Translated by Mariana Silva
Human rights advocates stated that the migratory policy that affects Mexican illegal immigrants is "intermittent, limited, and in some cases, nonexistent." This situation leaves thousands of people defenseless and vulnerable.
Activists gathered testimonies about organized crime on the migratory route that goes through the cities of Chiapas, Tabasco and Veracruz and included them in a report made by the Migratory Route Observation Mission on May 24th and 27th.
... The document explains details about how the mission started in Orizaba and traveled to the cities of La Patrona, Acayucan, Cosoleacaque, Cotazacoalcos and Las Choapas, in the State of Veracruz, and Chontalpa, Villahermosa and Tenosique, in Tabasco and Palenque, Chiapas. The results were presented during a meeting on May 28th in the shelter called La 72 [The 72] in the city of Tenosique, with the presence of Senators from the committees of Southern Border Affairs, Migratory Affairs, Human Rights and Population, among others.
The activists concluded that
"there is a clear and obvious contrast in the actions of social organizations and government institutions to help and try to solve the constant violations to migrant's rights."The mission was able to assess the work of shelters, soup kitchens, and migrant advisory offices which are run by nonprofit organizations and churches in cities like Orizaba, Córdova, Amatlán, Acayucan, Cosoalacaque, Las Barrancas, Coatzacoalcos and Las Choapas.
The members of the mission pointed out that
"government participation lacks coordination and organization to assist migrants. In their different agency sites, the assistance is often intermittent, limited, and in some cases, nonexistent."The inequality of protection to migrants
"results in lack of support and manifests lack of general policies related to protection and development of human rights. We are not able to see a clear intention to protect the dignity and integrity of people."During their visit to Las Barrancas, a town with three thousand people, the activists heard many testimonies. ... It is because of those testimonies that the members of the Observation Mission refute the statements made by the government of Veracruz, which said that on May 1st there was a "brawl" in the city of Barrancas among migrants that were traveling on the train that reaches the north of the country.
... They were told that on May 1st, many migrants that were traveling on "the back of The Beast" (this is what they call the train that goes from Central America all the way north, almost to the US border) were attacked with machetes and shot at by members of criminal organizations that control the migratory route, and some illegal immigrants jumped the train to avoid the attack. They said there were more than a dozen injured, some with machetes.
However, according to the report
"the information about the number of fatal victims among migrants is contradictory. We heard that there were several deaths, but the official report says they were none. The outstanding point about this incident was the way the facts were interpreted officially, because they portrayed the acts as a conflict between migrants that resulted in a brawl."The document states that during the trip, the activists were able to see around one thousand to fifteen hundred people climbing The Beast, and they heard multiple stories of abuse,
"payment of fees in order to pass, 400 dollars for 4 stations; one migrant being thrown off the train and needing medical assistance, possibly having a broken arm. Some others showed signs of amputation."The document was signed by Tomás González Castillo, from La 72 Migran Shelter; Rubén Figueroa, Marta Sánchez Soler and José Jacques y Medina from the Mesoamerican Migrant Movement, and Elvira Arellano, from United Latin Family and M3. Spanish original