Friday, 2/19/10
La Prensa Grafica (San Salvador, El Salvador) 2/18/10
U.S. legislative proposal makes news south of the border
[Full transl. of article written by "editorial staff," and titled "Children of undocumented would not 'receive' citizenship." Articles dealing with this same issue have recently appeared in other papers south of the border.]
Sub-headline: "Citizenship would not be automatic at birth. The proposal by a Republican legislator would require that one of the parents be a citizen or permanent resident of the United States."
United States federal law grants citizenship automatically to any person who is born in its territory, no matter the migratory circumstances of his parents; but this right could be lost if the request of the Republican Gary Miller prospers. According to a note published in the "El Mundo de España" newspaper, this is not the first time that a similar request arises among some Republicans and conservative groups who aim to abolish automatic citizenship for children born in the United States from immigrants without papers.
During the decade of the nineties it was even included in the Republican Party platform (in 1996), but it did not make headway because it was considered to be against the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, an argument that has not lost validity and that has once again risen against the new proposal. Some experts claim that this initiative contradicts the Constitution, while the promoters consider it "an interpretation" of what is meant to be said by the amendment.
According to other press reports, the initiative also seeks to criminalize undocumented residency, to sanction those who aid the undocumented and to carry out massive deportations. It also prohibits granting driver's licenses to anyone who does not prove his citizenship or legal residence. The California legislator's plan also eliminates the right of an undocumented person to be the owner of a house. One of the arguments used by those who support this motion is the economic crisis.
According to Miller, The "Leave Act" - "Vayanse Acto" ("Go Away Act" - as translated in the article) "is the best solution" for the country. The legislator argues that while there are 15 million Americans unemployed and "7,000 undocumented" (sic) do have work. The Republican estimates that the undocumented population in the United States would be reduced by half in five years, and it would also serve as a disincentive for future migrants to travel to have their children born in the United States.
The immigrant community looks forward to a national scale demonstration on March 21, for the purpose of reminding President Barack Obama of the promise he made during his campaign to approve an integral migratory reform.
A right since the civil war.
The 14th Amendment was ratified to safeguard the rights of slaves who obtained their freedom due to the civil war. Since then, the U.S. grants citizenship automatically to those born in its territory, no matter the status of the parents. Gary Miller seeks to modify the Immigration and Nationality Act, which interprets this constitutional amendment. The modification would require that one of the parents of the newborn be a citizen, permanent resident, or active military.
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El Debate (Culiacan, Sinaloa) 2/18/10
Cocaine load nabbed
When Mex. federal police stopped a tractor trailer "for speeding" on a highway in Chihuahua they noticed "alterations" in the refrigeration compartment. The truck, hauling a load of lemons to Nogales, also had 72 packages of cocaine with a total weight of 84 kilos and 320 grams. The driver was arrested.
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Three different - but parallel - reports: continued savagery in Chihuahua, Tijuana, and Michoacán
El Diario (Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua) 2/18/10
Rampant lawlessness in Chihuahua: the Mayor of the city of Guadalupe y Calvo was assassinated Wednesday evening. The killers also executed the director of the prison and wounded the chief of police of that city. Eight other deaths linked to organized crime also took place in the state of Chihuahua: five civilians in the town of Jimenez and three policemen in Baborigame.
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Frontera (Tijuana, Baja Calif.) 2/18/10
Between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, the cadavers of three "wrapped" men were found in different parts of Tijuana. A fourth one died at a local hospital, the victim of several "bullet impacts." A reader commented: "The routine starts in this city."
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Cambio de Michoacán (Morelia, Michoacán) 2/18/10
Six decapitated and abandoned human remains were found wrapped in blankets in the back and on the seats of an SUV in Morelia, the Michoacán state capital. This brings to 18 the number of executions within less than one month there. The letter "Z' was marked on all 18 of these victims.
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- end of report -
