| | |  Americas & Beyond | October 2008 
Report: Record Number of Mexicans Fleeing to Canada to Escape Drug War
 The Canadian Press
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Toronto — The Globe and Mail says a record number of Mexicans are fleeing to Canada, claiming their own country cannot keep them safe as it struggles to contain a narcotics war that is spilling into nightclubs and restaurants.
The newspaper reports there are currently 9,070 Mexican refugee claimants waiting to have their cases heard.
The Globe says it's the largest number yet from one country since the Immigration and Refugee Board was established in 1989.
More than 3,000 people have been killed in the past year in Mexico, as more than 30,000 soldiers and police take on drug cartels and trafficking organizations fight amongst themselves over turf and smuggling routes.
In several rulings perused by the Globe and Mail, the IRB believes the claimants' tales of violence, but rejects their claims on the grounds they must turn to their own country for protection.
Recently, though, the Federal Court of Canada has overturned a half-dozen decisions, questioning how ordinary Mexicans can seek protection from the state when police officers are corrupt or under fire themselves.
The brutality has included human heads lobbed into discos, bound men found asphyxiated in cars and shootouts in shopping centres in the middle of the day.
In September, grenades were lobbed at a public celebration of Independence Day in Morelia, a colonial town about 240 kilometres west of Mexico City.
"We all know and love Mexico and Mexican beaches, but that is not the real Mexico," said Doug Lehrer, a Toronto lawyer. "Mexican authorities are completely overwhelmed and can't offer ordinary people a reasonable level of protection."
Mexico has been Canada's top source country for refugees for the past four years, with Mexicans now making up one-third of all refugee claimants. However, the acceptance rate for Mexicans is just 11 per cent, compared with an overall acceptance rate of 34 per cent. |
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