International/Mexico: Xenophobic Violence Erupts Against Migrants in Tecun Uman

Photo @ El Universal

On the morning of January 27th, a group calling itself “United Ayutlecos” forcibly evicted Hondurans and Salvadorans from the central park of Tecun Uman, located in the municipality of Ayutla, Guatemala, “with sticks stones.”

The migrants were in the central park waiting to be able to apply for a Visitor Card for Humanitarian Reasons from the Mexican authorities, which would allow them to cross the country legally.

The Collective of Observation and Monitoring of Human Rights in Southeast Mexico, made up of 15 civil organizations, reported that due to the eviction “the displaced persons have been forced to flee to the border and cross the International Bridge. The Mexican authority has let all the people pass by, and the agents have quickly installed fences to block the path of the aggressor group. Around two thousand people have also taken refuge from the violence unleashed in the municipal shelter of Tecun Uman, creating an untenable situation and a permanent risk.” Other migrants fled the assailant group crossing the Suchiate River on the Mexican side to feel more secure.

They mentioned that, “the acts have been perpetrated under the permissiveness of the Guatemalan authorities, who did absolutely nothing to defend the persons attacked, whether they were migrants, journalists or human rights defenders.”

For more information in Spanish:

ESTALLA LA VIOLENCIA XENÓFOBA EN TECÚN UMÁN (CDH Fray Matiás, 27 de enero de 2019)

Vecinos de Ayutla, San Marcos expulsan a migrantes hondureños y salvadoreños y se lían a golpes (Prensa Libre, 27 de enero de 2019)

Hombres embozados desalojan a migrantes en Tecún Uman (El Universal, 28 de enero de 2019)

For more information from SIPAZ:

National/International: New Migrant Caravans Arrive at Border; Others Advance through Mexico (January 28th, 2019)

National/International: New Migrant Caravan Reaches Mexico (January 23rd, 2019)

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

(January 4th, 2019)

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

International/ National: Tear Gas and Rubber Bullets Used Against Migrants at U.S. Mexico Border (November 27th, 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: New Migrant Caravans Arrive at Border; Others Advance through Mexico

@El Sol de Mexico

On January 22nd, several groups of migrants were on their way through Mexico to the US while thousands of migrants were still waiting at the border for their Visitor for Humanitarian Reasons Card that would allow them to cross the country legally. As of Monday, the Migration Institute of Mexico had registered 6,791 applications in total, 5,323 from Hondurans, 658 from Salvadorans, 632 from Guatemalans and 139 from Nicaraguans. A small number also came from Haiti, Brazil and Cuba. As of Monday, the number already exceeded 7,000 applications. Apart from the adult applicants, there are also hundreds of children and young people in the group, some of them traveling alone. During their wait at the border, the Mexican government made available a migrant shelter and an improvised shelter, where migrants can stay. The same day, the Mexican government and the immigration authorities had already delivered the first cards.

Although there is the option of staying in Mexico, working and accessing the health system and the education system, most migrants still aspire to reach the United States. Getting the card is more of a measure to reach their destination faster and more easily, because “it’s better if they do not bother us on the road”, said one migrant. In addition to these groups, it is estimated that there are around 2,000 migrants who are crossing the country without immigration papers, since they decided not to wait five days to obtain the card and an official permit.

The first group to enter, composed of some 500 people, has already arrived in the municipality of San Pedro Tapanatepec in Oaxaca. There it was not only seen that this caravan is more dispersed than the first one with smaller groups and faster advances, but also that civil society and the church have stopped distributing humanitarian aid as was seen in 2018.

With Trump criticizing Mexico for its handling of the situation, an anger or an indifference growing among the Mexican population and thousands more migrants arriving from Honduras and other Central American countries, the outlook remains bleak.

For more information in Spanish:

Caravana migrante llega a Oaxaca (Excelsior, el 20 de enero de 2019)

Llega caravana migrante a frontera de México con Guatemala (El Universal, el 21 de enero de 2019)

Caravana Migrante, paso a paso el recorrido por México hasta EU (El sol de México, el 22 de enero de 2019)

Nueva caravana de migrantes anhela cruzar a México con la esperanza de llegar a Estados Unidos (Azteca America, el 21 de enero de 2019)

La caravana migrante prosigue su duro viaje por el sureste de México (Infobae, el 20 de enero de 2019)

For more information from SIPAZ:

National/International: New Migrant Caravan Reaches Mexico (January 23rd, 2019)

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

(January 4th, 2019)

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

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

 

 

National/International: New Migrant Caravan Reaches Mexico

Migrant caravan, January, 2019 (@Sopitas)

On January 17th, a new caravan made up of just under a thousand migrants from Honduras and El Salvador reached the southern border of Mexico, most of them with the intention of continuing to the border with the United States. It is expected that thousands more will arrive there in the coming days.

Unlike less than three months ago when a similar caravan was greeted with tear gas, federal riot police and a fence that was knocked down by its members, the new Mexican government chose to launch a Migrant Caravan Care Plan with a humanitarian vision: the migrants will be given a visitor’s card for humanitarian reasons within a period of five days, with which they will be able to transit through the country and obtain work in Mexico. This card will be valid for one year. Meanwhile, they obtained a bracelet that contains their personal data, and that allows them to go from Mexico to Guatemala and vice versa. Mexican authorities also reported that they have set up a shelter with capacity for 3,000 people, where they will be offered information, food, water, and medical attention.

For its part, and without any change in discourse compared to previous caravans, US President Donald Trump, criticized Mexico: “Mexico is doing NOTHING to stop the Caravan that is now fully formed and is heading to the United States. We have stopped the last two – many (migrants) are still in Mexico but cannot cross our Wall, many Border Agents are needed if there is no Wall. It’s not easy!” He tweeted. He referred again to immigrants who arrive in the US as “human and drug traffickers.” It should be recalled that since last December 22nd, the federal government of the United States has closed 25% of its administration due to Trump’s demand to include funds for the construction of the border wall in federal budgets, something which the new Democratic majority in the Chamber of Deputies has opposed.

For more information Spanish:

México no hace nada para detener caravana migrante: Trump (Excelsior, 19 de enero de 2019)

Alrededor de mil migrantes rechazan visas transitorias del gobierno e ingresan ilegalmente a México (Animal Político, 18 de enero de 2019)

4 novedades de la caravana migrante que partió de Honduras a Estados Unidos (BBC News, 18 de enero de 2019)

México abre las puertas a la caravana migrante (El País, 18 de enero de 2019)

Nueva caravana migrante ingresa a México (Proceso, 17 de enero de 2019)

Comienza caravana de un nuevo grupo de migrantes hacia Estados Unidos (CNN México, 15 de enero de 2019)

For more information in SIPAZ:

National/International: 181 Countries Approve United Nations Global Pact for Refugees
(January 4th, 2019)

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

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

 

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)

 

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)