Press Release 200

Mexico City     September 28, 2006

THE MEXICAN GOVERNMENT’S POSITION ON THE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES BILL 6061

The Mexican government expresses its deep concern and vigorous rejection of the building of physical barriers on the border between Mexico and the United States.  

These measures hurt the bilateral relationship overall, go against the spirit of cooperation needed to guarantee security on the common border, create a climate of tension in border communities and create differences instead of similarities between both countries.

The Mexican government is not against strengthening the security of our common border. In addition, it respects the right of any State to take, within its territory, the steps it feels are necessary for its security. However, as it has stated previously, the Mexican government believes that adequate attention to the migratory phenomenon between Mexico and the United States requires a holistic approach based on the principal of shared responsibility, and that partial measures exclusively focused on security deny reality and represent, in the current context, more of a political response than a viable solution.

The Mexican government remains firmly committed to protecting and respecting the rights of our citizens abroad and will spare no efforts in achieving that goal.