Mexico allows tens of thousands of migrants to travel to US border
Mexico has allowed tens of thousands of people to cross its territory on their way to the US border since early April, government data shows. United States.
The increase comes as local aid groups and migrants say people heading north have entered Mexico more easily in recent weeks from Guatemala, the main route to the United States, with Mexican security forces leaving some of their outposts in the south of the country. border.
The increase in the number of people allowed to cross Mexico, coupled with the smaller security footprint, likely contributed to the rising number of migrants who have gathered at the US-Mexico border as the Biden administration prepares to lift it Thursday evening of a pandemic-era restriction called Title 42 that has enabled the United States to swiftly deport those attempting to cross the border illegally.
The Mexican Foreign Ministry and the National Institute of Migration did not respond to requests for comment on any changes to the government’s immigration policy.
However, local aid workers said the expiration of the public health measure was likely to fuel an increase in the number of migrants arriving at Mexico’s southern border.
“We don’t know if this is solely related to Title 42, but it is clear that there are many more migrants here than usual,” said Miguel Barrera, field coordinator with the International Rescue Committee in Tapachula, a town near Mexico’s southern border.
From April 2 to May 3, nearly 30,000 humanitarian visas were issued to migrants in the state of Chiapas, which borders Guatemala, according to figures released by Mexico’s National Institute of Migration, more than three times the monthly average in the first three months of the year.
The visas allow migrants to travel within the country, buy bus tickets and plane tickets, and make their way to the United States border.
The Mexican government has long issued thousands of such documents to migrants, particularly those from countries such as Haiti and Venezuela experiencing a humanitarian crisis.
But visa numbers have surged over the past month as authorities issued them to anyone who asked, according to local humanitarian groups. Instead of detaining migrants without proper documents as was customary, migration authorities sent them to a park on the outskirts of Tapachula to begin the visa process.
Raul Ortiz, chief of US Border Patrol, said Wednesday he did not believe the increase in visas issued was contributing to the buildup at the border.
In stark contrast to normal operations, migration authorities in southern Mexico have also eased militarized migration enforcement over the past month. Some checkpoints on the highway have been temporarily lifted and regular migration actions in Tapachula have been halted, local aid agencies said.
Since 2018, when then-President Donald J. Trump threatened to impose tariffs on Mexican imports if the country does not crack down on migration, Mexico has been working closely with U.S. authorities on deterrence, deploying as many as 28,000 troops from the National Guards were mobilized to detain migrants.
In 2022, Mexican authorities detained more than 444,000 migrants, an all-time high.
Nowhere is this work more visible than in Tapachula. Migration checkpoints are usually scattered on every highway that exits the city to try and stop people without proper travel documents. The Siglo XXI migrant detention center, the largest in the country and a center regularly denounced by humanitarian groups for human rights violations, often has double the capacity of 960.
But on Monday morning, the facility was empty, a police officer at the entrance told The New York Times.
In a sprawling tropical park on the outskirts of Tapachula, thousands of migrants waited for visa processing to begin after a weekend getaway. They crowded into line as the morning sun pushed the temperature above 90 degrees. Local vendors sold water, shaved ice and SIM cell phone cards to migrants who could afford it.
Most of the migrants came from Central America, Venezuela, Ecuador and Haiti, but others had traveled all over the world, from countries such as China and Angola. Many had come with their entire families, including young children and babies.
“I saw two news reports online saying you had to come here for a visa,” said Moroni Padilla, 42, of El Salvador. “Sometimes you don’t know if you can trust what you hear, but I had to come and see for myself.”
A migration official who was not authorized to speak on the record told The Times his office was not detaining migrants in the region, instead directing them to the park to obtain visas. He wouldn’t say why or who had put the new lead.
Migration officials declined to comment on any change in enforcement strategy in the region.
In Ciudad Hidalgo, 20 miles south of Tapachula on the Suchiate River that marks the border with Guatemala, the Mexican government’s patrols had almost completely ceased over the past month, according to local vendors bringing goods and migrants across the river. A handful of migration agents sat at a table in the shade, playing cards.
Humanitarian groups in Chiapas say the change happened gradually after a fire on March 27 in a the detention center in Ciudad Juárez killed 39 men trapped in their cells. Several senior National Institute of Migration officials, including the agency’s head Francisco Garduño Yáñez, have been charged with crimes related to the deadly blaze. Officials have not made any official statements about policy changes following the fire.
“Not just now, but historically it has been difficult to understand the strategy or motivations behind their actions,” said Mr Barrera of the International Rescue Committee.
Aid agencies say they aim to provide basic care to a rapidly growing number of migrants. Temperatures can reach over 100 degrees in southern Mexico, which can lead to dehydration and heat stroke.
Hundreds of people were left outside in torrential rain without shelter on Monday night, fearing they would lose their place in the visa queue if they left.
For most people trying to make it to the United States, the elements were no deterrent when they had the rare opportunity to travel freely across Mexico.
“God willing, we can make our way to the United States in the next few days,” said Freiver Parra, 27, from Venezuela, minutes after receiving his visa.
He was traveling with his wife, Kariana, 24, and his 6-year-old daughter, Ehilys. He knew Title 42 was coming to an end, but he didn’t know what that meant. And he had lost sight of all the rumors about US immigration policy on the migrant route.
“You can’t trust what people tell you,” he said. “I have to see with my own eyes what happens, and then we decide what to do.”
Eileen Sullivan contributed reporting from El Paso.