Mexico lawmakers livid over US 'Operation Fast and Furious'1

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What the US Should not Do?2

Mexico lawmakers livid over US 'Operation What the US Should not Do

Fast and Furious' By Jorge Ramos
Reuters
By Nacha Cattan, Correspondent / March 9, 2011
Mexico City
If the United States wants to better its relations with its
neighbors south of the border, it can do many things –
including in President Obama’s next trip to Brazil, Chile
M exico has long complained that drug gangs are and El Salvador --. But definitely, it should not send
terrorizing cities with high-powered weapons smuggled weapons south.
from the United States. But Mexican lawmakers are now
up in arms over the recent revelation that the US Bureau Let’s begin by what the U.S. should not do. To start, it
of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) should not do operations as Fast and Furious – which
purposefully allows some of these weapons to be allowed the transfer of 1,794 weapons from the United
smuggled south of the border so it can track them as States to Mexico, without first letting the Mexican
part of "Operation Fast and Furious." government of Felipe Calderón know about this
operation. Such things are not done between neighbors.
“[The operation] is a grave violation of international
rights,” Jorge Carlos Ramírez Marín, president of The weapons, according to the formal complaint
Mexico's lower house of Congress, said Tuesday. “What submitted by U.S. agent John Dodson, were allowed to
will happen if next time they’ll need to funnel in trained be sent to the Mexican side so once they fell on the
assassins, for example, or nuclear arms?” drug-traffickers’ and criminal’ hands, they could be
tracked. The problem, as Dodson said in an interview, is
Fellow congressman Humberto Trevino claims that an that the weapons were not marked or did not carry a
estimated 150 shooting injuries or deaths have been chip to track them by satellite, and these could have
linked to guns that were allowed by US agents to been used to kill many Mexicans. It is impossible to
proceed into Mexico. know how many Mexicans the criminals have killed with
these weapons.
The legislators are calling for a joint US-Mexico working
group to examine Operation Fast and Furious. Some Many of these assault rifles and pistols were
also proposed sending a congressional delegation to semiautomatic. Their capacity for destruction is
Washington to press for more action against gun enormous. And the purpose was, precisely, to have them
trafficking, which plays a crucial role in fueling a drug fall in Mexican criminals’ hands. Agent Dodson, among
war that has killed 35,000 people here since December others from the U.S. Justice Department, received
2006. orders to have them cross into Mexico.

Mexico’s Foreign Ministry on Saturday requested There is yet more. This operation of “controlled
“detailed information” from US authorities about the delivery” of weapons has not stopped, and there could
operation. be many more still out there. “None of these people
have mentioned this activity will stop,” Dodson told me
HOW 'FAST AND FURIOUS' BACKFIRED in an interview from Phoenix. “No one has said we have
A Phoenix-based operation, Fast and Furious backfired suspended this practice while investigations are still on
when two of the weapons in the program were found at their way. The number that you know is of only one
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when two of the weapons in the program were found at case. In yet how many more cases is this still
the scene of a border shootout that killed US Border happening?”
Patrol agent Brian Terry in December. ATF
whistleblowers and some US congressmen kicked up a Dodson decides to speak after the murder of
fuss over a program they feared would aid cartels in immigration agent Brian Terry in Arizona, which
killing innocent people. And last month, a gun smuggled happened last December 14. Two of the weapons
from the US was used in the killing of US Special Agent Dodson allowed to be sent were found in the place
Jamie Zapata outside Mexico City, although it has not where Terry died. Dodson felt guilty and he decided to
been determined that the gun was part of Fast and speak. But, what happens with the Mexicans that could
Furious. have died thanks to this arms transfer? Who speaks for
them?
As a result, last week the ATF announced a review of its
firearms trafficking strategies. The Mexican government insists it did not know
anything. The life of many Mexicans have been in
The controversy comes just as US-Mexico relations danger thanks to this U.S. secret operative in Mexican
appeared to be on the mend following last week’s visit territory. This is what the United States should never do.
by President Felipe Calderón to the White House. But Ever.
this latest problem seems to show that not much of
substance was resolved at the leaders meeting, some What it should really do is to promote contacts and
experts say. cooperation. And this is why Obama’s trip to Central
and South America is very positive.
Javier Oliva, a security expert at Mexico’s National
Autonomous University, wonders whether Mexico even It is more than clear that Afghanistan, Iraq and the
knew about the operation. “The fact that the Mexican recent revolts in Tunis, Egypt and Libya worry the
government is requesting information demonstrates that President more than Brazil, Chile and El Salvador. But,
there isn’t much collaboration with the nited States,” he thus yet, he is dedicating time to the region. Hours and
says. minutes which he dedicates to a given issue measure the
interest of a President. Diplomacy is, at times, a question
Mexico will use the ATF controversy to keep pressuring of additions and subtractions on the clock.
the US on arms trafficking, says Vanda Felbab-Brown, a
Mexico expert at the Brookings Institution in Obama is very popular in the region. His predecessor,
Washington. George W. Bush, however, was seen with unkind eyes
due to his unjustified and unnecessary invasion to Iraq.
“Now [Mexico] can say that the US is equally lacking in In other words, Obama does not need to do a lot to be
intelligence, and are equally having problems with well-liked. But with this trip he is underlining what the
efficiency of [its] programs,” she says. “It allows the U.S. likes and is convenient to it.
Mexican government to deflect the focus from problems
in Mexican institutions.” “Ideologies are no longer important,” Salvador’s
President, Mauricio Funes, told me in an interview. “El
1,200 GUNS ON THE LOOSE? Salvador can build an alliance for development together
According to the Center for Public Integrity in with the United States.”
Washington, a public-interest investigative organization
that has done extensive reporting on the case, only 10 At this stage of the game the United States should know
percent of the 2,000 guns that Fast and Furious allowed what works and what does not work in its relationship
to gunrunners to purchase were eventually recovered in with Latin America. Yes to Alliances. No to the
Mexico. Close to 30 percent – or 600 guns – were unilateral shipment of weapons. Yes to cooperation. No
recovered in the US. The remaining 1,200 guns have not to imposition of strategies. Yes to sharing information.
been recovered and possibly remain in the hands of drug No to secret operations in a foreign country.
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gangs.
“The United States, under President Obama’s
But law enforcement officials and some experts, leadership, wants to work as an ally, as equals,” Dan
including Ms. Felbab-Brown, argue that such sting Restrepo, the National Security Advisor to the White
operations lead to the capture of high level traffickers, House told me.
and not mere straw purchasers who can be easily
replaced. And at that – a relationship between equals – is the same
thing that Latin American nations want with the United
The ATF's current investigation into the operation is States. But such thing is not achieved by sending
essential, however, adds Felbab-Brown, to determine weapons to another country without previous warning,
whether the tracked guns that wound up in shootouts knowingly with very predictable and deadly
were a result of corruption on either side of the border, consequences.
or due to error.

1
“Mexico lawmakers livid over US 'Operation Fast and Furious'”. The Christian Science Monitor on the Web March 9, 2011 <
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Americas/2011/0309/Mexico-lawmakers-livid-over-US-Operation-Fast-and-Furious>
2
Jorge Ramos. “Lo que no debe de hacer EU.” El Norte, Sunday 13 of March of 2011, Sunday Edition Number 26, 391: P. 9.
Translated by David Ramirez.

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