Mexico issues state of alert for Mexicans living in U.S.

With just two months before Donald J. Trump is inaugurated as the new President of the United States, Mexico's government has launched a series of warnings and strategies aimed at ensuring that Mexicans living abroad in the U.S. do not fall victim to violence, abuse or fraud.

“This isn't a state of emergency; it's a state of alert,” says Mexico's Minister of Foreign Affairs Claudia Ruiz Massieu, who sat down for an interview with EL UNIVERSAL yesterday to discuss the 11 “protection and outreach measures” that the Mexican government is implementing in light of several of Trump's position on key issues, such as his intention of deporting approximately 3 million immigrants from the U.S.

During the interview, Chancellor Ruiz Massieu called on Mexicans who live in the U.S. to “stay calm.” She urges them to avoid any confrontations and refrain from using any violent rhetoric, and despite recent reports on a spike in cases of racist and intolerant incidences, she told us that Mexico's network of embassies and consulates in the U.S. have reported that “there isn't a general sense of violence as a result of racist or hateful rhetoric in recent months.” Regardless of this reassuring news, she made it clear that this doesn't mean that Mexico's Ministry of Foreign Affairs isn't on the alert.

These measures, she said, are aimed at keeping Mexicans informed and letting them know that the Mexican government is there to help them when needed, especially since there's a lot of uncertainty regarding what new legislation will actually come into effect regarding immigration or what measures the new POTUS will actually take once he's sworn into office.

What is Mexico going to do with Donald Trump, madam chancellor?

—Just today we released a series of measures that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will implement to address the immediate worries that have developed within many in our community in the U.S. as a result of some of the promises that Trump made throughout his campaign, in addition to what many in his transition team are currently saying and several documents they're currently working on.

The first thing we'd like to say is that until now, everything we know is pure speculation. We don't actually know what measures will be taken beginning January 20, this is why we've decided to launch this series of measures that first off aim to address the immediate worries within the Mexican community, such as whether deportations will take place immediately or not. Then, we're working to keep them informed, provide them with services they may need, demonstrate that we are here for them and during the next two months before the new president is sworn in, gain a better and more in depth understanding of the community in the U.S., namely what are their urgent needs, worries and services that the Mexican government can provide them with.

How severe is the threat to Mexicans in the U.S.?

—The president elect has said that he plans on deporting between 2 and 3 million undocumented immigrants. In the U.S., there are 12 million undocumented people and 5.7 million of them are Mexican. That's the community that our strategies are aimed at, which include keeping them up-to-date and giving them a sense of reassurance, and as more information comes to light, we can address their specific worries at such time. We do not want them to be taken advantage of with false information that may be floating around because we've seen in the past how people within our community fall victims to others who ask them for money to help them with their immigration process.

Today, what we want is for the Mexican community to stay informed so they know what their rights are regardless if they're undocumented or not. For example, everyone has the right to call their consulate if arrested, and officials at the consulate are required to provide them with legal assistance.

As of today, no new policies have been implemented by the current government; the same policies by the Obama administration are still in place. However, what we know as of today, given the proposals made by the president elect, there will be a new deportation effort aimed at those with a criminal record who represent a threat to the U.S.'s national security, or those with ties to cartel groups or gangs.

Do we know how many Mexicans in the U.S. have a criminal record?

—This is exactly why we're asking our consulates in the U.S. to not only step up their current duty of staying in close contact with the Mexican community, but we're also channeling more resources into our consulates' services to ensure that they are closer to the community. In other words, we're implementing two strategies that we've worked with in the past, which we call 'mobile' consulates and consulates 'on wheels'. We want to reinforce the services we offer, and not only take our mobile services out to the community for more days, but also provide more services, such as legal assistance, at our mobile consulates. Why? Because eventually when an undocumented compatriot is arrested, there are many characteristics and personal conditions that may lead a judge to decide whether he or she is deported or can remain in the U.S.

We also should keep in mind that deporting such a large number of people requires substantial human and financial resources, and a collaborative effort between federal, immigration and local authorities, which are those in close contact with the community.

It's highly unlikely that such a mass deportation effort will be implemented overnight, this is why we want our community over the next two moths who are still in the country when the new government takes office to stay informed, receive expert advice, know what their options are for staying in the U.S., be aware of all the services we provide through our network of consulates. We also want them to have identification. We're strengthening our campaign so that our compatriots have their consular identification cards, birth certificates, passports, and other identification cards that allow them to quickly contact the Mexican government in the event of a run in with U.S: authorities.

Something very important that we're working on is that as of next week, we're launching a special telephone line, a 01-800 number in Mexico and similar number in the U.S, so that our compatriots can talk about or clarify any doubts they may have concerning immigration matters, report any cases of aggression they may have encountered, or request information on certain documentation or making appointments.

We don't want them to wait until they can visit a consulate, because we know that's not an easy task for many people. We know there's a lot of uncertainty and fear in certain places and what we really want to do is reach over 500 communities in the U.S. that are too far from our consulates so we can be close to them, provide them with information and services, and make sure our community is prepared for what may come, which, like I said before, we're not sure what that will actually be.

It almost seems as if you're talking about safety measures that one should take when a seismological phenomenon is about to take place. Are you basically saying that the Trump earthquake just hit?

— We need to be prepared and make sure our community is prepared as well. The first thing we need to tell them is to stay calm. Their current circumstances have not changed as of today. What we're trying to prepare ourselves for are any changes in immigration policies beginning on January 21, at which time it's important that all Mexicans have a clear understanding of what their migratory status is.

Everyone's story is different. Every compatriot has a different story. Immigration judges may take into consideration how many years they've been in the U.S., if they have a criminal record, if they have children in the U.S. or relatives who are U.S. citizens and have special needs that requires their assistance. In other words, there are particular conditions that immigration judges or officials can take into consideration in certain cases when deciding if an undocumented person should be deported or remain in the country.

Right now we're just speculating, but we're preparing ourselves based on what they themselves have said. We're not even sure if they're going to be effective policies. Many of them require the support of congress such as in the case of the resources needed to carry out mass deportation efforts, which is what's being proposed in the very short term. Other efforts require cooperation with local authorities and I think it's important to note that many of our compatriots live in states such as California with friendlier policies regarding immigration, which includes undocumented immigrants. Others live in sanctuary cities. There are around 25 – 30 sanctuary cities and more than 400 sanctuary counties in the country. These sanctuaries do not only allow undocumented immigrants to access public health services or have state-issued drivers' licenses, but their police forces have policies in place that forbid them from asking people what their immigration status is. They're also forbidden to use racial profiling, even if they know someone is undocumented. This allows them to live in the country without the federal authorities being informed of their status.

This is very important because, depending on where the community is, certain laws or specific regulations of that particular place may make these people more or less vulnerable.

In what states are Mexicans in most danger?

— In states with traditionally more strict anti-immigration laws. Arizona is, without a doubt, one of them. Others include Georgia and Alabama. This is why it's important to step up our mobile consulate efforts. This is why we say that information is the most important factor in our 11-point strategy.

We need to continue to urge our community, first and foremost, to refrain from getting involved in any provocations or situations of violence with other groups in order to not only stop encouraging an intolerant or violent atmosphere in the U.S., but also so they do not risk getting arrested, because most of those in our community get arrested by police officers for driving under the influence or incidents of domestic abuse. So, we need to promote this campaign that discourages our community from putting themselves in situations that may lead them to getting criminal charges on their record.

According to everything that's been said, we know that if you have a criminal record, you will be among the first chosen for deportation.

So, we won't know what new policies will be enforced until January 21. However, in recent days there have been incidents that seem to indicate a spike in racism and intolerance. How worried are you that these types of incidents become more common?

— This type of behavior always worries us. We've seen reports in the press of certain incidents and the consulates we've spoken with have informed us that these are isolated incidents, but they've seen that there isn't a general sense of violence in any jurisdictions resulting from racist or hateful rhetoric. That doesn't mean we're not on alert, though.

The Mexican government doesn't consider that our compatriots in the U.S., those who are undocumented, are in a state of emergency?

—No, they're not in a state of emergency. A state of alert? Yes. And I believe that's what's important so we can be in a preventative mode, that allows us to take action and have response and protection mechanisms on standby and, most importantly, make sure that our compatriots are informed of what's going on. I think it's important to ask everyone to stay calm, to refrain from using aggressive language, and instead be completely informed about their migratory status, what benefits they might obtain in the future, avoid having a criminal record, and even those who are waiting to stand trial, let them know that there are several measures that can be taken before they're deported.

The names floating around as possible cabinet picks and those who will be in positions that directly have to do with U.S.-Mexico relations aren't people known for having positive views on immigration or free trade...

This is why it's important to continue to build on a plan with our own interests and priorities in mind.

You are in a position that allows you to negotiate with all kinds of republicans and democrats. Are there any people saying that you should resign given Trump's visit to Mexico?

— We at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have been working for over a year on having dialog with key figures in the U.S. government. At the federal level, we have strong dialog with both democrats and republicans.