Pubdate: Sat, 11 Dec 1999 Source: San Luis Obispo County Tribune (CA) Copyright: 1999 The Tribune Contact: P.O. Box 112, San Luis Obispo, CA 93406-0112 Fax: 805.781.7905 Website: http://www.thetribunenews.com/ Author: The San Diego Union Note: Full San Diego Editorial: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99/n1340/a05.html COOPERATION WILL CURB DRUG TRAFFIC Maybe it will take something as horrific as a mass grave outside of Ciudad Juarez to breach the wall of distrust and nationalism that stymies full cooperation between the United States and Mexico on the problem of drug trafficking. Last week, as dozens of FBI and Mexican anti-drug agents worked side by side digging for graves, FBI director Louis Freeh and Mexican Attorney General Jorge Madrazo held a press conference on the joint effort on Mexican soil. ... From the start, however, Madrazo found himself the object of questions and accusations from some Mexicans who believe he is selling out Mexico's sovereignty by allowing American law enforcement personnel to help investigate the Juarez killing fields. These questions didn't come only from the Mexican press, which often exploits anti-Mexican sentiments, but also from presidential candidate Cuauhtemoc Cardenas, who said last week: "We don't require any direct intervention from any police force anywhere." Require? No. Mexico could continue sinking under a wave of drug-fueled violence, becoming every day more like Colombia, even though Bogota finally has realized that working with the United States is far better than allowing the drug traffickers to take over. Madrazo apparently sees Mexico facing the same danger. At the press conference, he loudly defended working with the FBI: "Cooperation does not harm sovereignty. What hurts it is drug trafficking." It's time for all Mexicans to acknowledge that their nation stands at the edge of an abyss of violence and corruption spawned by savage drug traffickers. ... - - The San Diego Union - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D