Wide videos EFE
Guatemala, the funnel that hinders the path of Venezuelans to the United States
Puerto Barrios (Guatemala), October 21 (EFE) .- José Luis Linares, the oldest member of a Venezuelan family, cried in frustration this week as Guatemalan security forces put him in a military jeep to expel him. Honduras. Linares’ drama is the same as that recently encountered by thousands of Venezuelans who try to reach the United States by land in search of better living conditions, but who collide with a migration funnel in Guatemala, the penultimate country before their final destination. “We just want to continue in the United States. We have nothing in Venezuela. We are not doing any harm,” Linares told EFE, holding back tears, after a failed attempt at dialogue with the Guatemalan authorities to allow him to continue his journey. The scene took place at a migration checkpoint on the Motagua River in the municipality of Puerto Barrios, in the department (province) of Izabal, about 250 kilometers northeast of the country’s capital and very close to one of the three dividing borders. Guatemala. Honduras. José Luis, 50, was traveling with five members of his family, including a three-year-old boy, when they were caught by the National Civil Police just a few kilometers from the El Cinchado border in Izabal. The Linares family members are part of the 5,269 Venezuelans who were detained by police and military on the border with Honduras between September and October and subsequently expelled from Guatemala, according to official data from the Guatemala Institute for Migration (IGM). Faced with border checkpoints and checkpoints, hikers have no choice but to try to sneak into public transport or freight to advance on their way. This is because the option of crossing the Motagua River is out of the question, as its flow has increased due to recent rains in the region and it cannot be safely crossed or navigated. In this way, the funnel created by Guatemala nullifies the dreams of Venezuelan migrants who wanted to reach the United States to start a new life and which in recent months has intensified in terms of the number of migrants. CHANGE OF POLICY The intense increase in border security in Guatemala responds to the change in policy of Joe Biden’s government, which until a few weeks ago allowed Venezuelans arriving in the United States to be “conditional on humanitarian”. However, with the new provisions disclosed by the United States last week, Venezuelans who manage to get through the Guatemalan funnel and cross into Mexico will be expelled immediately after being detained in the United States. Just last week, US Ambassador to Guatemala, William Popp, also met with local immigration authorities to analyze the growing number of Venezuelan migrants. In the course of 2022, Guatemala expelled 13,284 people who entered the territory irregularly, 77% of whom came from Venezuela, according to immigration authorities. For its part, the army has assured EFE that it has sent around 1,200 soldiers to the borders of El Florido, Agua Caliente and El Cinchado, all bordering Honduras, due to the growing number of Venezuelans trying to enter every day, given the rumors of new migrant caravans organizing in Honduran territory. Just this Thursday in El Cinchado several trucks were moving along the borders with military policemen armed with shields, helmets and riot batons. Meanwhile, entire families of migrants are sleeping on the alert at the border and waiting for an option that allows them to continue walking. “I have been traveling for more than a month. I struggled to carry my baby through the jungle (El Darién) and now in Guatemala they prevent us from passing. That’s not fair,” said Estela, a 24-year-old Venezuelan in Izabal. After being expelled from Guatemala, many Venezuelans have gathered at a gas station, without plans and full of uncertainty.In the case of José Luis Linares’ family, they will sleep on a cold floor even in front of a gas station, while the engines heavy transport trucks hardly let them rest. With no money to return to their country and with a military wall ahead, the options for Venezuelans are less and less in their attempts to reach the United States. “We cannot go forward or backward”, concluded Carlos, another young man from the South American nation who hoped to meet several fellow countrymen in Chiapas, Mexico, to go together to the United States Esteban Biba (c) Agencia EFE
