Over the past few weeks, thousands of migrants from Central America have been tromping en masse towards the United States-Mexico border in search for a better life.
Migrant caravans aren’t really a rare occurrence; there have been reports of informal, self-organized groups traveling to the United States as early as 2010. There have also been smaller caravans organized by Mexican advocacy groups to draw attention to the struggle of Latin American asylum-seekers. However, this one is different than all the previous ones.
Karen Aguilar, 25 and Vanesa Gutierrez, 2
On the road of Teculután, Guatemala, Vanessa and her daughter take a short break while walking through the Guatemalan department of Zacapa. The morning sun had been hitting hard since seven in the morning. They are trying to escape the poverty of their home country in order to find a better quality of life.
"We are on our way in search for work and a better life. I have two more children. They stayed back home."
Teculutan, Zacapa, Guatemala. October 24, 2018.
Denis Flores, 24
He trained as a sea merchant, but never got the chance to work in the field. Both of his parents can't find steady employment, so they do odd jobs from time to time. When he heard about the caravan, he saw an opportunity to get ahead in life. One of his biggest complaints about Honduras is that, if you are wronged and turn to the police for help, you may end up in an even worse situation as law enforcement and criminal organizations work together. "A friend of mine sent the son of a narco to prison," he relates. "He was killed within a week. Then, the son of the narco was released from jail because my friend was dead."
“You are silenced. There is violence everywhere”
Tecún Úman, San Marcos. October 27, 2018.
Edgar Antonio, 24
He is a farmer by trade. Over the last few years, his crops began failing because of the drought in Coatepeque, Honduras. Edgar doesn't really know how to swim, but he still crossed the Suchiate river with the rest of the caravan to get into Mexico. This is the second time he's tried to go to the United States. The first time was in March 2018, when he was captured on a train near Palenque, Mexico, and deported back to Honduras.
"I have suffered too much. I'm scared of being deported."
Rodolfo Robles Bridge, between Guatemala and Mexico. October 26, 2018.
Sidley Bode, 21 and Cindy Vallecido, 17
"We come running away, trying to wake up from the nightmare that is Honduras. You work and work there, but you just get tied up. Instead of being able to pay the bills, you get more and more of them until you end up with less."
When Sidley and Cindy traveled to Guatemala, they crossed through the mountains to avoid a border checkpoint while being followed by the police.
Tecún Úman, San Marcos. October 27, 2018.
Their journey began on October 12, 2018 in the city of San Pedro Sula, Honduras. Reportedly, a group of 160 people gathered at a local bus terminal and prepared to embark on the perilous excursion to North America in an attempt to escape the worsening economy and the threat of violence in their home country. They had been planning their trip for a little over a month.
Previous caravans have been considerably smaller than this one, numbering only a couple hundred people. However, after Bartolo Fuentes, a former Honduran congressman and one of the march’s coordinators, made a post on Facebook about it, news of it spread very quickly and the number of migrants grew exponentially. By the time the group set off in October 13, nearly 500 Hondurans had joined the caravan. When they arrived at the Guatemala-Honduras border, the group had about 2000 migrants in it.
As the caravan made its way through Guatemala, more migrants from the Northern Triangle of Central America joined. They went from town to town, and sympathizers and NGOs provided them with support in the form of food, supplies, cash, and shelter. Many more joined the group along the way due to media exposure and word of mouth. When the caravan arrived at the Mexico-Guatemala border in Ayutla, Guatemala, it had over 7,000 members.
Migrants are often kidnapped by human traffickers and criminal structures who force them to work for their organizations. So, for many, joining the caravan made sense as it offered safety in numbers. Still, this group of people fleeing the endemic gang violence, devastating poverty and institutionalized corruption of their home countries has been susceptible to various threats along the way. The journey in itself is extremely taxing: the hot weather makes severe sunburns and dehydration a huge risk factor. Some of the migrants have been protecting themselves from the harsh sun with umbrellas, blankets and pieces of cardboard. Despite being aided by good samaritans, food is still in short supply. Being constantly on the move has forced them to sleep on the streets or in makeshift camps that lack clean water and proper sanitation, which poses another health risk.
Their biggest challenge yet came when the first group arrived at the border between Tecún Umán, Guatemala and Ciudad Hidalgo, Mexico. On October 20th, as the migrants waited for the Mexican authorities to check their documents, there was a clash with the police. As they marched on Rodolfo Robles Bridge, they overwhelmed the Guatemalan police and the Mexican barriers. Some threw rocks and shoes at the Mexican Federal Police in riot gear after crossing into Chiapas, Mexico.
This first group is currently traveling through Mexico. The ones who splintered off to seek asylum in Mexico are currently residing in tents set up indoors at the Estadio Deportivo Complex in Tapachula while they wait out the 45-day period it will take for them to be granted refugee status. Those caught crossing the border illegally might be deported from Mexico to Honduras or Guatemala. It is worth noting that Guatemala’s Ministry of Exterior is offering transportation for those who opt for self-deportation.
Another group of migrants arrived at the Guatemala-Mexico border a few days after the first caravan went into Mexico. Fearing the possibility of deportation, they decided to wait for more migrants in Tecún Umán to cross the border as a large group. On October 28, the migrants decided to walk to the gates of Rodolfo Robles Bridge which connects both countries over the Suchiate River. The group waited for a few hours on the Guatemalan side until they lost control and broke the gate. The migrants were pushed back by the Guatemalan riot police, but they eventually overwhelmed the authorities. Then, the group went on the bridge. Things remained calm for a few hours until negotiations with the Mexican authorities turned sour. The group of migrants tore down part of the first of three barriers that separate Ciudad Hidalgo from the bridge. Afterwards, they threw a barrage of rocks at the Federales. Mexican authorities responded by launching teargas canisters towards the bridge to subdue the crowd. Eventually, the Mexican Federal Police dispatched a helicopter to provide cover for the officers on the other side of the wall. Teargas canisters were also launched from the helicopter at the crowd while the riot police on the bridge fired rubber bullets. A few migrants received gasoline from bystanders on the Guatemalan side, and hastely made about a dozen molotov cocktails. They managed to throw a couple of them on the bridge with little effect. Henry Díaz, a 26-year old Honduran migrant, died after receiving a deep head wound from a rubber bullet. Guatemalan volunteer firefighters attempted to treat Díaz, but the injury was too severe. After hostilities ceased, the group decided to camp on the bridge.
On October 29, the day after the confrontation, the migrants woke up to find the portable toilets that had been installed for them on the bridge tipped over on the river bed just below. Some of the migrants had left small piles of rocks by the gate on the Mexican side to be used as ammunition in case another fight broke out. The gate itself had been reinforced with metal spikes, barbed wire and large metal wedges overnight. After talking with the migratory authorities who offered them asylum in Mexico, the migrants chose to decline and cross the Suchiate river by foot instead.They formed a human chain to help each other across. When they arrived on the Mexican side of the river, they were received by a human wall of riot police, and the same helicopter that flew over them the day before. After two hours of walking through the river, the group was allowed entry into Mexico and were escorted by the Mexican Federal Police.
An equally large group of El Salvadorian migrants took off from San Salvador, El Salvador on October 28. They arrived at the Mexico-Guatemala border between October 30th and October 31st. A second large group of El Salvadorians took off from El Salvador on October 31st and arrived at Mexican border between November 1st and November 2nd.
Franklin Escobar, 25
A single father of two, Franklin has been looking for work for the past two years. His daughter's name, Madelin, is written with permanent marker on his baseball cap. He came across a couple of American flags, and decided to wear them as a good omen.
"My daughters stayed behind with my mother," he explains.
Tecún Úman, San Marcos. October 27, 2018.
Unlike previous smaller migrant caravans, the one from Honduras drew the attention of US President Donald Trump. At first, he criticized Central American countries and Mexico for allowing people to leave the region in order to get into the United States “illegally.” He then threatened to cut off foreign aid to these countries, but never really specified how he was planning to do it. On October 29, eight days before the mid-term elections on November 6, Mr. Trump announced that 5,200 troops would be deployed to the US-Mexico border. Two days later, the president told reporters at the White House that he is prepared to send as many as 15,000 troops to keep the caravan from entering the US. In an address from the White House on November 1st, Mr. Trump added that members of the US military sent to the southern border would “fight back” if the migrants threw stones at the soldiers. “I told them to consider it a rifle,” he declared. “When they throw rocks like what they did to the Mexican military and police, I say: consider it a rifle.”
On the other hand, Mexican president-elect Andrés Manuel López Obrador announced on November 1st that his government will offer work visas to the Central American migrants who choose to stay in Mexico.
Political instability coupled with corruption, violent crimes, gang extortion, hunger and lack of economic opportunities continue to be fundamental causes for mass emigration from Central America. Most people in these Central American nations depend on the influx of personal remittances from their relatives in other countries, particularly the United States and Canada. For the countries in the Northern Triangle of Central America, they represent 17.8 Billion USD according to figures of the World Bank which in turn accounts for 14.41 percent of the their combined GDP.
Text: Juan L. Toledo Wurmser and Santiago Billy.
Photo and Video: Santiago Billy.