Central America fears the arrival of a wave of migrants

The countries of Central America fear the imminent arrival of a wave of migrants from Haiti, Cuba, Asia and Africa, eager to go to the United States, said Friday (February 19) the director of Guatemalan migration services Guillermo Diaz.

Read also: For migrants from Honduras, the dream stops in Guatemala

A plan to cope with this influx of migrants is being drawn up and should be considered from Monday at the regional level by the directors of the migration services of Central America, said Guillermo Diaz.

According to the information collected, these migrants would come from Peru and intend to transit through the Darien jungle, on the border between Colombia and Panama, to then continue their journey to Mexico and the US border.

If emigration is "

", it must be exercised in a legal, safe and orderly manner, argued the director of the Guatemalan migration services.

Thousands of migrants each year flee the misery and violence in their countries and try to reach the United States in search of a better life.

In January, Guatemalan police and military forcibly dispersed a caravan of thousands of migrants from Honduras, including hundreds of children, who had forced their way across the border without presenting proper documents or negative PCR tests, as demanded by the police. authorities.

The majority of the 7,000 people who managed to cross the border were deported to Honduras, accused by Guatemala of having let the caravan pass.

US, Mexican and Guatemalan authorities have warned that they will oppose the passage of more migrant caravans.

Since October 2018, caravans of candidates for the American dream have regularly set off from northern Honduras despite the hardening of the United States' migration policy decided by former US President Donald Trump.