News (Noticias) Tagged ‘Felipe Calderón’

During his visit, Calderón praised maquiladoras and vowed to strengthen the nation’s oil company and the city’s security efforts.”*

When he came to office in December 2006, President Felipe Calderón implemented a strategy against organized crime. But the plan is failing because it has focused solely on the seizure of drugs, weapons and traffickers without attacking the larger financial or political structure.

National security and organized crime experts came to this conclusion to explain the escalation of violence, including beheadings, torture, kidnappings and mass killings that have been unleashed during the current administration.

“This is the experience of 107 countries: If you only go after gangsters without attacking the financial structure or political protection, what happens is a paradox: you add more troops, prosecutors and police, and the criminal groups put more money into corruption,” says Edgardo Buscaglia, advisor to the UN and academic at Mexico’s Autonomous Technological Institute (ITAM). “*

The Arizona Daily Star aptly observed that the Democrats should fear that McCain will, “probably try to cut into the Democrats’ growing lead among Hispanics by saying that their proposal to reduce the Merida Initiative by up to $190 million amounts to ‘abandoning’ Mexico at a time when President Felipe Calderón’s government is facing attack from the drug cartels.”

This indeed is an opening for McCain, especially considering that both U.S. Presidential contenders have already delivered their obligatory Latin America policy speeches—both devoid of any focus on Mexico. Yet, turning the U.S. voters’ attention to Mexican issues might reopen a raging immigration debate. Will McCain play it safe and ‘leave this sleeping dog’ alone? Or, will McCain seize the opportunity to win recognition from Hispanic voters by boldly extending the “McCain Doctrine” to include a ‘surge’ of military assistance for Mexico. “*

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Now, law enforcement experts wonder if there are lessons that can be applied to the escalating crisis in Mexico, where close to 500 police officers and soldiers have died at the hands of warring drug gangs since 2006. Is there something in the way the Americans and Italians worked together that could be applied to a partnership with the Mexicans? Certainly it is in the interest of the United States to seek such an alliance to stop the flow of drugs, guns and crime across the border, just as the Italian alliance helped stop that flow across the Atlantic. Indeed, President Bush has been pushing Congress to approve the first $500 million installment of a crime-fighting aid package to Mexico. Last week, American border governors met in Mexico with President Felipe Calderón to rally support for the effort and praise him for focusing on the drug lords.

And for its part, Mexico, struggling with a problem that seems to get bloodier and more intractable with each passing week, might well benefit from the expertise and experience of American law enforcement.”*

A violent drug war in the Mexican city of Tijuana has prompted the deployment of more than 3,000 soldiers and federal police to regain control of the streets.

President Felipe Calderón stepped up the battle against the country’s narcotics traffickers after 17 gunmen were killed in a street battle between cartels.

The move to bolster the region’s law enforcement teams comes after several thousand troops and police already sent into the region to beef up security failed to stop the feuding.”*

Mexican President Felipe Calderón was sitting on the dais at a Dallas hotel last week, half-listening to a speaker, talking to Mexico’s Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa, eyeballing his watch and looking at the long list of speakers remaining before he would be introduced.

And then from the podium came a sweet melody from Dr. María Antonieta González, who was born in Mexico City, came to the United States nearly 20 years ago and now works as a pediatrician in San Antonio.

Calderón looked up at González as she sang in Spanish about the struggles of Mexican immigrants and their descendants: “I was born on the border, over here on this side … but the mother country knows no borders because wherever a Mexican finds himself, that’s where Mexico is.”"*

One of Mexico’s biggest drug cartels has launched a brazen recruiting campaign, putting up fliers and banners promising good pay, free cars and better food to army soldiers who join the cartel’s elite band of hit men.

“We don’t feed you Maruchan soups,” said one banner in the border city of Nuevo Laredo, referring to a brand of ramen noodles.

The recruiting by the Gulf Cartel reflects how Mexico’s fight against traffickers increasingly resembles a real war, nearly 17 months after President Felipe Calderón ordered the army into drug hot spots.”*

Mexican President Felipe Calderón arrives in Dallas this afternoon to address a meeting of the Institute of Mexicans Abroad, where he’s expected to hear concerns about the growing backlash against both legal and illegal immigrants.

Mr. Calderón, who will be greeted in Dallas by Mayor Tom Leppert and Robert Chereck, the chairman of the Greater Dallas Chamber of Commerce, also will meet with about 30 Dallas business leaders. They include Ross Perot, Jr., Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks; and Mary Kay CEO David Holl, according to officials with the Greater Dallas Chamber of Commerce. Also in attendance will be about 25 business leaders from Mexico.”*

*From: http://www.dallasnews.com
Traducido: usando Google o Altavista/Babel Fish

President Felipe Calderón on Monday called attention to the growing role of Mexican immigrants in the rebuilding of New Orleans, raising a theme he’s likely to bring up today when he visits Dallas.

Mr. Calderón and his host, President Bush – in New Orleans with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper for the North American Leaders’ Summit – jointly reopened the Mexican Consulate there. The office shut down in 2002 as a cost-cutting measure.”*

*From: http://www.dallasnews.com
Traducido: usando Google o Altavista/Babel Fish

The cartoon in a recent newspaper said it all: A sinking ship labeled “Mexico” hangs underwater, tied to a floating oil barrel, as a hand holding scissors prepares to cut the cord.

Mexico is in an uproar over President Felipe Calderón’s effort to reform the state oil monopoly, whose sales have long kept the government budget afloat as well as supplying a big chunk of the United States’ energy needs.

Protesters are threatening to seize oil refineries, block highways and shut down airports. The Popular Revolutionary Army, a guerrilla group known for bomb attacks, has vowed to cripple the company if the government opens it to foreign investment. About 28,000 activists have joined “brigades” to carry out civil disobedience”*

*From: http://www.azcentral.com
Traducido: usando Google o Altavista/Babel Fish

Mexicans who are deported from the United States or leave voluntarily after being apprehended are being offered free trips back to their hometowns under a pilot program launched yesterday.

The Tijuana program, dubbed Humanitarian Repatriation, will also ensure that returning Mexicans receive shelter, food, emergency medical care and temporary employment upon their return to Mexico. President Felipe Calderón announced the program in December, and federal officials hope to expand it to other communities along Mexico’s northern border.

Ten Mexican federal immigration agents trained to work with returning migrants have been assigned to Tijuana under the program. The agents will assess the returnees’ psychological health and help them contact family and obtain identification papers.”*

*From: http://www.signonsandiego.com
Traducido: usando Google o Altavista/Babel Fish

President Felipe Calderón of Mexico, speaking at Sonoma County’s first winery founded by a Mexican immigrant, said Wednesday he is troubled by the continuing migration from his country to the United States.

“In Mexico, we are working very hard so people don’t have to come here from hunger to work,” said Calderón, speaking in Spanish on a small stage in front of the tasting room of the Robledo Family Winery in Sonoma.”*

*From: http://www1.pressdemocrat.com
Traducido: usando Google o Altavista/Babel Fish

Mexican President Felipe Calderón will spend this morning at the Capitol, meeting with lawmakers and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. The public will have two brief opportunities to see him on the west steps facing 10th Street.

Calderón’s visit will result in some traffic congestion downtown, a spokesman for the Sacramento Police Department said. Short traffic delays are expected at various times from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.”*

*From: http://www.sacbee.com
Traducido: usando Google o Altavista/Babel Fish

Traditionally, Mexican presidents visit the United States within their first year of office. President Felipe Calderón waited until his second, and won’t make a stop in the capital or meet with President George W. Bush. Instead, Calderón views his visit as a chance to advocate for Mexicans migrants living in the United States. “The fundamental message is that we are with them, that the Mexican government is paying attention to Mexicans here in Mexico and in whatever other part of the world,” said Calderón during a recent interview with the New York Times. Calderón’s tour makes stops in Massachusetts and states with large Mexican populations—New York, Illinois, and California.

During his visit, Calderón spoke at his alma Mater Harvard University, proposing job creation in Mexico as a means to stem Mexican migration to the United States. He said an increase in investment would boost the economy, “offering greater opportunities to our people.” An editorial in the Christian Science Monitor calls for U.S. support “in assisting Mexico in its own upward trajectory to prosperity.” The article also points out that Calderón’s rising approval ratings demonstrate he is a “deal-making president.” Public support for the president reached 66 percent in January, up nine points since October. “*

*From: http://www.as-coa.org
Traducido: usando Google o Altavista/Babel Fish

Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert urged Mexican officials on Tuesday to view Dallas as a gateway and destination, inviting President Felipe Calderón, the foreign affairs minister and the Institute for Mexicans Abroad to hold their bi-annual meeting in Dallas this April.

The institute’s 126-member board, which meets twice a year and has met outside of Mexico only once, in Atlanta, looks out for the interests of Mexican nationals abroad.”*

*From: http://www.dallasnews.com
Traducido: usando Google o Altavista/Babel Fish

Mexico just keeps getting deadlier.

Even as President Felipe Calderón dispatched more than 24,000 military and security forces to pacify areas overrun by drug gangs, the country saw more than 2,500 deaths related to the drug trade in 2007.

Mexico has logged important successes, from extraditions to drug seizures, and Mr. Calderón’s administration has been lauded by many observers as the boldest in recent history in the face of organized crime. On Monday, officials announced the arrest of one of Mexico’s top operatives, a suspected leader of the infamous Sinaloa cartel.”*

*From: http://www.csmonitor.com
Traducido: usando Google o Altavista/Babel Fish

Los narcotraficantes mexicanos mantienen una inacabable y violenta guerra entre bandas que el gobierno no logra controlar y que hace temer una ‘colombianización’ del país. En lo que va de año 2.500 personas han sido ejecutadas por el crimen organizado.

El entramado de las redes de los carteles de la droga en el país se extiende por la mayoría de los estados fronterizos del país, tanto por el norte, como por el sur. Acabar con ellos fue el objetivo del presidente Felipe Calderón cuando en diciembre del año pasado asumió la presidencia de México. Sin embargo, al hacer balance anual tuvo que reconocer que pese al despliegue de más de 25.000 militares, el poder narco se mantiene. Uno de los logros ha sido incautar con pocos días de diferencia, en octubre, 23,5 toneladas de cocaína, el mayor en la historia del país, y otro de 11 toneladas. Además hizo un llamamiento a unir todas las fuerzas para hacerles frente y evitar que logren su objetivo de influir en la política porque «pretenden tomar el control de estas autoridades mediante la intimidación y la corrupción».”*

Mexican President Felipe Calderón has forcefully inserted himself into the U.S. presidential campaign, denouncing the candidates for demonizing Mexican immigrants and announcing that the government would finance a public relations campaign aimed at reversing Americans’ negative perceptions.

At a conference Wednesday of the Advisory Council of the Institute of Mexicans Abroad, the government’s immigrant assistance agency, Calderón lashed out at the “increasing harassment” and “persecution” of Mexicans in the United States, those there legally as well as illegally.”*

A broad electoral reform that bars political parties from paying for radio and television advertisements became law Tuesday after it received Mexican President Felipe Calderón’s approval.

The law was published in the government’s official registry. Congress has 30 days to approve companion legislation and to replace all board members of the semiautonomous Federal Electoral Institute that oversees Mexico’s elections.”*

Mexican President Felipe Calderón met with a group of leaders of Mexican communities in the United States at the official residence today.

Participants in the meeting have played a leading role as representatives of various organizations of Mexicans in that country, and as promoters of some of the most important initiatives for the protection of Mexicans’ rights abroad.

During the meeting, President Calderón exchanged ideas with this group of leaders with the aim of coordinating the government’s main strategies regarding protection, consular assistance and support for the development of Mexican communities abroad.”*

“THE idea was first mooted at a meeting near Mérida last March between Mexico’s president, Felipe Calderón, and George Bush. Months of negotiations culminated in weeks of leaks, mainly from American officials. But for such a well-rehearsed exercise, the announcement when it finally came was oddly low-key. On October 22nd both governments said that in an early-morning telephone call the two presidents had agreed on a plan under which the United States will provide Mexico with $1.4 billion in aid over the next three years to fight drug traffickers.

Patricia Espinosa, Mexico’s foreign minister, said the largest single chunk of an initial $500m would be spent on aircraft—mostly transport planes, she said, although in Washington, the State Department talked of surveillance aircraft and helicopters. There will also be scanning equipment at the border, and new communications systems, training and technical advice for Mexican police, including help on a witness-protection programme. And the United States will also give $50m in anti-drug aid to the Central American countries.”*

“(President Felipe Calderón, Manzanillo, Colima, Mexico; speech excerpts)

“For my administration, the governors’ support has been crucial for the actions undertaken in the struggle against the lack of safety on the streets, as well as in the reforms we have undertaken in order to deal with the challenges of fighting poverty and inequality.

“I would like to inform you that thanks to the fact that Congress agreed that all the funds obtained through consular fees should be allocated to consular protection work in 2007, (a measure we are proposing to repeat in 2008), the Foreign Relations Secretariat now has 830 million pesos [US$76.8 million] for the defense of the rights of Mexicans abroad”*