Ex-informant allowed to live in the US to avoid torture in Mexico
March 25 2010 by Liam Clifford
A former Mexican police officer who helped US federal prosecutors convict more than 50 drug traffickers has been granted a temporary US visa on the grounds that he was likely to face violent reprisals should he return to Mexico.
Guillermo Ramirez-Peyro has been held in detention for
five years and is now waiting for a US immigration judge to order his
release.
The Federal Board of Immigration Appeals last week dismissed the
US government’s challenge of a Minnesota immigration judge’s decision that
Ramirez was likely to be tortured or even killed if he was no longer able to
live in the US. BIA board member Patricia A. Cole said: “While the record
demonstrates that the government of Mexico opposes drug violence and corruption
at its highest levels, it also shows that Mexican law enforcement remains rife
with corruption.”
Ramirez has not been granted a permanent US visa as he
does not qualify for asylum under US law. Generally, informants are not
protected under federal law. However, Ramirez has been granted temporary
protection through a United Nations agreement called Convention against Torture.
Should political conditions improve in Mexico, Ramirez could be deported at a
later date.
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