Free Republic

NUEVO LAREDO - Organized crime is beyond the ability of state and local authorities to control because it's a national and international problem, the governor of Tamaulipas said Saturday at the doors of El Mañana. "There's a lack of force and decisive action, although we have seen the good intentions of the president of the Republic, Vicente Fox, in fighting those who violate the law," said Gov. Eugenio Hernández Flores after meeting with the paper's owners. "We have asked the federal government for more help to avoid any further increase in crime." Two reporters were injured, one critically, when masked...

Deaths mounting on Mexico’s border security watch MEXICO CITY, August 14, 2005 — A multimillion-dollar border security program launched in June has realized measurable results, but critics say it has failed to prevent more than 100 deaths since its inception as rival drug cartels fight for dominance along the country’s northern border. Mexican President Vicente Fox initiated the Mexico Seguro or Safe Mexico program June 11 to address public safety concerns along the U.S.-Mexico border. Since January, more than 800 have been killed in drug-related violence on the Mexican side of the border with almost daily killings and no arrests...

NUEVO LAREDO It must be the vicious drug cartel turf battles. Mexican citizens safety in Texas. The U.S. Consulate closes for a week. And a much-touted federal program, known as "Mexico Seguro," either works or doesnt work, depending to whom one speaks. Mayor Daniel Peña Treviño said "Mexico Seguro," or "Safe Mexico," is a program that is being applied in steps and should not be considered a "magic wand" that would halt cartel violence in its tracks. "We not saying the program is a success and that there will be no more deaths, but we have made advances," Peña Treviño...