Here is an excerpt from Julie Wolf's* article in McClatchy Newspapers (DC):
"Mexican immigration to the United States has been almost entirely an economic issue for the past few decades. Politicians have fine-tuned their positions around what to do about illegal immigrants who supposedly take jobs from Americans. Now, however, as violence on the border continues to increase, a new kind of immigrant to the United States is appearing: people seeking asylum to escape the drug-fueled brutality in Mexico... Already, there have been two celebrated cases of asylum-seekers: a journalist who fled the northern state of Chihuahua after drug cartels threatened him, and the mayor of Ciudad Juarez, a major border city opposite El Paso, Texas, who pulled out when drug traffickers threatened his family. Though both succeeded in getting into the U.S., their tactic is still relatively untested in U.S. courts... Ana Maria Salazar, a U.S. deputy assistant secretary of defense during the Clinton administration who's now a political commentator in Mexico City, said...'Many people fearing for their lives in border towns are moving to big cities within Mexico," said Salazar, who has Mexican and American citizenship. 'As descriptions of the violence continue to become public, there will definitely be talk about the refugee status' in the U.S., although she adds that the violence would have to be 'very high.'" Link to Full Article
*Wolf is a student at Penn State University. This story was reported from Mexico City for a class in international journalism.
Analysis: Lately, more has been written and speculated regarding the touchy subject of Mexicans who are fleeing drug violence claiming asylum or refugee status in the US. I'm glad there are two high-profile examples in the article, and that the author mentions the tactic is relatively untested in US courts - that's very true. I'm also wholly unaware of how many asylum requests have been made by Mexican nationals fleeing drug violence in border cities or elsewhere in Mexico, and what portion of those requests have been granted. I could find out through official channels, but I probably wouldn't be able to share the information with you on this blog. So, let's stick to the stuff I can talk about and use to inform you.
The US Refugee Program and guidelines for requesting asylum might seem clear-cut when you look at the US State Department guidelines, but the interpretation of "persecution" is usually completely subjective. From the Iowa Bureau of Refugee Services: "Refugees, according to the United States Department of State, are persons of special humanitarian concern who can establish persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion... Each year, the President of the United States, after consulting with Congress and appropriate agencies, determines the designated nationalities and processing priorities for refugee processing for the upcoming year. The President also sets annual ceilings on the total number of refugees who may enter the U.S. from each region of the world." From the US Customs and Immigration Service: "[An] Asylum Officer or Immigration Judge will determine if you are eligible [for asylum] by evaluating whether you meet the definition of a refugee... The determination of whether you meet the definition of a refugee will be based on information you provide on your application and during an interview with an Asylum Officer or at a hearing before an Immigration Judge."
So the question becomes, do Mexican nationals fleeing drug violence fear persecution based on their race, religion, nationality, membership in a social group, or political opinion? Before I answer that with my own opinion, I'd like to present an example of two large immigrant groups in South Florida who have been at odds over US asylum policy for decades: the Cubans and the Haitians. Both Cuban and Haitian immigrants make dangerous journeys through often treacherous waters in vessels that would blow your mind with their deplorable conditions. Since 1994, Cuban immigrants have been subject to the US government's wet-foot dry-foot policy. Essentially, this means that if they make it to dry land on US territory, their political asylum claims will pretty much be automatically granted under the Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966. Although Haiti's government is complete crap, their economy has been in the toilet since the Haitian Revolution burned the country to the ground, and murders and kidnappings are a daily occurrence, Haitians usually have to emigrate like everyone else and are not automatically granted asylum for economic or security reasons. The difference between Cuba and Haiti? Cuba is still a communist country, and Haiti is not. Like it or hate it, that's the realit when it comes to current immigration law.
Based on this historical example, the prospects for granting asylum to Mexican nationals fleeing drug violence don't look good right now. You can easily throw out the race, religion, and nationality categories of persecution. You can probably throw out political opinion as well, as DTOs and their enforcers don't really care who Mexicans vote for. I think where things get into the gray area is the "membership in a particular social group." High-profile politicians, law enforcement commanders, etc. might fit into the social group of elites who are threatened - directly or just by virtue of their positions - by DTOs. That's probably how the journalist (a group of people who are routinely threatened and sometimes murdered for stories they publish) and the mayor were granted asylum. As for the average Mexican Joe (or Jose, if you will), trying to find that all-encompassing category would be difficult, especially if you have a checkered past or criminal record (all asylum seekers must submit to a background check). Just being a Mexican citizen who is afraid of being killed by narcos won't cut it, especially when historical evidence shows that truly innocent civilians aren't typically in danger of being murdered or kidnapped in Mexico - unless they're DEA informants, of course. Unless President Obama - in consult with Congress - changes the rules, Mexican nationals are going to have to follow the exisiting rules the same as Haitians and everyone else trying to get to the US.
Great blog and very interesting analysis. It would be great to read your thought of the "break-out" from the Cieneguillas Prison!
Posted by: Bjorn | May 22, 2009 at 02:20 PM
Nice post,
I read somewhere tht the death toll in mexico for drug related muder was above 15,000 for the past 3 years! Something needs to change and your ideas would be very welcoming,
Thanks
Posted by: software developers | January 04, 2010 at 08:59 AM