Crossings to Guatemala, to prevent ‘narco’ from recruiting young people

Mexico City. Foreign Minister Alicia Bárcena said that the 400 residents of the community of Amatenango del Valle, Chiapas, who fled to Guatemala since July 23, cross the border due to the constant clashes between two criminal gangs, but the greatest concern of these families, she warned, is that the criminal groups They have started recruiting, especially young men..

At the morning press conference at the National Palace, he explained that the majority took refuge in the municipality of Cuilco, in Huehuetenango, Guatemala, where they were well received by the community. He indicated that the Secretaries of the Interior (SG), National Defense (Sedena) and Foreign Relations (SRE) are deploying actions to assist those affected.

The Sedena has reinforced security in Amatenango, and the Government maintains communication with the governments of Chiapas and Guatemala. We have been in constant contactsaid the head of the SRE, who noted that the three Mexican consuls in that country moved to Cuilco, where they identified that the Mexican families who fled are dedicated to the production of corn, which they sell mainly in Comalapa.

He stressed that the majority decided to stay on the Guatemalan side. be closer to their communities, because they do not want to lose their property, their animalsdespite the fact that the SRE offered to transfer them to a shelter in Tapachula.

Later, the Foreign Ministry announced in a joint statement a meeting of ministers and heads of the Interior, National Defense, Public Security, as well as migration and disaster reduction coordination authorities of both nations, where joint actions of humanitarian and consular assistance were agreed upon.

He added that in terms of security, They agreed to carry out simultaneous operations, both land and air, on both sides of the border; to maintain permanent communication mechanisms and to convene a meeting of the Mexico-Guatemala High-Level Security Group at the end of August..

The SG reported that, in conjunction with the Secretariats of Welfare, Health, Security and Citizen Protection, and the government of Chiapas, a comprehensive plan of care focused on Amatenango will be promoted, through social and health care programs. Bárcena indicated that to date 61 people have returned to their homes.

For his part, the head of Sedena, Luis Cresencio Sandoval, confirmed that anti-drone technology has been acquired to protect the military who carry out patrol and reconnaissance tasks, mainly in Michoacán, and ruled out that criminal gangs have the conditions to manufacture their own weapons.