A report published on Saturday, September 23 by the Honduran National Migration Institute states that more than 308,000 irregular migrants have entered the country since 2023. A situation that affects the Mexican government, which is calling on it to work on solutions to the humanitarian crisis caused by the massive influx and outflow of people in this condition on its southern and northern borders.
Un report by the National Migration Institute (INM) of Honduras showed that, over the course of the year up to September, 308,182 irregular migrants entered its territory, a figure that is being followed with concern by local authorities and the Mexican government, because it will triple the figures recorded in 2022.
The report reflects ingresses registered from January 1, 2023 to September 20 of the same year, and shows that the increase in the number of people in a condition of irregularity rose by 195.5% compared to the same period in 2022, when 104,284 illegal ingresses were registered.
The report points out that Venezolans and Cubans continue to top the migrant registers. In 2023, 139,506 people from Venezuela and 40,950 Cubans entered the Central American country, according to the INM.
The list is followed by Haitians (35,658), Ecuadoreans (34,095), Colombians (6,900), Chinese (6,608) and Senegalese (6,071). Meanwhile, 6,527 irregular migrants who have entered the country come from more than 30 countries around the world, according to official reports.
According to the INM report, 81.6 % of all migrants who entered Honduras this year are adults and 18.4% (56,596) are minors.
Honduras worries about the vulnerability of migrants
Only on the first 20 days of September this year did 58,210 people enter the Central American country.
According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the departments of El Paraíso and Choluteca, in the east and south of Honduras, are the points where the highest influx of people without papers is registered. In these border crossings with Nicaragua there is a high flow of people in situations of vulnerability, according to the institution.
For its part, the IOM calls for solidarity in the face of the increase in migrants in transit in that country, while at the same time asking to "ensure the human rights of all migrants".
In the same vein, the IOM chief of mission for El Salvador and Honduras, Nicola Graviano, quoted by EFE, called for "stronger coordinated action", especially in the east of the country, while stressing that "there is no place for indifference".
Graviano warned of "the risk that this serious situation will turn into a humanitarian crisis of enormous dimensions" if there is no response and funding is increased.
Why is Mexico worried about these figures?
Honduras is a key country in the transit of irregular migrants, according to the Honduran and Mexican authorities. The latter have expressed their concern about the crisis on the southern and northern borders of Mexico.
Según la canciller mexicana, Alicia Bárcena, at a press conference held last Friday in the framework of the 78th General Assembly of the United Nations OrganizationHe said that "around 3,000 people a day" arrive in Mexico via the Tapón del Darién, while "at the southern border we get 6,000 who are joining Honduras, Guatemala, etcetera". He also pointed out that "8,000" migrants a day are arriving at the northern border seeking to cross into the United States.
The official said that the seven countries from which most emigrants come, according to Mexico's records, are: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.
Bárcena said that both Mexico and the United States have "outdated" police and migration control systems, given the large number of people in transit who are trying to reach the United States. On the northern border, the metropolitan area of Ciudad Juárez and the US town in the state of Texas, El Paso, are the regions where the authorities are working hardest to try to find solutions.
The migratory crisis not only raises alarms due to the high flow of people crossing between countries in irregular conditions, it also poses a major challenge due to the criminal organizations involved in human trafficking.
This Saturday, September 23, the Fiscalía General del Estado de Chihuahua, in Mexico, reported that through a procedure carried out by the Army and anti-secuestry police, 23 irregular migrants from various countries were rescued.
Through this procedure, the police authorities detained three people and seized weapons that were in the house where the people were being held. Meanwhile, protection procedures are continuing to safeguard the integrity of migrants dispersed throughout the city and along the banks of the River Bravo and to prevent them from falling into criminal groups.
With EFE, Reuters and local media.
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