Taxi Crimes in Mexico City

Latin America

Mexico: Several U.S. Embassy employees have been abducted, assaulted and robbed after hailing taxicabs in the streets of Mexico City, and the embassy now advises its staff to use only taxis at authorized taxi stands, known as sitios, at the airport and throughout the capital. For the locations of those stands, travelers may consult their hotels, and the embassy can provide further information. The State Department reminds Americans that street crime is common in Mexico, especially in urban areas. People driving on isolated roads have been targeted by bandits who operate primarily after dark. Criminals, particularly in Sinaloa state, sometimes represent themselves as Mexican police.

Guatemala: Kidnapings are becoming alarmingly common, according to the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala City. Most appear to be motivated by greed rather than politics. In an incident in February, a 20-year-old American citizen was kidnaped by armed men near the home of his Guatemalan parents, and a ransom demand was later made to the victim’s grandfather. A week later, a Guatemalan child was abducted from an American school bus in a residential zone inhabited by U.S. Embassy families. The government has created a national police unit to combat kidnaping, and in response to the overall increase in violence, the Guatemalan parliament has approved the death penalty.

Asia

Vietnam: For adventurous travelers considering Vietnam as a destination, the U.S. liaison office in Hanoi rates both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City as generally safe for visitors. The country’s political situation is stable, the office advises, with no known threat to Americans. Crime in Hanoi is low but is slightly higher and increasing in Ho Chi Minh City, the former Saigon, where petty theft, purse-snatching and pickpockets are prevalent around the major hotels. One more caveat: “Intelligence collection efforts are sophisticated, professional and undetectable. One must assume that all rooms, telephones and fax machines can be monitored.”

Briefly . . .

Europe: Seven members of the European Union--France, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands--abolished border controls last month, no longer requiring that international travelers show passports. According to the Associated Press, Greece, Italy and Austria are expected to join them in June.

Indonesia: U.S. Army doctors and a Swedish physician recommended that tourists visiting the island of Bali be vaccinated against Japanese encephalitis, a severe brain infection carried by mosquitoes, Reuters reported. In a letter to the British medical journal the Lancet, the doctors said two tourists on short-term visits to Bali had contracted the disease.

Dominican Republic: A bus fare increase last month touched off violent demonstrations in Santo Domingo. Vehicles were burned, and skirmishes between police and protesters left some dead and injured. The State Department warns travelers to avoid the National University and the poorer neighborhoods, especially north and east of the city.

Hot Spots: State Department travel warnings are in effect for Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Burundi, Colombia, Guatemala, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, North Korea, Peru, Rwanda, Serbia and Montenegro, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan and Tajikistan.

The U.S. State Department offers recorded travel warnings and advisories at (202) 647-5225; the fax line is (202) 647-3000.