This is an article from La Raza.

Polleros' increase its fares

Security at the border forces them to change prices

Jorge Morales Almada
La Opinion

Crossing the border illegally has become more expensive. Some methods of crossing arrive to cost nearly five thousand dollars, when last year was paid $ 3500 to enter directly by the garita San Ysidro.

"Well, the security there," explained one dealer consulted people, who tend to call "The Gavilan Pollero.

While this year has been the pull flojón ", as the coyote, it is expected that from January rebound flow of aliens, due to return to the United States of many who risked to spend the holidays in their villages decembrinas origin.

According to the rates offered by "El Gavilan Pollero, who works in the area of San Diego, crossing on foot through the mountains (one of the most dangerous areas in the winter season), that journey is made of eight to 10 hours , rose from 1500 dollars to 2200 this year.

"Why the line? That is at 4-8," he said referring to the $ 4800 charged for crossing a person in the car garita San Ysidro, either with another person or documents hidden in a secret compartment.

"That it has risen enough, but it is by the same security as there is greater risk," he said.

And when crossing a person using documents outside, but traveling alone, walking through the San Ysidro garita, the cost is 3500 dollars and returning mica or passport used, she said. Last year the cost of road crossings from 2800 to 3000 dollars.

The agent Matthew Johnson, spokesman for the Border Patrol in San Diego, was surprised by the costs.

"Actually I do not know how much they are paid, but it seems that it is enough money, for me 4800 dollars is a lot of money," he said.

He assumed that the increase of what is charged by coyotes because it is now more difficult to cross the border illegally.

"Because we have secured a long border, has deployed more personnel and equipment," said.

On 18 December, International Migrants Day, Jose Moreno Mena, the Coalition Pro Defensa del Migrante in Tijuana, said that according to the arrests made by the Border Patrol, as a rough indicator of the flow of migrants, trafficking Undocumented increased in Mexico's border with California due to the strengthening of surveillance on the border with Arizona, where they fell.

Data from the Border Patrol reflect an increase of 7% in the arrests of migrants in the area of California, while the rest of the border was reduced by 20%.

According to "The Gavilan Pollero," currently the most common and safe crossing is undocumented by the same gateway, using documents outside.

The Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) 67534 detected violations of immigration during the fiscal year 2006 only in the San Ysidro garita, of which 29881, ie 44%, were for the use of fraudulent documents.

A study by the University of California at San Diego (UCSD) said that the migrant decided to cross the border based on what you earn in the United States, compared with their entry into Mexico, namely that if you win four times, his intentions crossing are less, but if you win five or six more times, then decided to risk it.

With the recent approval of the increase to the minimum wage in Mexico, the income would be 4.58 dollars to 4.87 dollars a day-depending on the area of the country where they live, while in California since January the minimum wage is eight dollars a hour , $ 64 day, ie 13 times more.

The coyote consulted commented that the candidate for crossing usually have relatives in California, who is the one who hired him, and makes the payment.

This year the outlook for migrant workers has not been very promising, especially in the construction industry, which employs mostly undocumented, says David Lizardi, a contractor in this activity.

For months the construction industry has been held back by what Lizardi considered "recession in the state." He estimated that construction projects are in custody in a 60% or 70%.

Martin, a day labourer who often seek work in the parking lot of Home Depot on Figueroa Street in the Cypress Park area of Los Angeles, agreed that there is little work and that this year has not gone very well.

"He shot a bad," he said.

Despite that, Martin said, several relatives and friends in his native Guerrero who have expressed intentions to cross the border illegally to work in the United States.

"Because there [Mexico] is worse," he mentioned. © La Opinion

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