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 Editorials | July 2007 
When Crossing the Border Becomes a Game for Mexicans
 Ségolène Allemandou - Le Monde
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| "Being an immigrant is not a choice."
- Pancho, Adventure Park EcoAlberto guide |
Every night, about 20 try to cross the border. To make their way through the dark, advancing on tenterhooks, and, above all, moving so as not to get picked out by the frontier patrols' search lights. The "Border Patrol" prowls, ready to let loose its dogs ... Welcome to Adventure Park EcoAlberto! Thrills guaranteed.
In fact, these Mexicans are about 1,100 kilometers away from the United States border in a little village in the state of Hidalgo, north of the capital, where an indigenous Hñahñu community lives. Tourists have paid 100 pesos (about $10) to live the big frisson with this nocturnal expedition ("Caminata nocturna"). For five hours, they'll walk in the cold, trample through the mud, huddle in the trunks of trucks, run through fields of wheat and cross the local river, El Tula. And at every moment, the police watch and wait.
The adventure seems very real, with lighting and other special effects and the organizers' experience. The members of the community have, for the most part, already tried to cross to the other side. "I was a 'coyote' for many long years," admits Pancho, as he recalls his past as a human smuggler. In the park, he's stayed in that role. He's the one who - his face always hidden in a hood and a hat - guides the tourist-illegal immigrants through the night. "Every group is different. The itinerary depends on their physical condition," he explains.
"Being an Immigrant is Not a Choice"
For Pancho, this attraction is not just a simple game. "It absolutely is not a training ground for would-be immigrants," he warns to cut short any controversy around this nighttime walk. "It's an exercise in social consciousness. At the end of the activity, people come and tell me they never would have imagined feeling such fear in their belly." And he continues, "Being an immigrant is not a choice."
The indigenous El Alberto village has lost half its inhabitants who have tried their luck at living the American dream. The border under the most intense surveillance in the world has close to 400,000 Mexicans a year cross it. A crossing that becomes ever more impassable to the extent that cement sections go up along the 3,200 kilometers of border. "At Park EcoAlberto, there will never be a wall," Pancho says.
During the crossing, one can see several hundred candles lighting up the flank of a hillside. They represent the number of immigrants who have come from the community. Most have elected to stay in Las Vegas or Salt Lake City. "This 100 percent Hñahñu park has been created to pay tribute to the villagers who have left, our heroes," Pancho explains. Mexicans are assisted financially by the members of their family who preferred to leave. That money, called "remesas," has, along with oil revenues, constituted the country's principal source of income for several years. In 2006, some 23 billion dollars transited from the United States to Mexico.
"Today, we have our own income source, thanks to the site's natural resources," Pancho applauds. Altogether, some 3,000 Mexicans have discovered the ecotourism park, financed by the National Commission for the Development of Indigenous Villages. A success for EcoAlberto, which celebrates its third anniversary in July: Today, this little enterprise employs Mexicans who are not members of the community. The village, formerly a departure point for immigration candidates, has become a safe haven.
Translation: t r u t h o u t French language correspondent Leslie Thatcher. |
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