MEXICO CITY – Police have arrested an alleged drug trafficker and kidnapper who is wanted in the U.S. and is a suspect in the 1997 shooting of a journalist, the Mexican government announced.
Saul Montes de Oca was captured in the fishing town of San Felipe in Baja California state, the Public Safety Department said late Saturday. He was being held on kidnapping charges.

Montes de Oca is also suspected of involvement in the attack on crusading Tijuana journalist Jesus Blancornelas, who survived and died of natural causes at age 70 in 2006, the department said. Several other suspects have also been linked to the crime.
The department said the United States has filed a request for Montes de Oca's detention pending possible extradition on organized crime charges.

Montes de Oca allegedly worked for the Tijuana-based Arellano Felix drug cartel and may have been responsible for charging other traffickers turf fees for moving drug shipments through the Baja California border area.

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Moderates and hard-liners exchanged accusations of voting irregularities on Sunday as Mexico's main leftist party chose new leadership.
The two front-runners for the Democratic Revolution Party's top job would likely take the party in sharply different directions. Former Sen. Jesus Ortega is a party moderate, while ex- Mexico City Mayor Alejandro Encinas advocates a radical opposition to President Felipe Calderon's government. Three other candidates are also on the ballot.

The leftist party, known as the PRD, has been fractured by severe infighting since its presidential candidate, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, lost Mexico's 2006 presidential election by half a percentage point.

Lopez Obrador alleges that electoral fraud caused him to lose the vote and his supporters refuse to have any dealings with Calderon's administration. Encinas was a close adviser to Lopez Obrador.

The moderate wing of the party says that legislative work requires some contact with the executive branch. The moderates worry the PRD could once again be seen as uncooperative or violent.

On Sunday, an estimated 7 million members and supporters of the PRD cast ballots to chose a new party leader and other leadership positions. But the voting marred by allegations of vote-buying, intimidation and the use of improper ballots.

The government news agency Notimex reported that a scuffle broke out at one polling place in the capital, and that several others in outlying states were forced to shut down.

Calls to the party's office for comment were not returned. Most of 5,000 polling places nationwide appeared to be normally.

Results from the voting are not expected until Monday.

Although Lopez Obrador lost the presidential election, the PRD is still a force to be reckoned with. It controls 127 seats in the 500-member Congress, making it the chamber's second-largest party. It ranks third in the Senate with 26 of 128 seats.

Border Fence/Wall, Unity or Division

MEXICO/ESTADOS UNIDOS- Would life be better if we lived in a unified world? Would there be any tensions in a unified world? Sadly, in our world, unity is no where near to its definition. If one would be a good judge, one would pay attention to what everyone says. The planned fence/wall along the U.S-Mexico border is not the solution to illegal immigration.
A fence/wall along the U.S-Mexico border will not prevent illegal immigration. The proposed fence/wall is 700 miles long, while the U.S-Mexico border is about 2,000 miles long. Hardworking illegal immigrants will get across to the U.S through the two-thirds of the border that is not covered by the fence/wall. The roads required for building a border/wall may even help illegal immigrants. According to Global Security.org, it cited 40 tunnels being built between 2001 and 2006 under the U.S-Mexico border. Tunnels are a very effective means of bi-passing a border fence/wall and are likely to contribute to the defeat of a 700 mile long fence/wall along the U.S-Mexico border. A border fence/wall will not prevent crossing by false papers or visa overstays. Illegal immigration cannot be resolved through a border fence/wall.
Furthermore a fence/wall along the U.S-Mexico border is not the answer for better National Security. The U.S-Mexico border has not been an entry point for terrorists, few if any high-profile terrorists have entered the country through the border. Border fences or walls do not greatly impact smuggling, smuggling typically occurs in vehicles and mostly through legal passageways. A greater border effort really increases organized crime. The 9/11 Commission didn’t recommend building a border barrier. By increasing border control, it becomes much more important for criminals to organize their efforts to get that merchandise to its next owner. If security measures offend the public in any way, there will be a considerable decrease in public support and reduced participation by U.S allies in sharing intelligence for counter-terrorism efforts. They may well enough become the U.S's non allies which would make them neutral.
Most importantly a border fence/wall along the U.S – Mexico border will decrease Diplomatic Relations with Central and South American countries. Mexico’s Foreign Ministry advised President Bush to veto the fence bill. Just the idea of a fence/ wall is an insult to good long-time neighbors. In the Middle East the U.S wants to create a sense of peace between two sets of people, but yet with one of its pre-historic neighbors it wants to create a sense of separation. In 2006 Guatemalan Vice President, Eduardo Stein said that the fence/ wall proposal is “an insult to Latin America by a government that claims to be our partner, but which apparently only wants our money and our merchandise, and sees our people as an epidemic.” It is also ironic that the ancestors of the founding fathers of this great nation were once illegal immigrants as well, the only “legal” and not immigrants to this land are the Native Americans. If this fence/wall is built it will contradict the message of the Camp David Accords, and 2000 Camp David Summit, negotiations. The U.S does not want to be Latin America’s friend anymore.
One conflict cannot be solved through another conflict. The example of the Berlin Wall in Germany should teach humanity a lesson. Walls, fences any kind of barriers only brings more disputes and division within its own people that are against the barrier. Over the years the U.S Government has showed a passion for National Security. If one shows a passion he tells his enemy where he may hit him. One can only think that power has no friends, envy has no rest, and crime has no satisfaction.

By: Jose A. Cardenas

Un Mexico Mejor Para Los Mexicanos Y El Mundo Entero!!