Border fence getting razor wire

SAN DIEGO – The U.S. Border Patrol is installing razor-sharp concertina wire atop border fencing between San Diego and Tijuana, Mexico, marking a major shift in approach along a frequently violent stretch of the border.

The triple-strand wire, which is meant to keep smugglers from attacking agents, will stretch five miles when completed this summer – the longest expanse of this kind of wire ever used on the Southwest border.

Federal authorities have avoided using fortifications with such negative symbolism. Hundreds of miles of new barriers going up in other areas have had to meet “aesthetically pleasing” federal design standards.

Critics say the new approach is inhumane and could leave immigrants bloodied. Border officials in San Diego say it was necessary and already is proving effective. They opted to augment the existing fencing with razor wire amid escalating violence from Colonia Libertad, one of Tijuana’s most notorious smuggling enclaves.

The hilly area, roughly between the San Ysidro and Otay Mesa ports of entry, is already one of the most heavily fortified along the Southwest border, with primary and secondary fences, stadium lighting and camera towers.

The area has been the scene of frequent clashes between rock-throwing youths and agents firing pepper spray and tear gas. Despite using tear gas to disperse attackers and improving cooperation with Mexican authorities, U.S. authorities are still being attacked, said San Diego’s Chief Patrol Agent Michael J. Fisher.

Fisher drew criticism in 2007 after his agents began tear-gassing densely populated areas, sending some residents to the hospital. He said the safety of his agents is his top priority.

“We didn’t just decide to put up concertina wire,” Fisher said. “This is a 1.5-year process on … how to make the border safe and secure, and to keep our agents safe from assaults.”

So far, about a mile of the concertina wire is up. The installation started in December 2007 for a 60-day test period, and was expanded in February 2008. The wire runs atop the secondary fence, which sits roughly 50 yards inside the primary fence.

According to the Border Patrol, the wire already has reduced assaults by more than 50 percent – from 122 to 58, if the five months before and after its installation are compared. Illegal entries are also down more than 50 percent, from 16,322 to 6,319, according to Border Patrol statistics.

Immigrant rights groups call the new fencing a major move toward border militarization. They say it’s not the solution.