The US announced this Thursday that it will create centers to manage migrant applications in Colombia and Guatemala, where people will be able to access some legal migration paths such as obtaining refugee status, family reunification programs and work permits.
The measure is part of the new actions adopted by the US Executive to try to reduce the migratory flow towards its border with Mexico as of May 11, when the Title 42, an immigration measure that allows hot expulsions.
in those centers 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 this Thursday in a call with journalists.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said at a press conference on Thursday that US immigration officials will work together with staff from the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration ( IOM) to evaluate “very quickly” the cases of migrants in the centers.
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The expectation is that at these points the cases of up to 6,000 migrants per month can be evaluated.assured Mayorkas, and that they have a “significant impact on migration decisions in the region.”
Those interested can make an appointment by phone to access the nearest regional center.
The purpose of the centers
According to the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, the announcement is part of a macro plan that the United States has been working on with its regional allies and that seeks to promote a safe, humane and orderly migration “that responds to the interests and needs of those involved”.
“In our own hemisphere, we are facing an unprecedented migration challenge. Factors such as violence, corruption, a lack of economic opportunity, continue to drive people from their homes: problems that have been exacerbated by the pandemic, the crises governance, extreme weather events caused by climate change. Twenty million people are displaced in this hemisphere, and the pressure on transit and host countries is high. It is a challenge that no country can solve on its own,” the secretary stated.
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According to Blinken, This includes economic support to the countries of the region to attack the deep roots of migration, assistance to transit nations like Colombia so they can accommodate and offer basic services to these people, and also joint efforts like the ones just announced with our country and Panama to go after coyotes and people smugglers.
At the same time, the US -said Blinken- has been expanding the alternatives to legally migrate to the US without exposing themselves to the dangers of traveling across the border.
Among them is the plan that started in January of this year that grants 30,000 monthly visas to citizens of Venezuela, Haiti, Cuba and Nicaragua who have a sponsor in the US.
The next step, stated the Secretary of State, is the establishment of these Regional Processing Centers in Colombia and Guatemala. which will be operated by international organizations and with which it seeks to facilitate the access of people to an accelerated process of refugee resettlement, family reunification and job options in the US and in other countries such as Canada and Spain.
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“These centers,” Blinken said, “are a very important step in preventing people from making the dangerous journey to the border by provide them with a much safer legal option to migrate that they can continue within and from their own countries. It is a new and innovative approach that benefits people who want to migrate and improves security and stability in the region.”
Blinken left the “stick” with which the initiative comes to the Secretary for Internal Security Alejandro Mayorkas. “Let me be clear. Our border is not open nor will it be as of May 11,” said the secretary, referring to the date on which the famous Title 42 expires and after which another migratory wave could be unleashed.
According to Mayorkas, any migrant who arrives at the border without having used the legal channels to arrive and request asylum will be deported expeditiously and could be subject to heavy penalties including a US re-entry ban of at least five years and possible criminal prosecution for repeat offenders.
Our border is not open nor will it be as of this May 11
Mayorkas announced in passing that the family reunification program that currently operates only for Cubans and Haitians will soon be expanded to cover Colombians, Salvadorans, Guatemalans and Hondurans.
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This allows US citizens or legal residents to bring certain family members to stay in the US.,. while your immigration process progresses.
This includes, in the case of residents, a wife or child under 21 years of age, and in the case of citizens, adult children or siblings.
SERGIO GOMEZ MASERI
WEATHER CORRESPONDENT
WASHINGTON
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