State Department warning, Mexico

News > Mexico -- State Department issues ...
... State Department issues travel warning for Mexico. ASSOCIATED PRESS
3:06 pm January 26, 2005. WASHINGTON – The State Department ...
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Jan. 28, 2005
Sonora safe for visitors despite State Department warning, Mexico says

SHERYL KORNMAN Tucson Citizen
http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/breaking/012805sonora.php

Mexico angry at US travel warning
Financial Times, UK - 19 hours ago
... The State Department said this week Mexico's police forces were underfunded, its judicial system "overworked" and "inefficient" and its criminals unfearful of ...
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/c9805a34-70d1-11d9-b572-00000e2511c8.html

State Department issues travel warning to Mexico
KOLD-TV, AZ - Jan 26, 2005
MEXICO CITY The State Department is alerting Americans visiting Mexico that violent crime ... The warning attributed the increased crime to a war between ...
http://www.kold.com/Global/story.asp?S=2862909

Assaults on border agents increase
Washington Times, DC - 16 hours ago
... The State Department this week issued a warning to Americans traveling into the northern border regions of Mexico, saying they should be "aware of the risk ...
Assaults on border agents increase
Washington Times, DC - 16 hours ago
... The State Department this week issued a warning to Americans traveling into the northern border regions of Mexico, saying they should be "aware of the risk ...

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Mexico
... FIREARMS PENALTIES : The Department of State warns US citizens against taking any
type of firearm or ammunition into Mexico without prior written authorization ...
http://travel.state.gov/travel/mexico.html

U.S. ambassador to Mexico expresses concern about border violence in letter explaining State Department travel warning
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/mexico/20050126-1636-mexico-us-travelwarning.html

By Lisa J. Adams
ASSOCIATED PRESS

4:36 p.m. January 26, 2005

MEXICO CITY – U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Tony Garza told Mexican leaders Wednesday he is concerned that growing drug-related violence and kidnappings on the border between the two countries will have a "chilling" effect on trade and tourism.

Garza's comments were included in a letter directed to Mexican Foreign Relations Secretary Luis Ernesto Derbez and federal Attorney Rafael Macedo de la Concha that explained the motives behind Wednesday's warning from the U.S. State Department to citizens thinking of traveling to the region. The U.S. Embassy in Mexico distributed the letter to news agencies.

A Foreign Relations Department spokesman, Allan Nahum, said officials "have received the notification and we are going to pass it along to the appropriate authorities so that they may respond" as they see fit.

Violent criminal activity, including killings and kidnappings, has increased in the northern border region amid a growing war between drug traffickers struggling for control of the region.

"U.S. citizens should be aware of the risk posed by the deteriorating security situation," the State Department warning said.

The advisory came just days after the Mexican government sent soldiers to patrol the streets of the border city of Nuevo Laredo, across from Laredo, Texas, at the request of local authorities who said the crime and violence had become too great for them to handle.

It also comes as officials crack down on top-security federal prisons housing reputed drug traffickers who allegedly have continued to operate their businesses from behind bars with the help of corrupt prison employees.

Garza noted that while the great majority of border violence victims are Mexican citizens, "the elevated level of violence generally has resulted in greater risks to the thousands of American citizens visiting and passing through the border region every day. Increased numbers of murdered and kidnapped Americans in recent months bear this out."

Garza went on to say that he worried "the inability of local law enforcement to come to grips with rising drug warfare, kidnappings and random street violence will have a chilling effect on the cross-border exchange, tourism and commerce so vital to the region's prosperity. ... We certainly do not want at this time to advise Americans to refrain from traveling to Mexico by land or to avoid the border areas, but it is our responsibility to alert them to the enhanced risks," Garza said, explaining the motive for Wednesday's warning.

He added that he applauded President Vicente Fox's efforts to combat crime and drug trafficking and said he hoped "that commitment will make a difference at the state and local levels."

The U.S. consul to Reynosa, on the Mexican border across from McAllen, Texas, issued a separate warning in September for U.S. travelers planning to visit that city. The advisory came after reports that Mexican police allegedly were forcing U.S. drivers to remote places or to automated cash machines, where they were told to hand over money or face jail time.

That warning prompted Reynosa Mayor Francisco J. Garcia Cabeza de Vaca to defend his city in a news conference last week.

Mexicans for years have been the victims of kidnappings and robberies, as well as abuse at the hands of corrupt law enforcement officials, in cities throughout the country, including the capital, Mexico City.

Garza acknowledged the strides that have been made thus far to improve security on the border, and said, "I hope this current challenge can be faced with similar resolve and success."

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