Every year, hundreds of thousands of migrants, mostly from Central America, enter the southern Mexico city of Tapachula on their way north to the United States. The migrants from the Northern Triangle countries of Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala have traditionally remained relatively peaceful. This year, however, the numbers are larger than ever–an estimated 100,000 in a city that in 2010 contained about 320,451. And the demographic complexion has changed: tens of thousands of the migrants in Tapachula now are from Haiti, Cuba, and Africa, most of whom sleep along the roadsides while awaiting permission to journey north.
(For example, each year the Mexican government keeps a tally of the number of refugee applications it receives [a temporary step necessary for any migrant, although almost all of whom are ultimately headed to the U.S.]. In 2021, it received a record total of 131,448 such applications: more than 51,000 were from Haitians.)
Along with the changes has come a heightened level of violence. Violent demonstrations have been occurring for the past month, and on Tuesday, more than 100 Haitian migrants fought openly with police in the streets of the city. Frustrated at not being cleared for travel to the U.S. border, the migrants threw stones and other objects at the Mexican National Guardsmen and attempted to force their way to the immigration office. The Guardsmen responded with riot gear and shields. Ultimately the Haitians erected a barricade of sticks and burning tires in the street.
Self-styled migrant leader Ireneo Mujica (who last October had declared war on anyone blocking the migrants’ path) said: “It got completely out of control because people are very desperate. Many have been waiting for months” for permission to head north to the United States.
For more, see the NY Post.