Colombia and Guatemala will have migrant processing centers to travel to the US.

The United States will open centers in Colombia and Guatemala to preselect migrants who they will be able to enter the country once a rule that allows the expulsion of almost everyone is lifted on May 11, a US official reported Thursday.

(Also: Thousands of Venezuelan and Haitian migrants stranded on the border of Peru and Chile)

Spain, Canada and the United States will accept migrants whose cases will be handled legally through processing centers in Latin American countries, such as Colombia and Guatemala, the US government announced Thursday.

(Also: Fall of the economy in Venezuela opens the door to another recessive cycle)

The announcement is part of a battery of measures reported this Thursday by the US Executive to try to reduce the migratory flow towards its border with Mexico as of May 11when Title 42 is suspended, an immigration norm that allows hot expulsions.

this is how they will work

“We will establish regional processing centers in Colombia and Guatemala, but we are in talks with other countries” in Latin America to open more, said this Thursday the official who requested anonymity in a telephone press conference.

In these centers, which will be run jointly with “international organizations”, The migrants evaluated will be able to benefit from refugee programs and humanitarian permits for families or work in the United States, US government officials reported on Thursday in a call with journalists.

(We recommend: Theories about the disappearance of Madeleine McCann: the clues about her whereabouts)

In parallel, Canada and Spain agreed to receive migrants who are referred from these centers.

A measure that seeks to promote legal migration

With this new measure, assured a high-ranking officialthe United States seeks to help migrants can access regular migration routes in their territory and in other countries in a “safe, orderly and humane” manner.

“The United States is making legal migration pathways more accessible from South and Central America as a alternative to prevent people from taking paths that are sometimes dangerous”stressed the official.

This announcement is part of a battery of measures announced by the US before the lifting of Title 42 on May 11.

(More news: Haiti: UN warns of increased violence and calls for action now)

This norm has allowed more than 2.5 million expulsions of migrants since it came into force in 2020 under the pretext of the pandemic during the term of former President Donald Trump (2017-2021).

In a hearing before a congressional committee last week, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Acting Director Troy Miller Miller noted that the number of irregular border crossings is expected to increase to 10,000 a day once the regulations are lifted.

Santiago Andres Venera Salazar
INTERNATIONAL WRITING
*With information from AFP and EFE