Mexico Building Fence… on Its Southern Border

(By Meredith Jessup, The Blaze) - Reporting from Guatemala City, Danilo Valladares of the Inter-Press Service (IPS) notes that there will be one more barrier for Guatemalan immigrants in their trek to the United States. In addition to dodging dangerous drug traffickers and immigration officials, the latest obstacle is emerging: a wall between Guatemala and Mexico.

According to the head of customs for Mexico’s tax administration, Raul Diaz, the Mexican border state of Chiapas is constructing a wall along the country’s southern border with Guatemala, along the river Suchiate which divides the countries. Diaz says the purpose of the wall is to prevent the passage of contraband, but admits, “It could also prevent the free passage of illegal immigrants.”

According to Mexico’s National Commission on Human Rights (CNDH), 500,000 people from Central America cross into Mexico illegally every year — the vast majority of them attempting to reach the United States. In addition, smugglers reportedly use the Suchiate River to move goods across the international border without paying duty taxes.

Just as Mexican authorities have opposed more strict border enforcement and the construction of a border fence along the U.S. border with their country, Mexico is now receiving a great deal of criticism from Guatemalan officials.