“Don’t
Fence Me Out!” Say Mexicans
By Kenneth
Emmond
If all the Mexican and American errors with respect
to illegal immigration were laid end to end, they would extend from the Gulf of Mexico all the way to the Pacific Ocean.
One of the most preposterous proposals would have
the Americans build, or rather extend, a wall along the border as the supreme deterrent to would-be trespassers. Enabling
legislation was recently passed in the U.S. House of Representatives, and is now before the Senate.
Shots are fired all along the border. Within the
last two weeks two of these shootings have fatally wounded Mexicans. Others shots have been directed at U.S. Border Patrol
agents.
There’s plenty of political hay to be made
in both countries from hysteria over the long-simmering quarrel. That’s partly because immigration is not a stand-alone
issue. It’s mingled with worries about the cross-border drug trade and the terrorist fears that grip sizable sectors
of the American public.
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has
apparently forgotten that he too is an immigrant, is cashing in on fears that terrorists might join Mexicans seeking work.
He calls the California-Mexico frontier a “high-risk zone.”
Mexican President Vicente Fox has forgotten about
the rule of law and describes illegal emigrants as “heroes.”
One U.S. Congressman – obviously not the brightest
light in the chandelier – even suggested that while they are at it, the Americans might as well build another wall along
the “undefended border” between Canada and the U.S. (Don’t forget the Alaska-Yukon frontier: those crafty
Canadians might sneak across in snowmobiles and dogsleds!)
The popular but unproductive anti-American card is
sure to be played by candidates in Mexico’s presidential election campaign.
There are plenty of errors, emotion, and plain silliness
to go around. Both nations must share the blame for this disgraceful state of affairs.
Mexicans rightly criticize Americans for hyperbole
about border security and complaints about illegal immigrants draining the social welfare system, even as they continue to
hire and underpay those who get through.
But the Americans are right as well when they point
out that illegal immigrants are, well, illegal.
They’re also correct to observe that the problem
would never have arisen if Mexico’s governments (federal, state, and municipal) had, for generations, devoted more resources
to nation-building and development and less to supporting, legally or otherwise, members of the political class and their
families and friends.
If they had, there would be more decent-paying jobs
at home and fewer unemployed and underemployed Mexicans desperate for a better life.
Whether the severely flawed U.S. proposal for a guest
worker program is politically feasible is uncertain. How much political capital is President George W. Bush prepared to spend
to get it passed? How much would he need?
So far no one on the Mexican side has dared to propose
measures that would actually discourage illegal migrants from crossing the border. On the contrary, the government has published
not one but two brochures providing advice to those who intend to do so.
It’s not as if the two nations are enemies.
They are important trading partners with huge two-way investment flows, so there’s a powerful incentive to sort things
out.
Andres Rozental, head of the Mexican Council on Foreign
Relations, says day-to-day cooperation between Mexico and the United States on non-immigration issues – public health,
trade, and law enforcement, for example – has never been greater.
America needs a sensible framework to deal with the
reality of the millions of Mexicans working illegally in their country. Whether they do more harm than good is academic: they
are there.
To keep its people at home, Mexico must develop policies
that create more jobs with decent wages and a modicum of security. Its perpetual stability-at-any-cost economic policy is
like constructing a building without ever finishing the stage of ensuring a sound foundation.
Business has a role. Many employees in enterprises
large and small work under conditions of low pay and unjust labor practices of varying degrees of legality that Dickens would
recognize. With few jobs available elsewhere, quitting is simply not an option for most of these workers.
In a perfect world, the partners of the North American
Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) could convert their accord into a customs union, allowing a free flow of labor.
That will not happen soon, but it’s past time
to turn down the rhetoric. Cool-headed negotiations between two friendly countries should yield a solution that satisfies
both sides.
Whatever that solution may be, building a wall isn’t
it.
——————————
Kenneth Emmond, an economist, market consultant and
journalist who has lived in Mexico since 1995, is also a columnist with MexiData.info.
He can be reached via e-mail at Kemmond00@yahoo.com.
