A new immigration law took effect in Mexico on Tuesday aimed at better protection of undocumented migrants passing through Mexican territory on their way to the United States.
The new law will permit undocumented migrants to obtain a special visa when entering Mexico from either Guatemala or Belize and tries to enact reforms in the country's immigration ministry, which has been implicated as complicit in criminal acts such as kidnapping migrants.
"Today, Mexico is doing its part to improve the immigration system in North America," President Felipe Calderon said during a ceremony in which he signed the law. "This, without doubt, is advanced legislation, bold legislation, immigration legislation with few precedents in the world," he said.
Migrants have been attacked and kidnapped in increasing numbers in Mexico. The National Human Rights Commission has reported that 11,333 migrants were abducted by criminal groups, including Los Zetas, during a six-month survey period in 2010.
At approximately 10:15 a.m. today, Judge Emerson Banner remanded Derrick Gideon, Juan Cus and Justin Cassimiro to Hattieville as a result of charges laid upon them in connection to an incident which took place on Sunday, February 21st in San Pedro Town.
An official police report states that on Sunday, approximately between the hours of 12:15 and 1:00 a.m. Gideon, a police officer stationed in Belize City, Cassimiro, a Belize Defense Force soldier stationed on San Pedro Town and civilian Juan Cus visited Juan Perez, a vegetable vendor, who was sleeping in his boat docked by the Old Football Field. According to the report, both officials, who at the time were dressed in civilian clothing, arrived with Cus and explained to Perez that they needed to transport him to the San Pedro Police Department. The three men who were armed with a firearm proceeded to hurt Perez’s assistant, a minor, who was on the boat with him at the time. Perez agreed to go with the officers. However, the report alleges that he was being taken in the opposite direction and not to the Police Department as the officers had stated. Perez was robbed of $650 before managing to escape. Once free, Perez made a report at the Police Department. The report led to the detention of the three men who were arraigned at the San Pedro Magistrate’s Court.
The three men were jointly charged for kidnapping, aggravated burglary, conspiracy to commit aggravated burglary and harm. Because kidnapping charges are dealt in the Supreme Court level, all three were remanded to Hattieville Prison until their next court appearance on April 7th, 2010. Gideon was additionally charged for resisting arrest.
