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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: FastC6 who wrote (151143)	6/5/2001 11:21:19 PM
From: puborectalis	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 769670

How about the illegal Americans that crossed the Cambodia,Laos and VietNam borders?........http://www.urban.org/immig/alien_justice_sum.html

To: FastC6 who wrote (151143)	6/5/2001 11:28:52 PM
From: puborectalis	Respond to of 769670

International border crossings conjure up different images for different people. Some are corrupt locations where a bribe to the right person is more important than a passport, while others are efficiency personified - blink and you'll miss it. The city of Tijuana at the northern end of Mexico's Baja California peninsula is the most visited border crossing in the world. It is Mexico's fourth largest city and each year, 30 million people pass through the rusting metal turnstiles from southern California. Often a border crossing can appear to be little more than a thin line separating entirely different worlds - a geopolitical reference point that symbolises a great cultural gulf. Yet Tijuana acts more like a glue binding similar cultures together. During the US prohibition era, for example, Americans flocked south to Tijuana's casinos, cantinas and bordellos. As a result the city quickly developed a bawdy, rough and tumble reputation. It is this somewhat misplaced vision that lingers in the minds of many visiting gringos today. Tijuana is a rapidly modernising, bi-cultural city. Mirror-glass office blocks and air-conditioned shopping malls have replaced yesterday's shantytowns, while discos and nightclubs now outnumber cantinas. Away from the city centre, a burgeoning industrial zone is home to more than 500 twin plant in-bond factories. Known locally as maquiladoras, these capitalist icons allow international companies such as Sony, Kodak and Mattel to manufacture goods for export back into the US. The plants have been granted special trade status because they have been established in export processing zones using US dollars. But the maquiladoras are not without their local critics, who claim they exploit cheap Mexican labour and have a detrimental effect on the region's air and water pollution. As the number of maquiladoras increase, more unemployed Mexicans migrate north - drawn by the promise of steady, albeit low paid, jobs. Yet it is an altogether more sinister industry for which Tijuana is famed. With higher paid jobs and a better standard of living available just a few hours across the border, the city is a magnet for the thousands of hopeful pollos ('chickens') - the colloquial name for undocumented immigrants. The westernmost stretch of the border which runs into the Pacific Ocean, is known locally as la tierra de nadie (no man's land). It is the busiest area of illegal human traffic in the world. The corrugated metal fence - the tortilla curtain (a strangely flimsy immigration deterrent) - running along the border has made little impact on the steady flow of migrants. In fact the fence has become a canvas for Mexican graffiti artists. Many slogans daubed and scrawled across it compare the fence to the Berlin Wall. Smugglers - known as coyotes - regularly lead groups of up to 10 pollos under the tortilla curtain and across the border, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Charges for safe delivery to Los Angeles, I am told, currently range between US$400 and $1,000 per Mexican. Those that successfully run the gauntlet and avoid the increasingly hi-tech policing by US Border Patrol officers, blend easily into the ever-growing Hispanic population in San Diego. Yet for travellers entering Tijuana through the proper channels, the city serves two purposes. For some it is little more than a bustling gateway to Baja California. But for others it is a destination in its own right - an intoxicating mix of gaudy neon lights and cheap margaritas. Tijuana enjoys its duty-free status to the fullest extent. As a result everything from bottles of Tequila to designer luggage is available at discount prices. But mixed in with a variety of decadent ways to part with your dollars - from dingy strip joints to Las Vegas-style casino hotels - is a little bit of real Mexico. Roadside taco and burrito stands provide a literal taste of the country, while museums and cultural centres offer historical insight. But it is still the border crossing experience that draws people to Tijuana. For some inexplicable reason, there is something romantic and endearing about being able to walk into another country. Hidden amid the fast food restaurants, guards posts and high fenced walkways at Tijuana is a simple white and yellow line painted on the ground. It may be wearing out in places, as a result of the continuous pounding of Nike 'sneakers', but crossing it still represents an achievement many modern travellers no longer experience. Flying in and out of major international airports means you often cross a border at 35,000ft without even knowing it. Thankfully Tijuana brings the whole experience back down to earth.