Several days later, in another incident in the same county, seven Mexicans died and 10 more were severely injured when the vehicle in which they were travelling overturned after driving at high speed through Riverside, California. The video of the beating, which resulted in a man and a woman being severely injured, was played over and over on television in the United States and appeared in newspapers around the world in a manner reminiscent of the Rodney King affair in Los Angeles several years ago. Mexico, where immigrants from Central America entering our southern border are preyed upon by smugglers, criminals and even unscrupulous law enforcement authorities. Because they have little or no option of complaining, or accusing their aggressors, without risking expulsion or arrest by the same officials to which others have recourse, cases often go unreported and unpunished. On the few occasions that an incident makes headlines, the plight of illegal immigrants becomes high-profile and provokes heated debate and polarisation of views regarding the phenomenon itself.
People move around the world in ever-increasing numbers.
As transportation technology advances, distances and costs diminish and it becomes easier for individuals and families to make the decision to move to another country. Indeed, in some civilisations the incessant push for self-improvement is extolled as the highest of national virtues. But realities clash with hopes and dreams. In most cases, the will to move and re-settle conflicts with national laws and regulations designed to limit and control the numbers of foreigners who cross each country's borders. When the world was less populated this was not a major problem, but in the latter half of the 20th century, demographic pressures and growing unemployment have led to increased restrictions on immigration everywhere.