Sounds to me as if Mexico has adopted the United States' immigration laws as they stand today.
On Sat, Jun 18, 2011 at 10:48 PM, MJ <[email protected]> wrote: > > *Mexico Reforms Its Immigration Laws > *by Mark Nestmann > *The Nestmann Group, Ltd. <http://www.nestmann.com/> > > *Perhaps attempting to persuade its powerful neighbor to the North to do > the same, last month, major revisions to Mexico’s immigration laws came into > effect. > > The law has now become more “humane” and immigrant friendly. Among the > changes announced are: > > 1) Illegal entry into Mexican territory is de-criminalized. This means that > it is no longer a criminal offense to enter Mexico illegally, and violators > will merely be sent back to where they last came from. Previously, illegal > immigration was a felony, punishable by up to two years in prison. > Immigrants who were deported and attempted to re-enter Mexico could be > imprisoned for 10 years. Visa violators could be sentenced to six-year > terms. Mexicans who helped illegal immigrants were also subject to criminal > prosecution. > > 2) Illegal migrants will no longer be jailed. They will be taken to a > facility run by the Instituto Nacional de Migracion (INM) where they will be > fed, clothed, given medical care and the ability to contact their families > in their country of origin. > > 3) Illegal migrants will have the right to seek political asylum or refuge > in Mexico and will have a right to a hearing before a judge. > > 4) Local police, the military, customs and even the *Policia Federal* will > no longer have the authority to question any foreigner’s migratory status. > They no longer have any authority to arrest or detain any person suspected > of being in the country illegally. Only officials from the INM can do this. > > 5) Illegal migrants can be given the opportunity to regularize their status > and obtain a work/residence permit. > > 6) Controls are loosened for citizens/nationals of Belize who find an > employment in certain Mexican states (i.e. Quintana Roo) to ease the process > of a work/residence permit. > > The official line from a Mexican government spokesman that my friend and > business partner P.T. Freeman listened to on the radio was that Mexico has > amended its immigration law to take into account human rights and refugee > rights. However, I don’t believe this is the full story. > > I think the real reason that Mexico changed its law was to send a message > to the United States. Under federal law, any non-U.S. national who enters or > attempts to enter U.S. territory in a manner other than through ordinary > channels has committed a crime. Violations are punishable by criminal fines > and imprisonment for up to six months. Repeat offenses can bring up to two > years in prison. > > Numerous states, most notably my home state of Arizona, have attempted to > enforce their own immigration laws. The most controversial aspect of the > Arizona law – which never came fully into effect due to a successful court > challenge – is that state and local police can ask anyone for proof of legal > status in the United States. In other words, “your papers, please.” > > In this environment, it’s a welcome change to see Mexico implementing more > humane immigration laws. And, I hope that U.S. policymakers get the message > – although I’m not holding my breath. > > *Reprinted with permission from The Nestmann Group, > Ltd.<http://www.nestmann.com/> > * > > -- > Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. > For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum > > * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ > * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. > * Read the latest breaking news, and more. -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more.
