| | |  Travel & Outdoors | July 2009 
Alberta Urges Ottawa to Reconsider Mexican Visa Changes
 Darcy Henton - Edmonton Journal
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July 24, 2009
| | Visa lineups continue at embassy in Mexico (CBC) | |
Edmonton — Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach said Ottawa should review new visa requirements imposed on Mexico that hinder Mexican students and workers coming to his province.
"I can't speak on behalf of the federal government, but we want to make sure it doesn't impede the flow of people between the state of Jalisco and the province of Alberta," the premier said. "It is in workers and in tourism. The economy has slowed down a bit. We don't need any further barriers."
The premier made the remarks after signing a new memorandum of understanding that extends the province's "sister state" relationship with the Mexican state of Jalisco until 2014. The two jurisdictions have been twinned since 1999, with an agreement to co-operate in shared interests such as economic development, forestry, tourism and education, as well as exchanges involving students and firefighters.
Stelmach told reporters Wednesday that he raised the issue at a recent joint caucus of provincial and federal Conservatives, and discussed it with Calgary MP Jim Prentice, the federal environment minister.
Alberta has benefited from the Mexican partnership in many ways, most recently when Mexican firefighters came to the province to help fight a rash of forest fires earlier this summer, Stelmach said.
Since 2005, more than 100 firefighters from Jalisco have worked, trained and fought forest fires in Alberta.
The province and Mexican state have also worked together on agricultural food processing, and Alberta helped develop a facility in Jalisco that's modelled after the province's food-processing development centre in Leduc, Alta., just south of Edmonton.
Jalisco is the birthplace of tequila, and its resorts in places such as Puerto Vallarta make it Mexico's second-largest tourist destination.
Jalisco Secretary General Fernando Guzman invited the premier to visit his state and its food-processing centre.
"We really hope to have Mr. Stelmach visit," he said Wednesday. "We hope to cheer with tequila. It's not only a drink, but medicine for the body and the soul."
Officials said Alberta's exports to Mexico have grown rapidly since the North American Free Trade Agreement, with two-way trade exceeding $1.7 billion. The two jurisdictions hope the agreement will also boost two-way tourism. |
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