Around 2,000 migrants embarked on a journey from Mexico’s southern border on Sunday with the goal of reaching the northern part of the country and eventually the United States.
This significant movement occurs just weeks before the upcoming U.S. presidential election, during which immigration has remained a prominent and contentious topic.
He expressed concern about the potential changes that could be made to the CBP One appointment system and the services provided to migrants. He explained that these potential changes are what cause fear among the people.
“The president in my country has been neglecting our needs, and the situation has become incredibly dire. We were stuck at the border for a whole week, as obtaining the necessary documents proved to be a time-consuming process,” expressed Roberto Domínguez, a 48-year-old Honduran.
He further added, “The documents we managed to acquire only allow us to stay within Tapachula, and we are not allowed to venture beyond the city limits.”
The third and largest group to leave since the start of Claudia Sheinbaum’s presidency departed on Sunday. Sheinbaum has not made any changes to the immigration policies set by her predecessor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
In October, two groups of migrants, consisting of 800 and 600 individuals respectively, departed from the region. According to activist Luis García Villagrán, there are approximately 40,000 migrants currently stranded in southern Mexico.
According to CBS News’ Camilo Montoya-Galvez, the Biden administration recently introduced new regulations to solidify the partial asylum ban that was implemented in June at the southern U.S. border.
This decision is expected to prolong the enforcement of the stringent immigration policy indefinitely. Administration officials have attributed the decline in unauthorized border crossings by migrants this year to the asylum restrictions.
Many migrants who arrived in the United States through a sponsorship program aimed at curbing illegal border crossings are facing the imminent loss of their legal statuses.
The Biden administration has chosen not to extend their coverage, which means their legal protections will expire by the end of October.
Around 214,000 Haitians, 117,000 Venezuelans, 111,000 Cubans, and 96,000 Nicaraguans have made their way to the United States under the parole program, allowing them to legally reside and work for a period of two years.
This program falls under an immigration law. The initial batch of individuals who will be affected by the termination of their parole status are the Venezuelans, who began entering the country through this program in October 2022.
