Hundreds of migrants left Honduras for the United States

A few hundred Honduran migrants left before dawn on Tuesday for the border with Guatemala in the hope of reaching the United States., but by the afternoon they had already dispersed widely.

Other caravans that recently embarked on the trip were dismantled by Guatemalan authorities, and this relatively small group appeared to disband before reaching the Guatemalan border the day Vice President Kamala Harris spoke with the President. Guatemalan Alejandro Giammattei on migration issues.

Young men and women, as well as families carrying young children, walked along a busy six-lane highway leading to San Pedro Sula.. They formed small groups and many of them were able to go to the Corinth border post for free.

But relatively few of them made it to the official border post, as many likely decided to cross through the many blind spots along the border to avoid detection. Before reaching the border, on the Honduran side, there were three checkpoints where authorities checked the documents of migrants, especially those traveling with children. On the Guatemalan side, there were several other military checkpoints.

Calls have been circulating for days to form a new migrant caravan, but fewer people have attended than those who met in January. This caravan, which numbered several thousand people, was dispersed by the Guatemalan authorities with tear gas and riot gear.

The governments of Mexico and Guatemala recently adopted tougher measures against these trailers, under pressure from the United States.

However, these large groups of travelers represent only a fraction of the regular daily flows of migrants, which often go relatively unnoticed. Last week, Mexico began limiting crossings at its southern border to only essential travel and stepped up operations to intercept migrants in the region, especially families..

The migrants are hoping that the administration of US President Joe Biden will take a more compassionate stance towards them, but White House officials have been trying for months to make it clear that the US border is closed.

Tuesday, The White House reported in a statement that the US Vice President spoke with Giammattei about “the considerable risks to those who leave their homes and make the dangerous journey to the United States, especially during a pandemic “..

Harris and Giammattei spoke of programs to tackle the root causes of migration, and the vice president thanked him for his “efforts to protect Guatemala’s southern border”.

US authorities are swiftly deporting most immigrants crossing the country’s southern border, although a high number of children traveling without the company of an adult have created problems for their care., as the Biden government has said, it will not kick them out.

In Central America, some people think this is an indication that if they are carrying young children with them, they are more likely to be allowed to stay in the United States.

Most of the immigrants who have reached the southern border of the United States in recent years have left the countries of the so-called Northern Triangle: Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.. Gang violence and the lack of economic opportunities are the main reasons migrants say they leave.

The economic situation in Central American countries has worsened due to the COVID-19 pandemic and two huge hurricanes that hit the region in November.

Biden government has said it wants to invest $ 4 billion to spur development in these countries to address the root causes behind migration.

With AP information

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