Church of Guatemala: "Migrants are desperate"

Charlotte Bergendal is the head of the Swedish Church Program for Latin America. When DN reaches her, she is at an airport in Amsterdam as she returns home after Guatemala. She saw the migrant trains of these last days nearby.

– He became so big suddenly. We did not think it would be like that. But our partners in these countries say that it is not so strange. The situation is extreme, people are desperate.

She describes a cocktail for flight reasons from countries known as the "Northern Triangle" – Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala.

"In both Honduras and Nicaragua, there is an extreme concentration of power, political violence and elections that are not right, and mafia criminal cuts and violence, while at the same time political resistance is criminalized.

Bergendal lifts canal built in Nicaragua as an example.

– Those who resisted – battalions, indigenous peoples, etc. – fled brutally. There is a lot of violence.

When states are weakened, corrupted and become more authoritarian, criminal gangs fill the power vacuum, "said Bergendal.In 2013, DN wrote about how the Honduran authorities have completely refrained from rehabilitating criminals, with prisons also governed by the gang.

"For example, a street vendor may be forced to give some of his profits, as a kind of tax, and often increases the share of each month.If you do not have money, they take their daughter.Many members are already involved in these networks as children, says Bergendal.

"And because the state, especially in Nicaragua, is completely headed by the president, the victims do not dare to go to the police either – it's almost even more dangerous.

She describes the situation in Nicaragua, where more and more refugees are now starting to move in the same direction as the current caravan, which is particularly extreme.

– President Daniel Ortega has fired UN observers and called the terrorist protesters. It's way worse than we thought before, because a lot of things happen in secret. The protesters want new elections but the president refuses. Similar things happen in Honduras.

"Recently, it has also been feared that neighbors will begin to penetrate.

Bergendal also mentions Nicaragua's legislation on abortion. It is one of the five countries in the world where abortion is totally banned without exception.

– This leads the children themselves to give birth to children. We have seen terrible images of such births. And those who do the abortion end up in jail.

What are the risks for migrants currently on the border with Mexico?

– Death. Many who wander do so with the mentality of a medieval pilgrimage. On the basis that they will die but have nothing to lose.

What must be done to avoid it?

– Mexico receives international support to give all those who have the right to seek asylum. And that those who can not seek are treated well when they are returned.

Read more: Honduran migrants camped on the border bridge

The migrant caravans of Honduras and Nicaragua have had the eyes of the outside world since arriving in Guatemala on Monday. According to the Mexican police, it was composed of about 4,000 people Friday night. However, after forcing a strike at the border and colliding with the Mexican riot police, the group was split.

The objectives of the caravan are the United States and President Donald Trump has formulated several threats: the closure of the border with Mexico, the withdrawal of aid to a number of Central American countries and sending military to the border.

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