MEXICAN REFUGEES ESCAPING DRUG CARTELS

13 Of 34 Refugee Students Mexican

Mariana Ruiz took a seat in a small office at Britannia secondary
during a break from studying Macbeth in English 11 Monday.

When the soft-spoken teen started to speak, it was a surprise to learn
she's only been in Canada for "one year and two days"--her
comprehension and grammar are quite good.

But the teenager is one of a growing number of Mexican refugees
attending Vancouver schools after fleeing corruption and violence
triggered by drug cartels.

This school year, 13 of the 34 refugee students registered at the
Vancouver School Board's District Reception and Placement Centre came
directly from Mexico. The other students are Afghans, Burundi,
Indonesian, ethnic Jurai, or mountain people, and Hmong from Vietnam
and one Cuban.

Ruiz, 17, lived in the central Mexican city of Aguascalientes before
escaping with her parents and three siblings.

A visit from a well-dressed man with an expensive car to a small
grocery store run by Ruiz's mother Maricela Medina sealed the middle
class family's fate. It was obvious the man didn't fit in, so Medina
told her police officer husband, Enrique Ruiz, a commander in an
anti-assault special unit.

He showed police photos to his wife, who quickly identified the
stranger--a man involved in narcotics trafficking, kidnapping and
organizing delinquents.

Ruiz's parents viewed the visit as a threat and her father knew his
family was in danger--murders and kidnappings ordered by drug cartels
are becoming increasingly common in some areas of the country.

Even police departments are rife with corruption. Officers have been
murdered.

"It used to be safe," explained Mariana Ruiz. "But two years ago, it
became too dangerous."

Within a month of the man's visit, the family had sold their car, the
grocery store and their furniture. The children stopped going to school.

Ruiz's father barely slept, awaking at 6 a.m. to patrol the house for
intruders who might kill him.

They spent a week with family in Coahuila before taking a flight from
Monterrey to Vancouver where they claimed refugee status.

For Ruiz, it was an end to her "almost perfect" life in Mexico where
she had friends and a boyfriend and was doing well in school.

The family was questioned for hours over two days by authorities at
the airport. Initially, they stayed at a hostel before moving to
Kinbrace House, which provides transitional housing for refugee claimants.

After six months they moved to a one-bedroom East Side apartment
before settling in a three-bedroom apartment in Coquitlam. Both
parents work--her mother cleaning newly built condominiums and her
father in a garage cleaning and washing vehicles once they're fixed.

"They're happy because we're safe now. They used to feel sad and
stressed out because of [lack of] money and they miss their family,"
Ruiz said. "But they know Canada is a good place to live and there's
lots of opportunities for jobs."

Ruiz has adapted well, learning English quickly and excelling in
school. She was in ESL classes for only four months, bolstered by
after school ESL courses, before transferring to regular classes.

"I thought it was so hard and I would never learn English," she
recalled. I feel unconfident. Some words won't come."

She's enrolled in Britannia's international baccalaureate program,
earns As and Bs, and dreams of enrolling in university to become a
pediatrician.

In many ways she's a typical teen--she enjoys music, dancing and
reading, spends hours doing homework and is obsessed with the Twilight
saga.

But unlike other teens, Ruiz's family remains in limbo, awaiting a
refugee hearing to determine if they can stay in Canada. There's no
guarantee, but Ruiz feels their case is strong.

"Now I'm so happy. Now I have a new boyfriend. My marks are pretty
good. I feel confident," she said. "I'm also happy because my family's
safe and we're getting better."