WASHINGTON— Today, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva and Rep. Alan Lowenthal sent a letter with 22 other Members of Congress to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urging him to address issues concerning the exportation of U.S. firearms to Mexico and implementing a system to ensure that firearms do not end up in the hands of human rights abusers and criminals. The letter read in part:

“We are concerned that your department’s plan to aggressively promote American weapons exports without a proper tracking system for end users will continue to result in weapon transfers to Mexico that arm security forces with ties to criminal organizations or that have committed serious human rights violations. We call on you to implement a comprehensive and transparent tracking system that ensures these weapons do not end up stolen, lost or placed in unauthorized hands, and request information pertaining to current exports.”

“Criminal organizations and human rights violators in Mexico and elsewhere should not be benefitting from a lax U.S. firearms export policy that puts civilians at risk. Every life lost is a tragedy and we must do everything within our power to ensure U.S. policies are not needlessly endangering lives around the world.”

Click here to read the full letter. 

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