Bolstering Border Integrity : Mexico announces a dramatic changing of the guard

With the sweeping shake-up of its customs service this week, the Mexican government made a bold statement about its commitment to reform.

All of its approximately 3,500 customs officers who deal with the public at the border, international airports and other points of entry are being transferred, offered early retirement or retrained. In their place will be a corps of younger, better-trained and better-paid officers. Mexico hopes that the new staff, along with new computers at border crossings, will make customs operation more efficient and more professional.

The timing of the change is particularly welcome, because so many U.S. residents travel south for the holidays.

For many travelers, la mordida (which literally means “the bite”) was just how things got done in dealing with Mexican customs officers.

It was a “tax” that Mexican nationals living in the United States would often have to pay when they returned home for the holidays, or that Central American immigrants paid to continue their journeys northward. For merchants shipping into Mexico, it was a way to avoid an inspection or proper paperwork.

How much of a dent this customs shake-up will make in the mordida tradition remains to be seen. Customs officers are not the only Mexican officials accused of such extortion.

But it is another sign that President Carlos Salinas de Gortari means to modernize and reform Mexican government.

Mexican authorities say the new customs officers have a minimum of a high school education, have been closely screened and are receiving four to six months’ training. This is a major contrast to old “on-the-job” training standards.

Such an overhaul represents a substantial investment, one that will benefit both travelers and merchants.