Took them long enough.....

[MKSheppard]

http://www.washingtontimes.com/national ... -7525r.htm

Illegal aliens are flown home

By Jerry Seper
THE WASHINGTON TIMES

The Department of Homeland Security yesterday transported Mexicans caught in the United States back to Mexico in the first flight of a voluntary repatriation program to return illegal aliens to the country's interior rather than to towns along the U.S.-Mexico border.

"The goals of this program are to both control the border and save lives," said Homeland Security Undersecretary Asa Hutchinson. "The deaths of so many in the desert are a tragedy that must end. This is a well coordinated, crucial step that is necessary for both humanitarian and law enforcement reasons."

The first flight left Tucson, Ariz., yesterday afternoon for Mexico City with an estimated 138 Mexican nationals aboard, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) spokesman Mario Villarreal. He said future flights will go to Mexico City and Guadalajara.

Mr. Villarreal said the department's Interior Repatriation Program is designed to give Mexican nationals caught in the United States the option of being returned to their home cities in a repatriation plan to reduce illegal border crossings and the violence tied to the smuggling of humans.

The U.S. government pursued the pilot repatriation program as part of a bilateral agreement between the United States and Mexico in an attempt to return illegal aliens in this country to Mexico's interior, where they would be less likely to attempt to re-enter the United States.

Many illegal aliens now transported to various border communities, according to authorities, often find it easier and more economical to re-enter this country rather than return home to Mexico's interior. More than a million illegal aliens are expected to be arrested this year along the U.S.-Mexico border, with about a million others getting into the United States.

Mr. Villarreal noted that the program is only available to Mexican nationals and that those charged with a crime, other than illegal entry, are not eligible. He said those who volunteer for the program will not be separated from their family members, adding that if the entire family does not agree to participate, then no one in the family will be eligible.

He said Mexican aliens who volunteer for the program will be returned home via charter aircraft and that bus transportation in Mexico will then be provided to their final destination.

The Mexican government will support the program by increasing its consular presence in Arizona, Mr. Hutchinson said, noting that the overall plan will be administered by CBP and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Mr. Hutchinson said the U.S. consul in Nogales, Mexico, will coordinate repatriation requirements with the Mexican consul in Nogales, Ariz.

Mr. Villarreal said a Mexican national who expresses interest in being repatriated to the interior will be referred to the Mexican consul, who will confirm that he or she wants to be returned home. He said those aliens who decline repatriation to their place of origin will be repatriated to the northern border of Mexico.

He said the program will end no later than Sept. 30, when the two governments will evaluate the repatriation program and make recommendations.

[Howedar]

Stop the voluntary nature and we're on our way to sanity.