15,000 Migrants exposed to the elements on Mexico’s southern border

Tapachula, Mexico, Jun 23 (EFE).- Nearly 15,000 migrants waiting on Mexico’s border with Guatemala for transit permits allowing them to continue their journey toward the United States were sheltering Friday under trees, trailer boxes, and tents as the area continued to be pounded by heavy rains.

Mikel Jose Sanchez, who traveled from Venezuela with his wife and their two children, got soaked standing in line outside the Tapachula office of the INM immigration agency.

“The saddest thing is that it rained. We don’t have a roof over the children, because there are many children and the reality is that it rains in the afternoon and they are going to sleep on the wet ground,” he told EFE.

Luis Rey Garcia Villagran, director of the Center for Human Dignity (CDH), said that his organization has counted roughly 15,000 migrants who find themselves stranded in Tapachula at the peak of the rainy season.

“We defenders of migrants are worried about the climate situation, because there are many children who are getting sick and there is no one to help them. If there is no medical attention for Mexicans, much less for foreigners,” Villagran said.

The Chiapas civil protection service forecast intense rain Friday in several different regions of Mexico’s southernmost state, with accumulations of 75-150 mm (2.9-5.9 in).

“What we ask is that they help us as soon as possible. There should be a preventive measure for the children so they don’t get wet when it rains,” Venezuelan migrant Juliano Truisi said.

US immigration authorities intercepted more than 2.76 million undocumented migrants on the border with Mexico during the 12 months that ended on Sept. 30, 2022. EFE jmb/dr