Thread: U.S. plan to fly Mexican illegal immigrants to hometowns dr

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U.S. plan to fly Mexican illegal immigrants to hometowns draws criticism

By Olga R. Rodriguez
ASSOCIATED PRESS

11:52 a.m. June 1, 2005

MONTERREY, Mexico – A plan to deport illegal immigrants to their hometowns, instead of dropping them at the border, might slow the tide of Mexicans moving north but it won't halt border crossings, migrant rights advocates said Wednesday.

On Tuesday, U.S. and Mexican officials agreed to again take part in a program that will provide free flights home for some immigrants.

It allows illegal immigrants arrested in Arizona's Sonora desert region to volunteer to return home via a chartered airplane from Tucson to Mexico City or Guadalajara. The immigrants then would be returned by bus to their hometowns.

U.S. officials say deporting migrants at the border just encourages them to cross again.

But Mexican illegal migrants caught elsewhere on the border would still be immediately deported and those arrested in the U.S. interior would be dropped in Mexican cities along the U.S. border.

The repatriation program, which is set to start June 6, aims to save the lives of migrants who might otherwise try to cross the Arizona desert during scorching summer months.

But some migrant rights advocates argue the program will do little to reduce the number of migrants trying to cross, but will make their journey harder and more expensive.

"Their idea is to put them as far away from the border as possible because if they really wanted to save lives, they would come up with a way of having orderly and legal migration," said Arturo Solis, director of the Center for Border Studies and the Promotion of Human Rights in the border city of Reynosa.

Solis said many migrants might take the flights out of confusion or simply to return home to work and save more money to make the journey north again.

"Those who are leaving everything behind to head to the border will continue trying," Solis said. "It will just make it more expensive for the migrants but this is not going to reduce illegal migration."

Francisco Loureiro, who runs a migrant shelter in Nogales, across from Nogales, Arizona, said he, too, doubts the program will reduce illegal immigration. But he said giving those migrants who have been exposed to the harshness of the desert the choice of flying home will help save some lives.

"We have migrants who have tried to cross through the desert up to five times and they are still here, waiting to try again," Loureiro said. "This (the flights) is a good option because a lot of them don't realize they are risking their lives."

On the Net:
Center for Border Studies and the Promotion of Human Rights
www.derechoshumanosenmexico.org

At the risk of sounding like a broken record...this is exactly why we need a military presence down there!!!! Is this obvious only to us here at Alipac?

My frustration runneth over.

Originally Posted by Scarecrow

At the risk of sounding like a broken record...this is exactly why we need a military presence down there!!!! Is this obvious only to us here at Alipac?

My frustration runneth over.

I hear you ScareCrow. I think there are a couple of politicians who are listening....

Originally Posted by Scarecrow

At the risk of sounding like a broken record...this is exactly why we need a military presence down there!!!! Is this obvious only to us here at Alipac?

My frustration runneth over.

I'm with you! I want military on the border, before all is lost!

Thank ya'll for the validation. This little site is one of the few havens from the insanity that has crept into America in recent years.

I do try to be positive, boneheaded politicians aside. Sooner or later they will get the message...I just hope it is sooner.

Exactly, a revolving door. Why not stop them before you have to house them, feed them, give medical attention, and a plane trip back. I wouldn't be surprised if we send them back with a little money too. Par for the course. This is CRRAAZZYY.

Why not stop them before you have to house them, feed them, give medical attention, and a plane trip back

HUH? LEGAL.........are you suggesting those blowhards in Congress would be using COMMON SENSE?



COMMON SENSE would make it too easy AND it would actually benefit the US of A!!