Mexican Immigration Policy

[editor]

Immigration laws of U.S., Mexico differ, have similarity

By Ramon Bracamontes / El Paso Times

While Mexican citizens and lawmakers have been criticizing U.S. officials for proposed immigration legislation, Mexico's immigration policy is very similar to the United States' and in some aspects even tougher.

Just like in the United States, immigrants in Mexico can't work without a permit, tourists must register upon entering the country and retirees living there must have permits.

But unlike in the United States, immigrants in Mexico can never hold public office and cannot own land. Becoming a naturalized Mexican citizen is almost unheard of.

"If you think these critics are mad about U.S. immigration policy now, imagine how upset they would be if we adopted an approach ... namely, the way Mexico treats illegal aliens," wrote Frank Gaffney Jr., president and CEO of The Center for Security Policy in Washington, D.C., in a Washington Times column.

The immigration debate in the U.S. was reignited earlier this year when the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that would make living and working illegally in the United States a felony. The House bill also recommends building a wall between the United States and Mexico.

Two bills in the Senate drop the felony stipulation and the plan to build a wall.

Still, several protests were conducted earlier last month and several organizations are calling for today to be a "Day Without Immigrants." They are asking immigrants in the U.S. to skip work, march and refrain from shopping.

Horizon City resident Yolanda Hernandez, who was born in the United States, said she will join the protest and will not buy anything today.

"It is great that the Latinos are showing their power and uniting," she said. "It is about time we all unite."

The Center for Security Policy, which has written several reports and columns about Mexico's immigration policy, has issued statements saying these protesters should also look at Mexico's immigration policy.

Mexico's immigration policy states that immigrants in Mexico:

# are banned from public political discourse.

# are denied basic property rights.

# are denied equal employment rights.

# cannot be in public office.

While all that may be true, the reality is that U.S. citizens who want to go into Mexico find it easier to get there than Mexican citizens trying to enter the U.S., experts say.

El Pasoan Fernando Escalante, who has family in Ju!rez and throughout Mexico, often has to travel into Mexico. He was surprised at how it easy it was for him to travel in Mexico.

"They just put a sticker on your car and you can travel there and you can get the permit instantly," Escalante said. "It is a lot easier for us to go over there than for people to come over here. You need a laser visa to come here, and not everyone who applies for a visa gets it."

Manuel Ochoa, the vice president of binational development for the El Paso Regional Economic Development Corp., spends part of his time helping U.S. citizens and companies obtain the proper credentials to work in Mexico.

He describes the process as simple and easy. There are about 2,500 El Pasoans who have permission to work in Ju!rez.

"If you just want a 30-day permit, you can get it instantly at the port of entry," he said. "To work there for a year, all you need is a letter from the company that you are going to work for."

Socorro Cordova, press secretary for the Mexican Consulate in El Paso, said the country's goal is to make it easy for U.S. citizens to work, tour and retire in Mexico.

"Even those who retire and live here, they don't have problems obtaining the correct paperwork," she said.

Judith Bryan, press attache for the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City, said they rarely get complaints from U.S. citizens who work or live in Mexico.

"My impression is that there are a lot of American citizens living here," Bryan said from her office in Mexico City. "There must be a good reason for that."

Between 15 million and 16 million U.S. citizens visit Mexico each year. It is estimated that more than 385,000 Americans reside there year round.

Mexico's immigration policy changes when it is looked at from the perspective of a Central American immigrant, said Elizabeth Oglesby, a professor at the University of Arizona's Center for Latin American Studies.

"I think Mexico does have an increasingly strict policy that wasn't like that before," said Oglesby, who has studied in Guatemala.

Last year Mexico deported 147,000 undocumented immigrants.

More than 90 percent were from Honduras, Guatemala and Nicaragua. And almost all entered through Mexico's southern border.

But Oglesby said the reason Mexico's immigration policy is toughening is because the United States is asking Mexico to stop immigrants at its southern border, before they travel through Mexico to get to the United States.

"The U.S. should base its immigration policies on the social realities in the U.S., not on what Mexico does," she said.

In 2005, the U.S. issued 901,000 visas to Mexican citizens.

Ramon Bracamontes may be reached at rbracamontes@elpasotimes.com; 546-6142.

[Parrothead]

This is exactly what Rush was talking about a week ago. It's baffling, isn't it?

[Jeebus]

There are about 2,500 El Pasoans who have permission to work in Juarez."If you just want a 30-day permit, you can get it instantly at the port of entry," he said. "To work there for a year, all you need is a letter from the company that you are going to work for."

The difference with this situation is that I bet 2,500 out of the 2,500 El Pasoans that get permission to work in Mexico all return to the states when the work is done - instead of you know, living there illegally, bringing their family over, putting their kids in school there, demanding English be spoken to them, demand free healthcare at the clinics & hospitals, and protest in the streets that LEGAL immigrants aren't allowed to vote, own land, run for office, etc etc..

In 2005, the U.S. issued 901,000 visas to Mexican citizens.

And someone in another thread mentioned something about the U.S. not issuing enough visas to Mexican's last year..