Patrol's migrant rescue plan kicks in

LUKE TURF

TOHONO O'ODHAM NATION - In a continuing effort to save the lives of migrants who sneak into the United States through the border's deadliest corridors, the U.S. Border Patrol yesterday got reporters to walk the walk, rather just talk the talk.
In an effort to curb the deaths, the Border Patrol began the annual Border Safety Initiative in 1998. It incorporates resources ranging from public outreach to medically trained agents in the field.

Critics have blamed the agency for deaths along the border, saying a policy aimed at cracking down on illegal crossings in urban areas from San Diego to Brownsville, Texas, has pushed illegal immigrants into the more dangerous desert.

The Border Patrol's Tucson sector chief, David Aguilar, said his agency has documented 33 people who have died crossing the border since the fiscal year began Oct. 1. The Pima and Cochise county medical examiners' offices say 78 bodies of illegal immigrants were recovered.

The discrepancy is due to the way the Border Patrol classifies human remains found in the desert, and to agencies other than the Border Patrol also finding bodies.

This year's enhanced operation includes 10 rescue beacons and horse patrols to seek out migrants in distress. A public relations blitz in Mexico encourages people not to put their lives or the lives of their loved ones in the hands of smugglers.

"We have to find a way where it is not coming across as propaganda," Aguilar said. "Help us get the message out."

According to Border Patrol statistics, 1,971 people have died while crossing the Southwest border since 1998. The agency says at least 7,938 were rescued in the same period.

Beefed-up resources are welcomed by Tohono O'odham Police Chief Richard Saunders, who said his agents catch about 6,000 illegal immigrants a year and turn them over to the Border Patrol.

Between the agencies, Saunders said, more than 49,000 illegal immigrants were caught on O'odham land from October to March.