News

Advocates of a woman languishing in a Mexico jail have asked Foreign Affairs to lobby to have Brenda Martin expelled from the country, saying she isn't being treated fairly by the Mexican legal system.

Guillermo Cruz Rico, Ms. Martin's lawyer, said he has provided a government official with Mexican legal precedents for the expulsion of a foreigner.

"We are considering this option because unfortunately Brenda's situation is quite difficult," he said, adding she is mentally and physically fragile.

Mr. Cruz said there is a provision in the Mexican constitution that allows the executive branch to expel foreigners "considered inconvenient to the Mexican government." In 1996, he said, the government expelled a man accused of drug trafficking and money laundering to the United States.

Meanwhile, CTV reported last night that Jason Kenney, the Secretary of State for Multiculturalism, is going to Mexico Tuesday to meet with government officials and ask for the release of Ms. Martin. He hopes to visit her Wednesday.

As well, Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier is pushing Mexico to speed up Ms. Martin's case by giving her lawyers access to a high-ranking legal official. Mr. Bernier, who met Monday with his Mexican counterpart, said he received assurances that Ms. Martin's lawyers will be able to talk with the country's deputy attorney-general.

The Mexican embassy in Toronto, meantime, said Monday the case "is to be concluded shortly," according to official reports.

Ms. Martin, an Ontario native, has been imprisoned for more than two years in a Guadalajara jail but has not yet gone to trial on allegations involving a massive investment scam.

With a report from The Canadian Press