“If they have committed a crime, they have to leave”: Boric’s harsh message to immigrants

The President of Chile, Gabriel Borichardened his tone this Thursday towards immigrants who do not have their papers up to date, pointing out that “either they regularize or they leave, and if they have committed a crime, they have to leave.”

(Also: The implications of a new US measure to control Venezuelan migration)

On his tour of the north of the country, particularly the Antofagasta region, the Chilean president focused on the migration and insecurity crisis that has afflicted the area for months.

“The answer is more complicated, it is intersectoral. You have to carry out the cadastre, offer alternatives, to those who are in an irregular situation, either regularize or leave, and those who have committed crimes, they absolutely have to leave. There is no one here who going to be above the law,” Boric emphasized.

(You can read: The new US measures to control Venezuelan migration)

“It is a job that our delegate (regional president, Karen Behrens) has as a priority, who is going to do this intersectoral work with (the Ministry of Health); in case there are children, we have to guarantee that they have access to education; in the case of Social Development, the shelters are now full in Antofagasta,” he added.

(Keep reading: The US city that more and more young people are leaving due to its cost of living)

Irregular migration was not a new phenomenon in Chile, but from 2010 to July 2021 the figure has multiplied by 57going from 415 to more than 23,000 people, mostly Venezuelans, according to the Jesuit Migrant Service (SJM).

EFE

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