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TIJUANA, Mexico – Many Central American migrants camped in Tijuana after crossing Mexico in a caravan said Monday that a protest organized on weekends by residents demanding their departure frightened them and made them still more anxious while they were trying to enter the United States.
The angry protests were fueled by concerns raised by President Donald Trump's one-month warnings that criminals and gang members are part of the group, or even terrorists, although there is no evidence of that.
About 500 people demonstrated Sunday in a wealthy part of Tijuana against the caravan. Dozens of protesters then headed for an outdoor sports complex near the city center, where 2,500 migrants are staying in dirt fields and benches after arriving at the border town a week ago.
Dulce Alvarado, 28, of Lempira, Honduras, said that she was coming out of a grocery store located near the stadium, carrying her 2-year-old son, while she was surrounded by women and children. protesters chanting "Get out!" and "We do not want you here!"
"I was very scared," said Alvarado.
A policeman from Tijuana saw them in the crowd and helped them out and behind a police tape marking the block where the sports complex is located. The protest finally ended peacefully.
The tension has settled as nearly 3,000 caravan migrants have flocked to Tijuana in recent days, after more than a month's drive – and with many more months ahead of them when they ask for asylum in the United States. The federal government estimates that the number of migrants could soon swell to 10,000.
US border inspectors handle about 100 asylum applications a day at the main Tijuana border crossing to San Diego. Asylum seekers record their names on a ragged notebook run by the migrants themselves, which numbered more than 3,000 names even before the arrival of the caravan.
For most of this city of 1.6 million inhabitants, the arrival of thousands of Central Americans is not noticeable. Most of the migrants stay within a three-block radius of the sports complex that faces the imposing metal walls topped with barbed wire on the US-Mexico border.
But many residents fear that over time, their presence will not stop and that crime will increase. Since 2016, thousands of Haitians who were also trying to visit the United States have finally settled there, while Tijuana has hosted thousands of Mexicans deported from the United States.
Tijuana also fights against drug-related violence and some say that they do not want the caravan to pose more problems.
Sandra Lucia Montanez, a 28-year-old psychologist from Tijuana, said news reports that Central Americans had stormed Mexico's southern border fueled the fears. But, she added, it is important that Tijuana does not forget that it is a city of migrants.
"Almost no one here comes from Tijuana," said Montanez. "We must help the most needy. They come from very poor countries. Honduras is worse than Mexico. "
The United States has significantly strengthened border security in anticipation of the arrival of the caravan, closing the corridors at entry points to place cement barriers surmounted by razor wires that can be quickly moved. to block the passage if a large number of people tried to force their passage. the country.
But lane closures have also made it more difficult for cross-border residents to access and shop in the United States. The San Ysidro Port of Entry is one of the busiest border posts in the world, with more than 40,000 vehicles and 34,000 pedestrians using it daily.
On Monday, US authorities closed the northbound traffic for several hours as well as a pedestrian walkway at the crossing to install new security gates, after people would have gathered in Tijuana to press for security posts. border control.
"Waiting for a large group of people at the border trying to cross illegally is too late for us," said Pete Flores, director of field operations for Customs and Border Protection in San Diego.
During the demonstration on Sunday, some protesters complained of the aggression of some migrants, shouting insults at US border patrol agents and climbing walls and arguing over the Tijuana beach in the area. Peaceful.
But Tijuana police officer Victor Coronel, who oversaw security outside the sports complex housing the migrants, said the fears were based on the misbehavior of a handful of migrants.
"The problem is that bad news is circulating on social media, including videos of two or three abused migrants, climbing the wall or eating food in the shops," said Coronel, adding that most were poor looking for work.
Coronel said he hoped that over time, many of them would choose to return home or find a job in Mexico and integrate into society.
Lesbia Navarro, 36, stayed inside the stadium with her four children aged 3 to 16 while they listened to the shouts and insults of protesters on Sunday.
"We only want to be here for a while, until we can work in the United States," said Navarro, of Choloma, Honduras. "We do not want to cause trouble to anyone."
The protests in Tijuana took place in a tightening of positions in some states of northern Mexico against migrants. In the state of Jalisco, which the caravan passed through to Tijuana, officials said they would open more shelters, citing fights involving migrants last week.
Instead, the state will provide water, food and escorts at nine points of the main highway to help migrants not to stop.
The mayor of Tijuana, Juan Manuel Gastelum, described the arrival of migrants as "avalanche" that the city is poorly prepared to handle. They calculated that they would stay in Tijuana for at least six months while waiting for asylum applications.
Gastelum has appealed to the federal government to receive more help to cope with this influx, as more and more migrants continue to move to the US-Mexico border.
Trump used Twitter on Sunday to express his support for the mayor. He wrote that, like Tijuana, "the United States is ill-prepared for this invasion and will not tolerate it. They cause crimes and big problems in Mexico. Go home!"
He followed this tweet by writing: "Catch and Release is an obsolete term. It's now Catch and Detain. Illegal immigrants attempting to enter the United States, often proudly displaying the flag of their country when they seek asylum in the United States, will be arrested or refused. "
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Stevenson contributed from Mexico. Associate Editor Marcos Aleman in San Salvador contributed to this report.
Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, disseminated, rewritten or redistributed.
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