By EFE
After President Joe Biden made an announcement about limiting the number of asylums granted to migrants who enter irregularly, the hundreds of people waiting to cross at the southern border of the United States, between Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua and El Paso, Texas , they withdrew to avoid problems.
The EFE news agency was able to confirm that last Monday, June 3, hundreds of migrants were camping next to the Rio Grande between Ciudad Juárez and El Paso, with more than 40 degrees, making journeys of up to 10 kilometers looking for somewhere less guarded to enter. To united states.
However, two days later when the new rule came into effect, the migrants concentrated in the area had disappeared after learning of the new initiative.
Migrants will accumulate in Juárez
Activists believe that the measures announced by President Joe Biden will cause migrants to accumulate in Juárez, saturating asylums, while those staying in shelters fear that these measures will lengthen waiting times to carry out the immigration process through official channels.
This is the case of Cindy Jackeline Hernández, from Honduras, who arrived in Juárez with her two children, one 6 years old and the other 16 years old. She believes it will now be more difficult and time-consuming to get an appointment to apply for asylum through the official CBP One app.
“The waits are going to be longer”
“It is assumed that when people surrender, that this is something dangerous, that I do not recommend it to anyone, I imagine that all those people are going to start applying for CBP One and I think that the waits are going to be longer. We who have been waiting for a long time and who have been doing the process little by little,” said Hernández.
In his opinion, it is much better to use the official route so as not to risk crossing irregularly, and especially when traveling with minors.
“The United States is not going to leave there, and if we do things in an orderly manner we could even do much better, especially because of our legal process. If we enter by force, a month and a half and they are going to turn you back because you are not going to get asylum, they are going to ask you for too many tests to be able to apply for political asylum,” he indicated.
He regretted that the political movements prior to this year’s election in the United States are influencing immigration policies.
Rosa Mani Arias, coordinator of Migrant Services of the pro-migrant civil organization Avara Juárez, said that they had been waiting for the greatest restrictions from Washington for some time.
They hope to receive more migrant families
“I think we must also be mentally prepared to receive families who come walking 6 or 7 days from Chihuahua. They come and encounter this and finally despair, sadness, will take over them,” she indicated.
For Arias, the measures ordered by Biden only serve to stimulate the arrival of unaccompanied minors, pointing out that the announcement by the US authorities does not affect minors traveling alone.
“Just thinking about unaccompanied children makes my skin crawl. That doesn’t mean we encourage people to send their children alone. That is another call, let’s not do it, there are heartbreaking experiences, that this does not mean: ‘Oh, how are they going to let it pass’, let’s send it from Central America just because they are going to let it pass,” the activist warned.
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