Frontera NorteSur
April 2001

May 7, 2001
Tijuana Courts and Convictions

According to Tijuana's eight criminal courts, 69.6% of last year's 3,227 cases resulted in a conviction. This figure is for cases in which suspects were already in custody.

According to the judges that head the city's eight courts, nearly 10% of the above mentioned cases had to be dropped because of poor investigations.

Approximately 20% of cases are dropped when police do not have anyone in custody for a crime and are seeking an arrest warrant.

Source: Frontera (Tijuana), May 7, 2001. Articles by Jorge Morales.

May 3, 2001
BC Law Enforcement's "Citizens' Wednesday" and "Black List" Fail

The Baja California office of the Procuraduría General de la República (Federal Attorney General's Office, PGR) recognizes that its "Miércoles ciudadano" (Citizens' Wednesday) crime hotline has had very little participation, according to BC PGR spokesperson Abraham Sarabia.

Sarabia indicated that over the past few days the hotline had received just two calls, one informing on a group of "polleros" (human traffickers) at Otay (on the BC-California border) and another call informing on a house where drugs were being sold.

The hotline's goal was to receive information on crimes within the PGR's federal jurisdiction (such as the sale and distribution of drugs) and to act on these tips in a confidential way.

The PGR believes that people do not use the "Miércoles ciudadano" program because they are afraid of reprisals, do not have faith in the PGR or are not aware of the program.

"La lista negra"

The publication of a "black list" by the BC Attorney General's Office with the names of 4,510 people with outstanding arrest warrants for non-violent crimes has been deemed a failure by state judges. The list was made public by the Procuraduría General de Justicia en el Estado (PGJE) on April 23, 2001 and so far only two people and one person's lawyer have presented themselves at state courts.

Gilberto Cota Alaniz, judge of the Tercero de lo Penal court, said that the PGJE should act on outstanding arrest warrants rather than publish them. Cota said that over time arrest warrants go unfulfilled for various reasons and are eventually canceled which means that criminals escape going to jail.

Source: Frontera (Tijuana), May 3, 2001. Articles by Jorge Morales.

May 1, 2001
BC Starts Program to Aid Those in Crisis

Baja California's Desarrollo Integral de la Familia (Family Development, DIF) has begun a special social assistance program for people in crisis (Programa de Apoyo a la Población en Desamparo, Paped).

Mirna Rincón de Andrade, operations coordinator for DIF Tijuana, stated that that Paped will help the area's neediest people when they find themselves in extreme circumstances. Rincón said that Paped has 200,000 pesos (approximately US$22,000) in funding.

Rosalba Magallón de González, president of DIF Baja California, said that Paped funds can be used for such things as transporting minors back to their place of origin, paying for urgent surgeries, paying for special medical operations, buying wheel chairs or hearing aides or repairing the roofs on homes.

Rincón indicated that while such problems would have been dealt with in the past help would have come through donations. Now that DIF has its own funds and program those in need can be aided much more quickly. The DIF will also now be able to help more people, she said.

April 24-April 30, 2001

No news articles for these days as FNS staff was in Tijuana attending the Encuentro Fronterizo on health and environmental issues.

April 20, 2001
Tijuana School Improvements

Eighteen Tijuana schools short on financial resources have already received 40,000 pesos each (approximately US$4,200) for infrastructure projects. The money comes from Ramo 33 which is a program funded by city, state and federal government.

The schools will use the funds for such things as the construction or repair of roofs, improvement of rest rooms and the installation of fences, lighting and alarms.

Source: Frontera (Tijuana), April 20, 2001. Article by Karina Silvas.

April 18, 2001
50 BC Companies Aim for "Clean Industry" Status

Carlos Padilla, assistant director of the Procuraduría Federal de Protección al Ambiente (Federal Environmental Protection Office, Profepa), stated yesterday that 50 Baja California companies are in the process of being certified as "Industria Limpia" or "Clean Industry."

Padilla says that the Industria Limpia program recognizes companies that distinguish themselves by their correct handling of toxic waste. To earn the title, companies are audited by Profepa and have six to twelve months to remedy any environmental shortcomings found in their plants. Over the past six years 73 companies have registered for the program and 23 of these companies have obtained certification.

Industria Limpia certification may be used by companies in their public-relations efforts. The certification is good for two years and can be renewed through participation in environmental improvement programs.

In the year 2000, BC maquiladora companies produced 30,000 tons of waste that were later returned to their country of origin, usually the US.

April 10, 2001
Laws Uncertain, Tijuana Woman Misses Kidney Transplant for Second Time

On April 4, 2001 a 22-year old woman was hit by a vehicle and taken to the hospital. Two days later she was determined to be brain dead.

While the woman's family was initially hesitant to donate the woman's organs they asked officials to whom they would be going. When the family heard about the case of Elizabeth Méndez Mungaray, who has suffered from kidney illness for eleven years and has lived without the organs for three years, they gave their permission.

However, problems arose when the Baja California PGJE (Procuraduría General de Justicia del Estado, State Attorney General's Office) said that it was unable to authorize the procedure which would prematurely terminate the life of the donor. The PGJE has asked the BC Congress to write clearer legislation that would outline the PGJE's responsibilities and duties in these situations.

Méndez was close to receiving a kidney transplant on February 26, 2001 but permission from the PGJE took so long to get to doctors that the kidney was wasted. On March 16 the PGJE responded to the situation by saying that it would allow a kidney to be taken in the future and that the resultant operation would serve to force changes in the law.

Méndez told Frontera that she now feels hopeless because she has been fooled so many times. She also stated that her health problems are getting worse the longer she waits for her transplant.

Source: Frontera, April 10, 2001. Article by Ana Cecilia Ramírez.

April 6, 2001
Tijuana Water Users Owe 280 Million Pesos

Tijuana water users currently owe the Comisión Estatal de Servicios Públicos de Tijuana (State Commission for Tijuana Public Services, Cespt) 280,951,747 pesos (approximately US$29.5 million). A little more than half of this amount is owed by residential water users and almost half of all water users are late on their accounts.

Cespt's goal for this year is to have 85% of residential water accounts paying their bills on time. Currently only 50% of this group pays punctually.

To get late payers back on track the Cespt hopes to be able to offer a 50% reduction in penalty fees. This should be available to account holders by the end of April.

A Cespt spokesperson said that it is difficult for the utility to turn off water service so it is trying to offer financial incentives to get people to pay.

Last year, water rates rose by 7%. This increase was due in part to the fact that the water utility is owed so much money and has resultant cash-flow problems.

Source: Frontera (Tijuana), April 6, 2001. Article by Karina Silvas.

April 3, 2001
Specialist Hospital to Open in Tijuana

A regional hospital that will provide the services of medical specialists is scheduled to open in Tijuana at the end of April, according to Aureliano Cruz Monreal of the Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (Mexican Social Security Institute, IMSS). The IMSS provides most of Mexico's hospital services.

The hospital will offer 29 fields of specialized medical treatments lacking only nuclear medicine and heart surgery. Among the services offered will be such things as retina surgery, neurosurgery, intensive neonatal therapy, dialysis, and chemotherapy. The hospital will have an MRI machine to aid in the resolution of various medical conditions.

The hospital cost the equivalent of US$64 million to build. It will employ 1,500 people.

Source: Frontera (Tijuana), April 2, 2001. Article by Ana Cecilia Ramírez.

March 29, 2001
US Woman Arrested for Child Trafficking in Tijuana

Tijuana city police arrested a US citizen found near the San Ysidro international port of entry with a four-year old Mexican boy. The woman told police that she was going to cross with her son into California but officers did not believe the woman's story because she is "blond with white skin" and the boy whom she said was her son looked "hispanic." Police continued questioning the woman and she admitted that the boy was not her son and that she had been hired to get him into the US and take him to his parents that live in Los Angeles.

Among the woman's belongings police found a number of birth certificates, and vaccination and school records. Police believe that this means the woman has previously engaged in such activities.