National/International: Sanchez Cordero Warns Migrant Caravan Will Only Have “Orderly Access” to Mexican Territory

Photo @ Cuartoscuro

On January 7th, the Secretary of the Interior Olga Sanchez Cordero announced that before the entry of a new migrant caravan into Mexican territory, scheduled for the middle of this month, “the necessary measures are being taken for the safe and orderly entry” of the migrants. In the framework of the Meeting of Ambassadors and Consuls, Sanchez Cordero reiterated that migrants must submit an application, declare their reason for admission and provide personal and biometric data. “If they do not want to provide this information, do not submit the application or want to enter illegally, they will be returned to their country of origin,” she said.

The National Migration Institute (INM in its Spanish acronym) will also reinforce its presence on the southern border at 12 official land entry points and will patrol and monitor approximately 370 points of undocumented illegal crossing of people.

The head of the Ministry of the Interior (SEGOB in its Spanish acronym), “urged the international organizations – specifically the UN and the OAS – to assist in the care of migrants, and called on the governments of Central America to assume their responsibilities towards their people.”

Sanchez Cordero concluded that the vision of the Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador government “is that migrants are not criminals, much less constitute a threat to the security of Mexico in the United States. They are human beings that seek to escape from a reality of insecurity and deficiencies in their places of origin that ask for access to the most basic, which is the possibility of remaining alive and accessing a job that allows them with to progress dignity.

For more information in Spanish:

Migrantes tendrán acceso ordenado a México: Sánchez Cordero (La Jornada, 8 de enero de 2019)

Segob prevé nueva caravana migrante; “hay líderes que quieren dar portazo” (Proceso, 7 de enerode 2019)

Los migrantes no son delincuentes, pero es necesario poner orden en las fronteras: Gobernación (Animal Político, 7 de enero de 2019)

For more information from SIPAZ:

International/ National: Tear Gas and Rubber Bullets Used Against Migrants at U.S. Mexico Border (November 27th, 2018)

Nacional/Internacional:A un mes de la primera, primeras caravanas migrantes llegan a la frontera con EUA (17 de noviembre de 2018)

National / International: First Migrant Caravan advances in Mexico; a person dies in the second caravan trying to enter; Trump announces operation «Faithful Patriot» to close US border (November 3, 2018)

Chiapas / National / International: Migrant Caravan about to enter Oaxaca (November 3, 2018)

National / International: Caravan of migrants from Honduras arrives in Mexico (October 22, 2018)

 

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National/International: 181 Countries Approve United Nations Global Pact for Refugees

United Nations (@TRT)

On December 17th, the General Assembly of the United Nations (UN) approved the Global Pact for Refugees. This victory for human rights and international cooperation comes one week after the General Assembly approved the Global Pact on Migration.

181 countries signed the pact that outlines steps that the international community will take to guarantee the welfare of refugees. Three countries abstained, and the United States and Hungary voted against it. The United States had previously stated that, although it agreed with most of the Covenant, it did not want to accept a limitation on the detention of asylum seekers.

The Pact will try to give more support to the countries that host refugees, and when possible, help refugees to return to their countries of origin. It also calls for promoting the independence of refugees. To improve infrastructure and services to refugees, the pact will try to encourage more investment from governments and private sources.

Although the Covenant is not binding, it represents a possibility of progress for the international community. Currently there are more than 25 million refugees in the world, representing only a part of the 68 million people who have been forced to flee their homes because of violence. Under international law, to be considered a refugee, you have to cross an international border.

The Pact on Refugees received more votes in its favor than the Global Pact on Migration (which was supported by 164 countries). In general, the rights of refugees have been clearer and therefore more protected than those of migrants.

For more information in Spanish:

Asamblea de la ONU avala el Pacto Mundial sobre Refugiados (La Jornada, 18 de diciembre de 201).

Asamblea de la ONU aprueba pacto mundial sobre refugiados (Telesur, 18 de diciembre de 2018).

ONU: Asamblea General adopta el Pacto Mundial sobre Refugiados (Kausa Justa, 17 de diciembre de 2018).

For more information from SIPAZ:

National/International: 164 Countries Approve UN Global Migration Pact (January 2nd, 2019)

National/International: World Network of Mothers of Disappeared Migrants Formed in Mexico (November 12th, 2018)

National/Chiapas/Oaxaca/Tabasco: Founding of the Collective of Defenders of Migrants and Refugees (CODEMIRE) (April 23rd, 2015)

 

National/International: 164 Countries Approve UN Global Migration Pact

Opening session of the conference on the Global Migration Pact, Marrakesh (@AP)

On December 10th, 2018, in Marrakesh, Morocco, 164 of the 193 member countries of the United Nations approved the Global Migration Pact.

This Pact aims to be a response to growing global migration, and the need to provide more protection and cooperation to guarantee the safety of migrants. According to the International Organization for Migration, more than 3,300 migrants died or disappeared in 2018. The Covenant recognizes not only the rights of refugees, but also the rights of migrants in general. Although the Pact is not legally binding, it represents an advance for the human rights of migrants.

The process to reach this Pact began two years ago when a United Nations summit in New York, USA, recognized the need to promote greater global cooperation for the protection of migrants.

The United States did not sign the agreement. Australia, Chile, and several European countries did not support it either, saying it could undermine their autonomy even if this agreement is not binding and explicitly states that countries will maintain their sovereignty to establish their own immigration laws. However, almost 85 percent of the member countries of the United Nations adopted the Pact,

The General Assembly of the United Nations was set to ratify it on December 19th, 2018.

Although the Pact remains largely symbolic, it is another step in the struggle for the rights of 3.4 percent of the world’s population who are migrants.

‪For more information in Spanish:

‪Adopta ONU pacto mundial sobre migración‪ (La Jornada, 10 de diciembre de 2018).

‪La ONU aprueba el primer Pacto Mundial para la Migración sin la presencia de EE UU‪ (La Rioja, 10 de diciembre de 2018).

‪ONU adopta pacto para la migración, pese a tensiones‪ (El Universal, 11 de diciembre de 2018).

‪For more information from SIPAZ:

National/International: World Network of Mothers of Disappeared Migrants Formed in Mexico (November 12th, 2018)

National/International: International Observation Mission on Human Rights on Guatemala – Mexico Border Announced  (November 6th, 2016)

‪Nacional/internacional: La CIDH expresa su preocupación ante el endurecimiento de las autoridades mexicanas hacia los migrantes y sus defensores en la frontera Sur‪ (17 de junio de 2015).

National/International: First Migrant Caravans Reach US Border

Migrant Caravan arrives in Tijuana (@Animal Político)

In mid-November, the first contingents of caravans of Central American migrants who arrived in Mexico last month with the aim of reaching the border with the United States began arriving in Tijuana.

“I do not dare to describe them as migrants (…) They are a bunch of vagrants and marijuana users,” said Tijuana mayor Juan Manuel Gastelum on their arrival, complaining to the media that the Mexican government “has not done its job” and that “the tranquility and security of Tijuana is being affected.” On November 14th, there was also an altercation between neighbors of Playas de Tijuana and Central Americans who had settled in that area of ​​the city. “Go away, go away!” some neighbors shouted.

They arrived in buses that have allowed them to cover a distance of more than 2,000 kilometers in a few days as the state governments of the so-called “Pacific Route” (Jalisco, Nayarit, Sinaloa and Sonora), have accelerated the transit of migrants so that they did not remain in their states. The organization Pueblos Sin Fronteras expressed its concern over the integrity of the members of the caravan since they did not have access to water or food on trips of up to 48 hours by bus.

Even having arrived at the border, the uncertainty about the future of the caravan and those that are still on the way (which would still represent 6,000 more people) is maintained because although the objective of the migrants is for the US government to grant them refugee status due to the extreme violence and poverty living in their countries, to achieve this they must cross the border through official access, in accordance with a decree signed the previous week by President Donald Trump. By using unauthorized entry points, Central American migrants would be arrested, which would make them ineligible to remain in the country or seek asylum.

The Mexican secretary of the Interior, Alfonso Navarrete Prida, affirmed that the possibilities of entering the United States are “practically nil” and assured that the Mexican government will seek to prevent them from entering the country by force: “There is a huge risk of have an incident on the border line, when we have also heard the openly hostile speech of the US government,” he explained.

For more information in Spanish:

Integrantes de la segunda caravana migrante enfilan rumbo a Irapuato (Proceso, 17 de noviembre de 2018)

El alcalde de Tijuana arremete contra la caravana de emigrantes (El País, 17 de noviembre de 2018)

Cerca de 2.000 migrantes centroamericanos están en frontera México-EE.UU. (VO Noticias, 16 de noviembre de 2018)

Tijuana prepara plan para recibir a migrantes de caravanas (CNN México, 16 de noviembre de 2018)

Segunda caravana migrante se dirige hacia Querétaro (La Jornada, 16 de noviembre de 2018)

Grupo de migrantes centroamericanos llegó a Tijuana; vecinos de la zona protestaron por su presencia (Animal Político, 15 de noviembre de 2018)

Caravana de migrantes: Trump endurece las reglas de solicitud de asilo para los que crucen a Estados Unidos desde México (BBC, 9 de noviembre de 2018)

 

For more information from SIPAZ:

 

 

 

 

Nacional/Internacional : México, ¿filtro migratorio ? (15 de septiembre de 2018)

National / International: First Migrant Caravan advances in Mexico; a person dies in the second caravan trying to enter; Trump announces operation «Faithful Patriot» to close US border (November 3, 2018)

Chiapas / National / International: Migrant Caravan about to enter Oaxaca (November 3, 2018)

Chiapas/Nacional/Internacional : actualización sobre los avances del Éxodo migrante en México (25 de octubre de 2018)

National / International: Caravan of migrants from Honduras arrives in Mexico (October 22, 2018)

National / International: Mexico, migration filter? (September 21st, 2018)

International/ National: Tear Gas and Rubber Bullets Used Against Migrants at U.S. Mexico Border

(@Ramon Espinosa / Associated Press)

November 25, 2018, Tijuana- U.S. Border patrol agents fired tear gas and rubber bullets at migrants after individuals threw rocks at border agents and attempted to enter the United States.

Children and adults fainted from the effects of tear gas, as hundreds of peaceful protesters were caught in the violence.

A peaceful protest in response to the slow processing of asylum requests was being held next to the border by migrants that day. Mexican federal police attempted to break up the protest and detained dozens of migrants. U.S. Border patrol agents detained individuals who attempted to cross the border. In response to the attempted crossings, the U.S. closed the San Ysidro border crossing between San Diego and Tijuana for hours.

It is unclear what level of coordination there was and is between U.S. and Mexican authorities in response to the caravan, but there appears to be some level of cooperation between the law enforcement agencies.

U.S. President Donald Trump took advantage of the days events to push his narrative of the caravans as “an invasion”, calling migrants “stone cold criminals” on twitter.

Meanwhile, at least 4,700 migrants from Central America are sheltered in a sports complex in the city of Tijuana, where negative sentiment against migrants appears to be growing.

 

For more information in Spanish:

Estados Unidos rocía gases en territorio mexicano para contener a migrantes (En El Camino, 26 de noviembre de 2018)

EU arrestó a 42 migrantes tras incidente fronterizo (La Jornada, 26 de noviembre de 2018)

Protestan en Tijuana contra los migrantes hondureños (La Prensa, 18 de noviembre de 2018)

For more information from SIPAZ:

National / International: First Migrant Caravan advances in Mexico; a person dies in the second caravan trying to enter; Trump announces operation «Faithful Patriot» to close US border (November 3, 2018)

Chiapas / National / International: Migrant Caravan about to enter Oaxaca (November 3, 2018)

National / International: Caravan of migrants from Honduras arrives in Mexico (October 22, 2018)

 

International/National: Mexico’s 2018 Universal Periodic Review (UPR)

United Nations, Geneva, Switzerland (@Animal Político)

On November 7th, as part of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of the United Nations Human Rights Council, representatives from 108 countries made questions and recommendations on the subject to Mexico at the UN headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. The last review had been carried out in 2013.

The Mexican government delegation acknowledged that “considerable challenges” persist in the protection of human rights defenders and journalists, torture, forced disappearance, femicidal and anti-migrant violence, as well as impunity in the criminal justice system.

Undersecretary for Multilateral Affairs, Miguel Ruiz Cabañas, leader of the Mexican delegation for this UPR, said that “Mexico remains a country open to international scrutiny, and assured that the State will continue to work with civil society to address the recommendations made in this Review.” The Human Rights Council of the UN, based on this, will make recommendations for the Mexican State, which must answer those it will accept and those it will not for March 2019. It should be noted that by then the government of Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) will be in office.

At the end of the session ColectivoEPUmx said that the participation of the States confirmed that the human rights crisis in Mexico persists. It summarized what was stated as follows: “the main issue of concern was the aggressions against and murders of human rights defenders and journalists and the lack of investigation and punishment of the perpetrators. Multiple observations were also made about the structural and institutional violence against women. The need to attack the high levels of violence, corruption and impunity was reiterated, considering that they are accurate and verifiable indicators in the fulfillment of responsibilities regarding the human rights of a State. In this logic, the need for a #FiscaliaQueSirva was reiterated and many concerns of the #SeguridadSinGuerra collective were repeated, such as the revision of the Internal Security Law.”

In view of the above, ColectivoEPU.mx called on the elected federal government to hold a public meeting once these recommendations have been issued and to strengthen the international cooperation for its implementation as well as “generating mechanisms that allow the implementation of the results of this exercise of the UPR and mechanisms to eradicate impunity.”

For more information in Spanish:

COMUNICADO | Consejo de Derechos Humanos de la ONU confirma crisis de DDHH en México (#ColectivoEPUmx, 7 de noviembre de 2018)

En EPU solicitan a México respuestas eficaces para proteger a periodistas y activistas (Aristegui Noticias, 7 de noviembre de 2018)

Persiste violencia estructural contra mujeres e impunidad: EPUmx (La Jornada, 7 de noviembre de 2018)

EPU 2018: México reconoce ante el mundo su deuda en Derechos Humanos; naciones señalan retos y deficiencias (Animal Político, 7 de noviembre de 2018)

EPU2018: Llegó el momento, gobierno de EPN se somete a su examen final sobre Derechos Humanos (Animal Político, 6 de noviembre de 2018)

For more information from SIPAZ:

National: 245 NGO publicly present the “Joint Report for the Third Universal Periodic Review of Mexico”  (September 20th, 2018)

2018: México será examinado por el Consejo de Derechos Humanos de la ONU en el tercer ciclo del Examen Periódico Universal (EPU) (4 de abril de 2018)

National: 176 recommendations for Mexico during the second cycle of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR)  (November 13th, 2013)

Nacional: informe de OSC sobre DH rumbo al segundo Examen Periódico Universal (EPU) en octubre (12 de julio de 2013)

National/International: World Network of Mothers of Disappeared Migrants Formed in Mexico

@Movimiento Migrante Mesoamericano

Within the framework of the 8th World Social Forum on Migration that took place in Mexico City from November 2nd to 4th, dozens of women from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Senegal, Mauritania, Tunisia, Algeria, Spain and Italy met to participate in the World Summit of mothers of missing migrants. At the end of the event, they agreed on the creation of the World Network of Mothers of Disappeared Migrants. Among the actions that will be implemented is the establishment of a digital platform where the names, countries and all the personal data of the people who disappeared while migrating and those looking for them will be held; strategies to maintain contact and define joint actions; virtual training workshops that explain the ways of conducting searches will be held, among other activities.

In a final manifesto, they denounced that, “the process of forced displacement throughout the world has forced people to leave behind their place of origin, their country and their loved ones. They migrate to preserve their lives and the lives of their families from generalized social violence; from wars and conflicts; from the poverty generated by extractivism, megaprojects and neoliberalism that has permeated all areas of life; from state violence and the agreements of impunity between governments and criminal groups; from climate change and the environmental destruction that attacks populations.” They demanded “a dignified treatment in accordance with international standards for migrants, asylum-seekers, refugees, and people seeking their missing relatives.” They also stated that, “Migrating is a Right. Not migrating is also. Therefore, we hold the States of the world responsible for the pain that has brought us together in this Summit, and we demand the right of everyone to a dignified life, in any country in which they find themselves.”

For more information in Spanish:

Manifiesto de la Cumbre Mundial de Madres de Migrantes Desaparecidos (Movimiento Migrante Mesoamericano, 5 de noviembre de 2018)

Madres de migrantes desaparecidos crean red mundial para su búsqueda (Animal Político, 5 de noviembre de 2018)

A los miles de migrantes que ya están en CdMx se unen madres de desaparecidos que piden justicia (Sin Embargo, 5 de noviembre de 2018)

Madres de Migrantes Desaparecidos inician red de búsqueda (Telesur, 5 de noviembre de 2018)

En México, cumbre global de madres de migrantes desaparecidos (La Jornada, 1ero de noviembre de 2018)

For more information from SIPAZ:

National / International: Caravan of mothers of disappeared migrants arrives in Mexico
(November 1st, 2018)

National/International: “Caravan of Mothers of Missing Migrants” Arrives to Mexico
(December 27th, 2017)

México : Caravana de Madres de Migrantes Desaparecidos “buscando vida en caminos de muerte” (25 de noviembre de 2016)

National: XI Caravan of Mothers of Central American Migrants seeking out their sons in Mexico (December 26th, 2015)