Migrants Storm Southern Mexico Asylum Office
In a startling turn of events, a group of migrants, primarily from Haiti, stormed into a southern Mexico asylum office on Monday, demanding essential paperwork. The chaotic scene unfolded in Tapachula, where throngs of migrants toppled metal barricades and surged into the office, disregarding National Guard officers and police stationed there. Tragically, some migrants were injured in the rush. Thankfully, authorities later persuaded many of them to leave, and no further injuries were reported.
The tension at the asylum office comes amidst a sharp increase in asylum claims in Mexico, surpassing 100,000 already this year. Frustrated crowds of migrants, including individuals from Cuba and Honduras, voiced their grievances, citing weeks-long waits for appointments at the Tapachula office, situated near the Guatemala border.
Operated by the Mexican Commission for Refugee Aid, this office serves as a platform for migrants to file asylum claims within Mexico. However, it’s essential to note that most of these migrants have their sights set on using the obtained documents to facilitate safer journeys to the U.S. border.
Miguel Argoten, a Cuban migrant, explained the dire situation, saying, “It’s very complicated; there are too many people here. The Haitians get desperate, they knock over the barricades, and that only makes the process slower.” Argoten himself had waited a week in Tapachula to initiate the asylum application process. The office has been inundated with approximately 2,000 appointment requests daily in recent times.
Mexico faces the daunting prospect of receiving more asylum applications this year than ever before. The relentless flow of migrants has placed tremendous pressure on the governments of various Latin American countries along the migratory route.
Andrés Ramírez Silva, the director of Mexico’s refugee agency, sounded the alarm, stating that this year’s asylum applications could reach a staggering 150,000, far exceeding the previous record of 129,000 set in 2021. He emphasized the accelerated pace, revealing that through August, they had already received 100,000 applications, representing a 25% increase compared to the same period in 2021. More than half of these applications originated at Mexico’s shared border with Guatemala.
Notably, some migrants resorted to unruly behavior last week during their prolonged wait and forcibly entered the agency’s offices. This led to the deployment of National Guard officers, who struggled to maintain order.
Ramírez Silva pointed out that Cubans, Haitians, and Hondurans have accounted for approximately 80% of the asylum applications at the Tapachula office. He disclosed that his agency had requested additional resources from the federal government to expand its capacity, acknowledging the pressing need to address this escalating crisis.