Mexico Should
Issue Travel Warnings for Ferguson, Cleveland and Baltimore (La Jornada, Mexico)
"According
to Javier Urbano, coordinator of Migrant Affairs for Universidad
Iberoamericana, the problem of insecurity and violence in some [Mexican]
states, 'have unfortunately provided material for kneejerk U.S. abuse of travel
warnings.' … He pointed out that as a matter of equivalence, 'the government of
Mexico should warn its citizens not to travel to Ferguson, Cleveland or
Baltimore, where excessive use of force by police has left three young African
Americans dead, for example.'"
The grave problem of insecurity and violence in some [Mexican]
states, ''have unfortunately provided material for kneejerk U.S. abuse of travel
warnings.'' says Javier Urbano, coordinator of
Migrant Affairs for Universidad
Iberoamericana. He pointed out that as a matter of equivalence, "the
government of Mexico should warn its citizens not to travel to Ferguson,
Cleveland or Baltimore, where excessive use of force by police has left three
young African Americans dead, for example.''
While U.S. State Department alerts have always existed, since
President Felipe Calderon launched the "war" against organized crime they
have been repeatedly issued for virtually all Mexican states - with a few exceptions.
In 2006, ''given the continuing and growing violence '' that
exists in Oaxaca state, the U.S. Embassy in Mexico decided to raise the alert
level for its citizens, who were told to "avoid all travel'' to the city.
The embassy also called on the various agencies of the Mexican government ''to
restore the rule of law. ''
Posted By Worldmeets.US
In 2007, due to the climate of violence related to drug
trafficking, the U.S. government amplified its warnings to the safety of its
citizens who intended to travel to Michoacan, Baja
California, Tamaulipas, Nuevo Leon, Guerrero, Oaxaca and especially the cities of
Nuevo Laredo, Monterrey, Acapulco, Oaxaca city and 10 more entities.
Courageous Mothers of West Baltimore: America's 'Tiger Moms' (Corriere Della Sera, Italy)
''Since then, U.S. alerts have become a kind of rule of
thumb for Mexico. While we recognize that we have a problem and that our
leaders are to blame, the way they are used as leverage or to promote a
stereotype, such accusations cannot possibly be allowed to go unanswered, '' insisted
Urbano, who is also a teacher of international cooperation
and a doctor in international relations.
Urbano notes that you one cannot
hide that there is a problem with ''severe, chronic, endemic corruption,
violence and impunity,'' but he contends that the federal government should adopt
a position of ''equivalence – because believing that the United States has no
drug violence of other crimes committed by criminal organizations is impossible.
''
States like Texas have insisted on issuing alerts to
citizens wanting to travel to Mexico. However, using data from the National
Institute of Statistics and Geography and the Interior Ministry, among other federal
agencies, Urbano says it should acknowledge that ''the
Mexican government has made great efforts fighting the cartels and should praise
its ongoing commitment to make Mexico a safer place to live and visit."
