is what we are trying to do in this case," Gutierrez said. Criticism of the book "seems to be the natural reaction of people who are skeptical about the whole immigration debate," he said.
Braulio Munoz, an artisan from western Jalisco state, has tried twice in the past 13 days to cross the U.S. border illegally with his 18-year-old son. He said he hadn't seen the guide but doubted anything would discourage them from attempting a third swim across the Rio Grande.
"In Jalisco there isn't any work," said Munoz, 42. "God willing, we'll make it to the United States even if they kick us out 15 times."
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/mexico/20050105-0829-mexico-migrationcomic.html
What's next? A superhighway that has flames to dodge or something along the way for the pretense of it being a scary and bad thing to do?
By Olga R. Rodriguez
ASSOCIATED PRESS
8:29 a.m. January 5, 2005
MONTERREY, Mexico The Mexican government is distributing a comic-book guide that warns would-be migrants about the perils of crossing illegally into the United States and offers tips to stay safe enraging some advocates of stricter immigration policies in the United States who argue the booklet encourages illegal migration.
* Migrant guide
About 1.5 million copies of the pocket-size book titled "Guide for the Mexican Immigrant" were published by Mexico's Foreign Relations Department and distributed as a free supplement in comic books popular with adults that are sold throughout the country. The booklets are also available online and at Mexican consulates in the United States.
The comic book's introduction shows an illustration of three men huddling by riverbank bushes accompanied by the statement, "This guide is intended to give you some practical advice that could be of use if you already have made the difficult decision to seek new job opportunities outside your country."
Each year, as would-be migrants start considering a trip north, the Mexican government launches radio or television campaigns to inform them about the risks they'll face along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Advertisement
This year, the Foreign Relations Department decided to add the guide as a way of "trying to provide the information directly" in the would-be migrants' home communities, said Geronimo Gutierrez, the department's deputy secretary for North American affairs. "Once they reach the border, it's very difficult for them to change their minds."
The booklet, which officials began distributing last month, explains the safest way to enter the United States is with a U.S.-issued visa and a Mexican passport. But it also offers tips on avoiding serious injury or death to those who have decided to cross illegally.
On one page appears a colorful drawing of people walking in the desert near power lines, with the hint that, "If you get lost, guide yourself with light poles, train tracks or dirt roads."
"Crossing a river can be very risky, especially if you cross alone and at night," the booklet warns. "Heavy clothing becomes heavier when wet, and this makes swimming or floating difficult."
The book also recommends adding salt to water to avoid dehydration when making desert crossings and notes it is best to walk during times of low heat intensity.
Critics argue the tips serve more as instructions on how to cross illegally than as a deterrent to would-be migrants.
"With this document the Mexican government not only has not instructed its citizens to obey immigration law but, in rich detail, it has supplied a manual on how to circumvent U.S. immigration law," said John Keeley, director of communication for the U.S.-based Center for Immigration Studies, a group that favors stricter immigration policies. "It's very, very troubling."
Editorials in several U.S. papers sharply criticized the comic book. The Arizona Republic called it "an illustrated guide to Mexico's domestic failures" and The Washington Times asked that the U.S. government file an official complaint.
The Mexican government has been criticized often for not doing more to stop the flow of illegal migrants to the United States. But officials say they can do little because while aiding illegal crossings for a fee is a crime, there's no Mexican law stopping migrants from gathering near the northern border.
Every year, hundreds of migrants die in the desert, where temperatures soar above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) in summer, and many drown while attempting to cross the Rio Grande. In the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, there were 325 migrant deaths along the entire U.S.-Mexico border, according to the U.S Customs and Border Protection Bureau.
Gutierrez defends the guide as an attempt to save lives and notes the book comes with a disclaimer saying it does not promote undocumented migration. The guide also explains the consequences of entering the United States without the proper documents, he says.
"The Mexican government has an obligation to take all actions possible in order to avoid the loss of lives and that is what we are trying to do in this case," Gutierrez said. Criticism of the book "seems to be the natural reaction of people who are skeptical about the whole immigration debate," he said.
Braulio Munoz, an artisan from western Jalisco state, has tried twice in the past 13 days to cross the U.S. border illegally with his 18-year-old son. He said he hadn't seen the guide but doubted anything would discourage them from attempting a third swim across the Rio Grande.
"In Jalisco there isn't any work," said Munoz, 42. "God willing, we'll make it to the United States even if they kick us out 15 times."
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/mexico/20050105-0829-mexico-migrationcomic.html
