Let’s start with a question and, please, don’t cheat and look it up on Google…
How many immigrants have been deported by Donald Trump?
Think about it!
During the electoral campaign, Donald Trump couldn’t have made his point more clear:
he wouldn’t accept any more illegal immigrants.
Right?
So… check out this chart!
If you pay attention, you will see that, deportations-wise, Obama was stricter on immigration than Trump.
Does this mean that Trump loves immigrants and deserves a Peace nobel prize?
Of course not!
In fact, there are many nuances to discuss about this chart.
But I wanted to show it to you to make a point: when it comes to immigration, words are one
thing and facts are a totally different one.
So why are we talking about this now?
Because of this…
Migrants at Southern border top 100K for 2nd month in a row
Yes, you heard that right… at the moment, the American continent is dealing with one
of the biggest refugee crises in recent history.
But let’s hear more details about this from Xander…
But let’s hear more details about this from Erik…
Of course, Simon!
In recent years, hundreds of thousands of Central American immigrants have been crossing
Mexican territory until they reach the border with the US.
Many of them are children and women who make the whole road by foot and often arrive with
diseases and malnutrition.
And yes, I said they cross Mexican soil because they come from Central America.
Countries like Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador have become a living hell: violence,
drug gangs and, of course, extreme poverty have caused all of these people to flee their
homelands.
So now you might wonder… how did Trump answer this challenge?
Of course, he did this…
Donald Trump threatens Mexico with 5% imports tariff over illegal immigration
Yes, you heard that right…
Donald Trump wants to pass the hot potato to Mexico.
But here is the big question…
What does Mexico do about it?
First of all, the Mexican President is this man you see on the screen: ANDRES MANUEL LOPEZ
OBRADOR, also known as AMLO.
AMLO is a hardcore left wing politician who, you guessed it, is no big fan of Trump.
During the electoral campaign, he said he would be compassionate with immigrants crossing
into his country.
But, now he says he’s being pushed by the White House to take a hard stance on immigration:
Mexico has a lot to lose if America imposes tariffs on them.
So AMLO had to send in the troops to stop the immigrants on the Southern border.
So again, evil Donald Trump is pushing a poor, good hearted politician to do his dirty work,
right?
Well… this is the narrative we have heard so far on many media outlets.
But… is it really that simple?
For example, here’s a good question… where would be the big deal if Mexico took in more
refugees?
Similar arrangements have been made with other countries like Turkey and they seemed to work…
but here’s the thing…
Have you ever wondered about the immigration policy in Mexico?
Well… you should.
Here are some numbers.
14% of the US population are immigrants.
The OCDE average is 13%.
But Mexico has just 1%.
Yes, you heard that right.
Mexico is no country for foreigners.
So Today’s question is… how does Mexican immigration policy actually work?
What is Mexico actually doing to manage the refugee crisis?
Are they really doing what Trump wants?
Today we are going to answer to all of these questions but, before we do, let’s take
a look back at the history.
THE MIGRANT CARAVAN
I know what you’re thinking now… why are so many central americans leaving their countries
now?
Let’s be honest here, Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador have never been prosperous
countries.
But… if we have learned anything from history, it’s that what goes bad can go even worse.
Between 2010 and 2012, the crime rates skyrocketed here.
Honduras suffered a coup d’etat in 2009.
El Salvador is suffering street violence from the so-called MARAS, or street gangs.
Something similar is happening in Guatemala.
And part of it can be explained because of drug trafficking.
You see, during the 80s, narco violence was focused on Colombia.
Those were the times of Pablo Escobar, the Cali cartel, and the FARC.
But after 2000, Colombia managed to reduce the violence.
Yes, cocaine production is still there, but the different cartels have reached a sort
of PAX MAFIOSA.
They are still in the drug business, but they don’t kill each other.
But now, a similar kind of drug violence has moved to other parts of the continent.
Also, some people blame climate change.
According to this theory, Climate Change is creating droughts in Central America.
If the crops aren’t productive, people starve and have to leave.
Add to this NGOs like PUEBLOS SIN FRONTERAS, which organize the so-called migrante caravans.
They offer logistical support so thousands of migrants can start their journeys to the
US border.
But of course, it’s not only about NGOs.
It’s also about human traffickers.
As you can see, there are many explanations, but the truth is this is an exodus.
For a better understanding, in 2007, the US border patrols apprehended 16,000 Guatemalans.
11 years later, in 2018, the figure increased to 116,000 Guatemalans.
And now you might wonder… are these Immigrants or refugees?
And to be fair, we should talk about refugees.
Officially, they are considered economic migrants but, let’s be honest… these are not ambitious
people trying to achieve the American dream.
In most cases, they’re just people escaping extreme violence.
In many cases, they’re women and children threatened by a Mara or a drug gang.
They would almost certainly be killed if they went back.
This is why they’ll do whatever it takes to leave.
And I say whatever it takes because they really take no prisoners.
There are more than 3000 kilometers or 1800 miles between Guatemala and El Paso, Texas.
Many of these migrants do the journey by foot.
Others do it by the so-called, ‘death train’… you can imagine why they call it this.
So what happens when these people cross the border?
Most of them are apprehended and deported to their home countries.
But let’s be fair here!
Some make it to America.
US authorities have already created many programs to attend to those refugees.
Just in 2017, more than 59,000 Central Americans stayed in the country.
Is that too much or too little?
It’s up to you to make your own judgment.
But the question is… how many did Mexico accept?
We don’t have the exact number, but is much smaller.
Here’s a number we can give you.
In Mexico today, there are about 50,000 Guatemalans while America hosts 900,000.
And you might wonder… why?
Why can’t central americans refugees remain in Mexico?
Let’s have a look, shall we?
NO COUNTRY FOR FOREIGNERS
In Mexico they’ve made it very clear: not all migrants are made equal.
For example, if you are watching this video from America... don’t worry!
Mexico welcomes you with open arms.
In fact, most of the migrants living there come from the States.
Don’t believe me?
Look at this chart.
Mexico has 1,200,000 migrants today.
Of those, 900,000 are American, 27,000 are Spanish, and Only 15,000 come from Honduras.
Mexico has more Germans than Salvadoreans.
And this is surprising considering that Salvadoreans are much closer, speak the same language,
and are leaving their country by the thousands.
And you might wonder… why is this?
Is it pure chance?
Do central Americans don’t like Mexico?
Of course not.
Just look at what the Mexican immigration law says.
The Secretary of Government can neglect the entry to the country to a foreigner or change
the characteristics of their migrant status anytime the demographic balance requires it
Yes, you heard that right… this demographic balance is just a nice way of saying; poor
people are not allowed here.
And when it says ‘changing the characteristics of their migrant status’, it basically means
they can kick you out any time they want.
But OK!
OK!
I know what many of you might say.
Things are changing.
And, of course, they are.
Just look at what the former Mexican president said in October 2018.
Today Mexico gives you its hand.
We want you and all the migrants to feel protected and calm.
In order to support you, Mexico is launching today the ‘Feel like home!’ plan.
Here, in Mexico, you can receive healthcare assistance, education and you will have a
temporary ID to get your residence permit.
The man you see on the screen is ENRIQUE PENA NIETO, the former Mexican president.
This was one of his last policies before leaving office.
His successor, AMLO agreed with this plan.
And Donald Trump also agreed.
All of a sudden, his Southern neighbour accepted migrants so America didn’t have to.
But… wait a minute because, as we said at the beginning, words are one thing and facts
are another.
Sure, at the beginning, the Mexican government accepted people from Central America.
In a few months, more than 20,000 Guatemalans, Hondurans and Salvadoreans came to the country
asking for a visa.
And how did Mexicans like that?
Well… not so much!
According to a Survey, 58% of Mexicans don’t want migrants to enter the country.
Exactly! Trump is not alone in hating migrants and refugees.
Add to this the fact that Mexican authorities can’t deal with so many people crossing
the Southern border.
Think about it… you need to build shelters, print those visas, and feed all those people.
And you need money for that.
And… political capital.
And the new Mexican president doesn’t want to risk any of those two things.
He is extremely popular and he doesn’t want that to stop being the case.
So, with Mexican society against migrants and the army and the police with no resources,
the new Mexican president had only one choice.
Mexico triples deportations of Central Americans with LOPEZ OBRADOR
The new Government has removed more than 45,000 people in 5 months.
15,000 of those were in April.
So now you might wonder… what are the consequences of this policy?
Of course, the biggest victims are those hundreds of thousands Central Americans who cannot
stay in Mexico or America.
But this is not the only consequence.
Think about it… if AMLO doesn’t want the refugees… where will they go?
Exactly!
They keep making their way up to the States.
So the hot potato falls back into Donald Trump’s hands.
This is in May 2019 and it’s when the White House threatens Mexico with 5% tariffs.
In other words, this is when the Mexican government finds itself between the hammer and the anvil.
If the Mexican president takes in so many refugees, Mexicans will hate him.
If he doesn’t… Trump will punish him.
So what’s his solution?
Well… just look…
U.S. Government's 'Remain in Mexico' Policy is Expanding, Stranding More People in a Dangerous
Mexican City
In other words, in May 2019, Trump went to AMLO and said…
Look, Mexico, dude…
I don’t give two shits about what you do with Central Americans.
Really.
Not my problem…
Wanna take them?
All yours!
Wanna deport them?
Of course!
You can deport them to…
Canada, Russia or Mars…
I just don’t wanna see one more of those people crossing my border!
And if I do… you’ll pay for it!’
So what was the easiest solution to AMLO?
Basically, letting all those immigrants stay in a ghetto.
Mexico has deployed 6000 troops to contain them.
So they haven’t been deported, but they cannot continue on their way or integrate
into Mexican society.
For example, in the most recent months, many of those immigrants have been concentrated
in cities like NUEVO LAREDO, at the border with US, in really poor conditions.
There are no doctors, no food, and violence is starting to rise.
But the worst place of all is the city of TAPACHULA, at the border with GUATEMALA.
Over 20,000 and 30,000 asylum pledges have been registered here.
And the Mexican army is stationed here, stopping people from going any farther north.
Lots of murders have been happening already.
So, in other words, those refugees ended up in the same situation that they were escaping
from.
Neither America nor Mexico wants them.
And while they keep passing the hot potato to each other, people are dying.
So the question now goes to you…
How do you think this problem could be solved?
Do you think Mexico could do anything to accept the refugees or is it only America’s job?
Could they reach a deal to share responsibility?
Please, leave your answer in the comment section below.
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