You don’t want our refugees? Well… well… well we don’t want your reporters.
That’s kind of the message Mexico looks like it’s sending. A whole two weeks after Canada closed the door on Mexican citizens floating across the border and then immediately applying for refugee status, Mexico has decided to get downright childish. Canada’s putting the breaks on the old habbit of folks coming across from the US, either by choice or by force, and claiming refugee status once they get here. And what does Mexico plan to do? Why, require the reporters etc accompanying Stephen Harper to Mexico, of course. And it’s not about diplomacy or anything, as I’m sure we’ll be hearing it is later on. If Harper wants the press to accompany him to Mexico, he’s not allowed to make sure his people get them their visas. Mexico wants every reporter, camera person, and equipment carrier accompanying the prime minister on his visit to apply for their own visas, sans assistance from the prime minister’s office.
I’m not exactly sure what that’s supposed to accomplish, aside from making sure Canada’s government has even less to do with anything going on on Mexican soil. The majority of Canada’s population–that is, those who aren’t actually going as reporters with the prime minister–also known as tourists, still aren’t required to get visas before entering Mexico. Which sort of begs the question, please do explain? I somehow don’t think requiring 20 members of the press to apply for visas will do a whole lot more than make Canada’s government do a little tiny bit of a WTF. Which may or may not be all Mexico’s after–I have no idea. But if their government expects anything more to come of it than that, well, good luck. That’s really all anyone can say.
