Published 04:49 IST, October 4th 2020
Guatemala fails to deter migrants moving north, President Giammattei threatens deportation
The new ‘migrant caravan’ is reminiscent of the one that occurred two years ago right before the US midterm elections and subsequently became hot topic.
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Guatemala President has threatened 'illegal' migrants with deportation and while these threats have seemingly worked on some who have started to return to Honduras, hundreds more have continued on their journey towards the Mexican border in hopes of reaching the United States.
According to reports, the migrants who entered the country illegally seem to have split up and are now taking two different routes with roughly 700 heading towards Peten in the north while another 400 are heading towards Guatemala City.
Groups of migrants carry on towards Mexico despite threats
As per reports, in addition to these, another 800 migrants are also making their way from Honduras. Reports add that army roadblocks are being used to prevent these migrants from moving closer to the Mexican border and some improvised leaders within the migrant groups have even started to negotiate with the force personnel at the roadblocks claiming that they had no right to stop the migrants.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador is reported to have said on Friday, October 2 that roughly 2,000 migrants that set out from Honduras towards the United States could have something to do with the upcoming US presidential elections. The Mexican leader added that he might not have all the elements yet and does not fully grasp the reason why someone would do this but also stated that he and his administration were not ‘naive’.
According to reports, this new ‘migrant caravan’ is reminiscent of the one that occurred two years ago right before the US midterm elections and subsequently became an important topic of discussion, fueling widespread anti-immigrant sentiments. Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei on Thursday, October 1 vowed to return the migrants back to Honduras citing the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
In a broadcast, Guatemala’s President said, “The order has been given to detain all those who entered illegally and return them to the border of their country, we will not allow any foreigner who has used illegal means to enter the country, to think that they have the right to come and infect us and put us at serious risk”.
(With AP inputs)
04:49 IST, October 4th 2020