Assembly Joint Resolution
No. 15
CHAPTER 115
Relative to border crossing deaths.
[
Filed with
Secretary of State
September 24, 2001.
]
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AJR 15, Firebaugh.
Border crossing deaths.
This measure would urge the President and Congress of the United States and the United States Border Patrol to proceed in a cooperative effort with the Mexican government through the working group on migrations and border safety to achieve a comprehensive examination of border safety and migration issues, an assessment of the impact of United States border initiatives, enhanced investigations and prosecutions of criminal gangs of smugglers, and increasing search and rescue operations along the border.
Digest Key
WHEREAS, On May 24, 2001, following an extensive rescue search by the United States Border Patrol, 25 migrants who were abandoned by their smugglers were found in the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge in southwest Arizona; and
WHEREAS, After being driven for one and one-half hours through the wildlife refuge, the migrants were told by the smugglers that it was only a short walk to a nearby highway; and
WHEREAS, In fact, in order to reach their destination the migrants were required to travel across 70 miles of harsh desert in an area known as “The Devil’s Path” and endure air temperatures in excess of 115 degrees and desert floor temperatures of 130 degrees; and
WHEREAS, Fourteen of those victims died of exposure and dehydration and 11 survivors were hospitalized in the deadliest crossing of the border since 1987, when 18 Mexican men died in a locked boxcar near Sierra Blanca, Texas; and
WHEREAS, Since 1994, border enforcement initiatives such as “Operation Gatekeeper” on the California-Mexico border have increased patrols and constructed steel walls near urban areas, forcing migrants to make more dangerous crossings in rural, often open desert areas; and
WHEREAS, Most migrants are unaware and unprepared to make a desert crossing, thereby leading to a substantial increase in fatalities due to dehydration in the summer and hypothermia in cold weather; and
WHEREAS, Deaths of migrants along the desert areas of the border have increased exponentially since the implementation of these initiatives, with reported deaths increasing from 25 in 1994 to 369 in 1999 and 491 in 2000, according to figures released by the Mexican government, as well as an unknown number of undiscovered and unreported deaths; and
WHEREAS, As a result of the increase in border crossings and deaths in these desert areas, concerns have been expressed by humanitarian organizations, civil rights organizations, churches, and the Mexican government that the United States Border Patrol’s current enforcement program effectively is operating as a channeling operation, rather than a general border interdiction program; and
WHEREAS, Immediately after this incident both the United States and Mexican governments jointly announced that they were launching an investigation of the incident, issued a statement condemning the actions of smugglers, and reaffirmed their commitment to combat the trafficking of migrants; and
WHEREAS, Both governments also recognized the need for the two nations to continue to work together to reach agreements on migration and border safety; and
WHEREAS, President George W. Bush and President Vincente Fox have established a high-level working group on migration cochaired by Attorney General John Ashcroft and Secretary Colin Powell of the United States and by Mexico’s Foreign Secretary and its Secretary of Government; and
WHEREAS, This working group on migration and border safety plans to continue to meet to discuss specific measures to prevent future occurrences of these tragedies and to promote safe and orderly migration; and
WHEREAS, At a minimum, the potential solutions to this tragic problem require a comprehensive examination of the consequences of border initiatives, enhanced investigations by the Mexican government of criminal gangs of smugglers, providing the United States Border Patrol with increased search and rescue resources such as lifesaving gear and emergency medical training, and consensus on a long-term agreement between the United States and Mexico on migration and border security policies; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Assembly and Senate of the State of California, jointly, That the Legislature of the State of California urges the President and Congress of the United States and the United States Border Patrol to proceed in a cooperative effort with the Mexican government through the working group on migrations and border safety to achieve a comprehensive examination of border safety and migration issues, an assessment of the impact of United States border initiatives, enhanced investigations and prosecutions of criminal gangs of smugglers, and increasing search and rescue operations along the border; and be it further
Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the President of the United States, all members of the Congress of the United States, and the Mexican Consulate in Washington, D.C.