MORALES URGES NEW ANTIDRUG STEPS FOR STATE

By Michael Holmes
Associated Press

AUSTIN The borderopening North American Free Trade Agreement also
opened the door to drug smuggling, with more illegal drugs crossing the
TexasMexico border now than ever before, Attorney General Dan Morales said
Monday.

He called for new efforts to combat drug trafficking.

"Let's be blunt. Without thorough inspection of Mexican trucks, these
Mexican cartels will feel like NAFTA means the North American Free
Trafficking Agreement," Morales said in a speech to a conference of Texas
law enforcement officials.

While NAFTA is doing as intended dramatically increasing trade between
the United States and Mexico Morales said it also has the unintended
consequence of giving Mexican cartels "what has become virtually an open
border in which to move drugs into the United States."

The expanding trade opportunities shouldn't become an "open invitation to
corrupt our youth," he said, adding that more federalstate cooperation is
needed to combat the problem.

He recommended investing in improved technology, such as a system of
electronically coding and tracking shipments of goods across the border.
Dedicated highway lanes could be created for trucks whose manifests are
electronically monitored.

Laredo is now the busiest port in America, Morales said, and 11,000 to
12,000 trucks cross the TexasMexico border daily. That figure is expected
to rise to 20,000.

"NAFTA stipulates that these same Mexican trucks will be allowed unfettered
access to all American highways and all American cities by the year 2000,"
the attorney general said. "As of today, it is well beyond the scope of
federal border authorities to respond to this challenge."