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18 June 1998

U.S. 'PRESSING' MEXICO FOR END TO VIOLENCE IN CHIAPAS

(Albright says Washington following situation closely)  (430)
By Eric Green
USIA Staff Writer
WASHINGTON -- Secretary of State Madeleine Albright has told Congress
that the United States is "pressing" Mexico to resolve the rising
violence in Mexico's southernmost state of Chiapas "and at the same
time pressing them to deal with what we consider issues that need to
be investigated thoroughly."
Albright said she related U.S. concerns about Chiapas in her recent
meetings with Mexican Foreign Secretary Rosario Green, especially in
trying "to make sure that there is a very thorough investigation"
concerning reports of massacres that have taken place in that state in
the last year.
The secretary noted that Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo "did move
very quickly to have his attorney general investigate" some of the
massacres "and to really try to get the situation dealt with in a
negotiated way. And we are following their investigation very closely,
and have told the government of Mexico that we will be doing so."
Albright told the Senate Appropriations Committee's Foreign Operations
Subcommittee June 16 that the United States is "working generally with
the Mexican government to try to make sure that there is timely
notification" to U.S. citizens in Chiapas about the dangers occurring
in the state.
Hundreds of people have been killed in Chiapas since 1994, when
Zapatista guerrillas staged an armed rebellion against the Mexican
government to demand improvements in the native population's rights.
At least 10 people were reported killed last week in a battle between
security forces and rebel supporters. Talks between the government and
the guerrillas broke off in September 1996.
Albright also told the subcommittee that although drug-related
corruption remains a very serious problem in Mexico, "official
cooperation and support for anti-drug initiatives has been
substantial." The secretary noted that last week in New York,
Presidents Clinton and Zedillo "reaffirmed that policy of cooperation,
notwithstanding the recent controversy surrounding the drug money
laundering investigation" known as Operation Casablanca, a three-year
U.S. sting operation directed at alleged drug money launderers in
Mexican banks.
Albright said that over the past year, Mexico has enacted legal
reforms to combat drug trafficking, organized crime and money
laundering. In addition, she noted that Mexico has formed specialized
investigative units, sought out and punished official malfeasance, and
passed a comprehensive chemical control law.
As a result of those efforts, extraditions, drug seizures, and arrests
of drug traffickers in Mexico are up, Albright said.