Mexico says U.S. will not accept conditions on anti-drug plan


By editor - Posted on 03 June 2008

MEXICO City (Reuters) - Mexico said Monday that it will not accept conditions of the United States in a plan of aid to the combat against the drug trafficking that at the moment discusses the Congress of that country.

President George W. Bush proposed in October a package of 1.400 million dollars in aid to Mexico for the combat to the drug trafficking that included training, equipment and airplanes. The measurement determined an initial amount of 500 million dollars to the fiscal year that finishes the 30 of September.

But the Senate of the United States approved in May the call “Merida Initiative” trimming the initial amount to 350 million dollars, besides establishing the fulfillment of some points on human rights.

“The incorporation of measures or unilateral evaluations that they tried to condition the exercise, in the development of the initiative, the resources jeopardizes, would be at the same time deeply opposite to its objective and spirit,” said the secretary of Interior, Juan Camilo Mouriño.

“It would be for that reason unacceptable,” it added the secretary in a message to the press.

Between the conditions that the Senate of the United States approved to give the bottoms are that Mexico takes to civil justice cases of the military accused of violations to human rights and to guarantee the nonuse of the torture on the part of the security forces.

The Government of the conservative Felipe Calderón has unfolded near 25.000 police and the military mainly in the border, in spite of which the violence of the cartels does not stop and in which it goes of the year have died near 1.400 people.

Other conditions to the plan are the creation of a committee conformed by members of operative the society to give pursuit the antidrug ones and that it is reinforced the independence of the National Commission of Human rights or Ombudsman.

Mouriño said that the Mexican Government will follow with attention the debate of the initiative in the Congress of the United States and that he will evaluate with well-taken care of the final approval of the project.

“On it the decision will depend that will be adopted with respect to this aspect of the Merida Initiative,” the civil servant said.

The Government atribye the increase of the violence to the operative ones and movements within the cartels of the drug.

(Report of Miguel Gutiérrez Angel, Published by Juana Houses)



December 3, 2008  10:22 pm