Essay Example on DHS Working to Stop Drug Cartels & Protect US Citizens

One of the primary roles of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is to protect the people of the United States from dangers that may come from foreigners. Terrorists and drug cartels have proven to be a menace to the security and well-being of US citizens. As far as illicit drugs and smuggling is concerned, the Southern border that separates the US and Mexico is a notorious entry point for cartels into the US (Garrett 90). The DHS is committed to proposes and enforce immigration regulations to protect the southern border and ensure the safety of its citizens. Previous strategies by the DHS have included the erection of a wall to separate the two countries and the deployment of federal security guards along the border. This essay will present some of the possible strategies that the DHS can adopt to enhance border security and protect US citizens from the drug cartels from Mexico.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Enhancing the methodologies of gathering intelligence is a fundamental action that will provide the DHS with a perfect opportunity to act. It is revealed that smugglers and traffickers have good knowledge of the loopholes within the border and immigration department that they often exploit (Garrett 96). Since the cartels have managed to infiltrate various sectors both in the US and Mexico, they have advanced access to critical information about security operations within the border. In this way, cartels can easily use their money, power, and influence to their advantage and smuggle drugs in the US. Therefore, re-innovating the tools and technologies that will help to gather adequate intelligence will put the DHS at an advantaged position compared to the cartels. Modern technology can be used to spy on the movement of suspicious persons and tap any reliable intelligence about cartels. Also, human spies can be used to infiltrate the organized groups and gather adequate information for the DHS.

Fast-tracking the completion of the border wall to limit the points of entry. The construction of the border wall is intended to reduce the number of entries and loopholes that illegal immigrants and smugglers use to get into the US (Garrett 90). The current state of the border makes it challenging to perfectly control illegal movement from and into the US. Once the wall is complete, people will have not option but to use the only gates recognized by both the US and Mexico. Also, the is a need to ensure that the design of the wall is unique and with an ability to discourage crossing over. Traps and electric fence technology can be adopted to enhance the effectiveness of the Southern wall. Despite the fact the wall may not eliminate the technical aspect of the cartels' missions, it will help to control the physical movement. The physical presence of drugs, peddlers and illegal immigrants can be flagged at the entrances once the walls are erected.

Despite the construction of the wall, there is a need to establish co-operation between the US and Mexico in the fight against illegal immigrants. Diplomats of the two nations should be brought together to establish the concerns of Mexico and the US as far as immigration is concerned. Some Mexicans are in genuine need of greener pastures in the US, which cannot be considered as a criminal offense (Garrett 91). Therefore, avenues should be established to ensure that such motives are intensively and accurately scrutinized before they are allowed entry into the US. The DHS must establish a reliable system of accounting for every Mexican immigrant in the US at any time. This approach will help in reducing the generalization and classification of all immigrants who are drug peddlers. The approach will also reduce the cost of tracking down the actual number of illegal immigrants.

Cooperation with Mexican intelligence can provide an additional advantage to the DHS. Most cartels are headed by intelligent leaders who understand how systems function and the effective utilization of technology. While the DHS might understand its strengths and flaws, it is impossible to know the type of intelligence held by the Mexican officers regarding the movement and structure of cartels. Mexican intelligence operative can help in exposing vital details that can help to stop the movement of drugs along the border. There is a need to understand why these cartels thrive in Mexico and how they manage to penetrate the border. Therefore, sharing intelligence between the US and Mexico can be an added advantage.

Alternating the police and the immigration officers at entry points to avoid possible cases of corruption and manipulation. The drug cartels and smugglers have always adopted sophisticated means to bypass all checks at entry points. However, these groups also use manipulation, threats, and intimidation to have their ways. For instance, cartel leaders can pay-off some of the officers at the border to allow their drugs and peddlers into America. This is challenging because the integrity of an officer is compromised to allow such crimes to happen. Alternatively, cartels can use direct threats on the lives of officers or indirectly attack the families and next of kin of the border officials. Such strategies are meant to warn the border officers against scrutinizing members of a specific cartel thus allowing entry into the US. Therefore, the regular changing of the police officers at the entry points will help to reduce the effects of threats and intimidation. Also, the police departments should establish systems to ensure that the personal details of the officers are protected and kept anonymous. In this way, the cartels will have a hard time finding accomplices at the entry points.

Partnering with the judiciary in the US to ensure that cases involving drugs and cartels are handled within a short time, the judicial process in the US with regards to drugs and cartels often takes a long time. One of the possible causes of this trend is insufficient proof by the prosecutor to proceed with a case. Another possible cause of the process is the previous backlog of cases that have not been concluded. The pile of previous cases means that the judiciary is overwhelmed to handle new related cases. This buys a lot of time for the cartels to continue to operate in the streets. The US should also share evidence with the Mexican authorities to help in convicting Mexican citizens in Mexico. This will be instrumental because the fight against drugs cannot be won in the US alone but also in the areas where the menace originates.

Conclusion

In conclusion, one of the fundamental mandates of the DHS is to protect US citizens from the menace of drugs and cartels that originate from Mexico. Cartels take advantage of the porous borders, the complacency of officials, threats, intimidation and other manipulative techniques to fulfill their agenda of penetrating drugs into the US. The DHS can improve its intelligence gathering strategies to enhance the accuracy and precision of the missions in curbing the cartels and drugs. The DHS must fast track the construction of the southern wall and incorporate other technologies that discourage physical trespass. There is also a need to establish co-operation between the DHS and the Mexican authorities to work together in solving the menace at the border. Cooperating with the Mexican intelligence can improve access to first-hand and reliable information. Managing the physical presence of police by reducing the overall period that an officer is attached at entry points can prevent instances of corruption and the formation of accomplices in the smuggling business. Finally, the judiciary should be able to pass judgment on cartels and smugglers within the shortest possible time to prevent pilling of cases.

Works Cited

Garrett, Terence. "An analysis of U.S. Custom and Border Protection's tripartite Mexico border security policy." Annales. Ethics in Economics, 21(4) (2018): 89-111.