Hundreds in new U.S.-bound migrant caravan cross into Guatemala

[webfact]

Hundreds in new U.S.-bound migrant caravan cross into Guatemala

By Jorge Cabrera

 

Hondurans, part of a new caravan of migrants traveling to the United States, walk toward the Agua Caliente border checkpoint in Guatemala, in the municipality of Ocotepeque, Honduras January 15, 2019. REUTERS/Jorge Cabrera

 

AGUA CALIENTE, Guatemala (Reuters) - Several hundred Honduran migrants in a new U.S.-bound caravan crossed into Guatemala on Tuesday, as U.S. President Donald Trump seized on news of the advancing group to try to build support for a wall along his country's border with Mexico.

 

About 360 Hondurans presented documents to pass legally through the Agua Caliente border crossing separating the two Central American nations. The group included entire families and young men, as well as parents carrying small children.

 

An additional 350 Hondurans crossed into Guatemalan territory, but were being detained by migration officials checking their documents, according to pro-migrant activists traveling with them.

 

Some migrants ran toward the port of entry where they were met by a large group of Guatemalan police, and nearly 150 were turned away because they lacked proper documents, police said.

 

"Those who (lack documents) will be turned back," said Alejandra Mena, a spokeswoman for Guatemala's migration authority.

 

A second group of about 300 Honduran migrants walked along a highway and expected to reach the same border crossing on Tuesday night, activists said, while a smaller group of about 50 migrants had gathered in at a plaza in the capital of El Salvador with the intention of joining up with the caravan.

 

Earlier on Tuesday, Honduran Deputy Foreign Minister Nelly Jerez told reporters that the caravan at the Agua Caliente crossing numbered between 800 and 1,000 people.

 

Central American caravans heading toward the United States have inflamed the debate over U.S. immigration policy, with Trump drawing attention to the bedraggled migrants to try to win backing for his plan to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.

 

As a partial U.S. government shutdown reached its 25th day, Trump invoked the new caravan on Twitter to pressure U.S. lawmakers. Democrats have resisted Trump's insistence that Congress provide $5.7 billion for wall funding.

 

"A big new Caravan is heading up to our Southern Border from Honduras," Trump tweeted on Tuesday. "Only a Wall, or Steel Barrier, will keep our Country safe! Stop playing political games and end the Shutdown!"

 

'UNINFORMED'

Trump has described the migrants as an invading force and he sent troops to reinforce the border last year. On Monday, the Pentagon announced it would extend the deployment of about 2,350 troops to the U.S. border through to the end of September.

 

Television footage on Tuesday showed mainly younger migrants leaving the notoriously violent Honduran city of San Pedro Sula. Some flagged down rides, aiming to catch up with the caravan that left the same city on Monday.

 

"We're asking them to let us cross on our way to Mexico," said Honduran migrant Josue Hernandez ahead of the checkpoint guarded by Guatemalan police.

 

The group will likely face weeks of travel to get to the U.S. border, and many of those persuaded to join the caravan have been misinformed about the likelihood of being able to enter U.S. territory, said the head of Mexico's migration authority.

 

"They are uninformed about what is happening," Tonatiuh Guillen told broadcaster Radio Formula.

 

"In this context of vulnerability, there are opportunists and a great distortion of reality."

 

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen said in a post on Twitter that her agency was closely monitoring the caravan.

"To be clear - participation in a caravan does not grant you a special status or provide you special treatment," she said.

 

About 2,500 migrants from a previous wave of Central Americans who crossed Mexico have been camping in shelters in the Mexican border city of Tijuana.

 

(Additional reporting by Gustavo Palencia in Tegucigalpa, Sofia Menchu in Guatemala City, Nelson Renteria in San Salvador and Lizbeth Diaz in Mexico City; Writing by David Alire Garcia; Editing by Rosalba O'Brien and Peter Cooney)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-01-16

[metisdead]

Quote

AGUA CALIENTE, Guatemala (Reuters) - Several hundred Honduran migrants in a new U.S.-bound caravan crossed into Guatemala on Tuesday, as U.S. President Donald Trump seized on news of the advancing group to try to build support for a wall along his country's border with Mexico.

 

Looks like it is time for Mexico to build a wall on it's southern border. 

[Tug]

Oh horror of horrors it’s an invasion of women and children Donald to the bunker quick lol well let’s see how much he exaggerates this one 

[fisherd3]

8 minutes ago, Tug said:

Oh horror of horrors it’s an invasion of women and children Donald to the bunker quick lol well let’s see how much he exaggerates this one 

Women have babies.

[attrayant]

*Deleted post edited out*

 

Because, if they make it as far as the US, they won't be coming in via the desert, over the mountains or swimming through the Rio Grande.  They'll be coming through ports of entry.  No wall needed.

[sanemax]

2 minutes ago, attrayant said:

 

Because, if they make it as far as the US, they won't be coming in via the desert, over the mountains or swimming through the Rio Grande.  They'll be coming through ports of entry.  No wall needed.

Although they can be refused entry at entry points , and they can just walk in with no wall there and cannot be refused entry

[farcanell]

6 hours ago, metisdead said:

 

Looks like it is time for Mexico to build a wall on it's southern border. 

who will pay for it? Guatemala will pay for it!

[farcanell]

the new face of terrorism.... donal must be very very frightened... call out the national guard.... recall the special forces from the ME... start laying a minefield across the desert... the end is nigh.

 

[Chomper Higgot]

6 hours ago, fisherd3 said:

Women have babies.

You should have kept that to yourself, there might have been a Nobel Prise in such a discovery.

[Lungstib]

If the USA had spent as much money on assistance for Central American social policies as it did on dictators, guns, para-military group training and coups, the citizens of these countries may have found them habitable.

[Dumbastheycome]

45 minutes ago, Lungstib said:

If the USA had spent as much money on assistance for Central American social policies as it did on dictators, guns, para-military group training and coups, the citizens of these countries may have found them habitable.

WhaT ? Instead of  supporting  dictatorships, corruption, human abuses etc? 

Whaal  hell ! That  just aint  the orla merican way   !

 

[Scott]

Many, many off-topic posts and replies removed.   Please stay on topic.

[Credo]

13 hours ago, metisdead said:

 

Looks like it is time for Mexico to build a wall on it's southern border. 

There is no doubt that Mexico is complicit in allowing these caravans through.   It says the last group had visas to enter, but any country can deny people from entering who are considered harmful to the country.   In this case, the harm is to US-Mexican relations.

 

I think that it is time for Trump & Co. to have a sit down with Mexico about allowing caravans whose ONLY purpose is to enter the US.   Unless they have a US visa, it's causing both countries a major problem.

 

Of course, Trump burned that bridge with his demand that Mexico pay for his wall.   Now he is reaping the reward.   

 

[Cryingdick]

1 hour ago, Credo said:

There is no doubt that Mexico is complicit in allowing these caravans through.   It says the last group had visas to enter, but any country can deny people from entering who are considered harmful to the country.   In this case, the harm is to US-Mexican relations.

 

I think that it is time for Trump & Co. to have a sit down with Mexico about allowing caravans whose ONLY purpose is to enter the US.   Unless they have a US visa, it's causing both countries a major problem.

 

Of course, Trump burned that bridge with his demand that Mexico pay for his wall.   Now he is reaping the reward.   

 

 

That backfired when a bunch of them got stuck in Tijuana and became Mexico's burden. I think you are going to see something different this time. Maybe the USA should take the same approach and simply charter some Greyhound buses to chauffeur them through to the Canadian border. 

[papa al]

9 hours ago, Lungstib said:

If the USA had spent as much money on assistance for Central American social policies as it did on dictators, guns, para-military group training and coups, the citizens of these countries may have found them habitable.

all i am saying 

is give peace a chance.

[papa al]

1 hour ago, Cryingdick said:

 

That backfired when a bunch of them got stuck in Tijuana and became Mexico's burden. I think you are going to see something different this time. Maybe the USA should take the same approach and simply charter some Greyhound buses to chauffeur them through to the Canadian border. 

then they can walk out 

great plan

[Redline]

The USA should build a wall on the northern border of all countries to its south-that will slow them down, or make them think twice ???? Just don’t try to help make the 3 main countries that people are fleeing from better to live in, with all the leverage, power and money available, so they won’t want to leave.  Or, just continue to make the USA a worse place to live, which seems to be the plan now.  You can’t scare people that are terrified already, and have nothing left to lose but their lives

[bendejo]

OMG!!!

When will they reach Thailand?

 

 

[metisdead]

A troll post has been removed. 

[garyk]

Maybe Trump is organizing this to turn sentiment in his favor for the wall...  ????

Good timing for another invasion IMO.

Never know.

[mcambl61]

14 hours ago, Lungstib said:

If the USA had spent as much money on assistance for Central American social policies as it did on dictators, guns, para-military group training and coups, the citizens of these countries may have found them habitable.

Nonsense. The governments of Central America have been woefully corrupt and inept for decades, including those supported by the usa. So your brilliant solution is to give them more money. 

[mcambl61]

8 hours ago, Credo said:

There is no doubt that Mexico is complicit in allowing these caravans through.   It says the last group had visas to enter, but any country can deny people from entering who are considered harmful to the country.   In this case, the harm is to US-Mexican relations.

 

I think that it is time for Trump & Co. to have a sit down with Mexico about allowing caravans whose ONLY purpose is to enter the US.   Unless they have a US visa, it's causing both countries a major problem.

 

Of course, Trump burned that bridge with his demand that Mexico pay for his wall.   Now he is reaping the reward.   

 

Or perhaps we can ask Mexico to arrest all the corrupt border and police officers who take payoffs to allow them to cross? While we are at it, we could start investigating all the federal government people who are on the cartels payroll. 

[Pib]

3 hours ago, bendejo said:

OMG!!!

When will they reach Thailand?

That very thing will be the subject of Sean Hannity's show on FoxNews tonight....don't miss it!   

[mtls2005]

This "strategy" (fear) didn't work for the mid-terms. Just goes to show you how desperate they are to salvage "the wall".

 

Some nitwit (Wenstrup-R-OH)is going on about "diseases" pouring in.

 

Sawing through the wall, tunneling under it, using ladders to go over it, doesn't matter to trumpers.

 

Drugs come through existing ports of entry.

 

Six people on the no-fly list (or with similar names) detained at the southern border, 14 detained at the northern border. No talk of a wall with Canada?

 

Most illegals arrive by airplane and overstay.

 

We need as many workers as we can get, especially those who will pay into SocSec.

 

trump can build his wall as long as he fulfills his campaign promise that Mexico would pay for it. Shut down their government.

[JAG]

18 hours ago, Lungstib said:

If the USA had spent as much money on assistance for Central American social policies as it did on dictators, guns, para-military group training and coups, the citizens of these countries may have found them habitable.

 

3 hours ago, mcambl61 said:

Nonsense. The governments of Central America have been woefully corrupt and inept for decades, including those supported by the usa. So your brilliant solution is to give them more money. 

A fraction of the money spent as Lungstib describes, used to promote better civil governance would have made a great difference. It worked in Belize.

[JohnOFphon]

I think there should be some money raising campaign to charter some cargo ships to take them to China.

I am sure they will be giving a warm welcome...free housing..schools..health care and citizenship.

[bristolboy]

7 hours ago, mcambl61 said:

Or perhaps we can ask Mexico to arrest all the corrupt border and police officers who take payoffs to allow them to cross? While we are at it, we could start investigating all the federal government people who are on the cartels payroll. 

Does Mexico have the authority to arrest those on the US side? Because the problem isn't limited to Mexico:

https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/HSAC CBP IAP_Final Report_FINAL (accessible)_0.pdf

[mcambl61]

2 hours ago, JAG said:

A fraction of the money spent as Lungstib describes, used to promote better civil governance would have made a great difference. It worked in Belize.

you have no idea how much money would or should be spent on each country or if it would ever work or for that matter, how long it would take.

How much longer do we have to tolerate the billions of dollars given to these countries while they increase illegal immigration and bogus asylum claims?

 

In both Fiscal Year 2016 and 2017, the U.S. allocated around $432.2 million in bilateral assistance for Guatemala, $391 million for Honduras and approximately $302.2 for El Salvador.

 

let's just take the 3 central american countries, say and how much money the US has given in aid since JUST 2001 to 2017:

 

source: https://explorer.usaid.gov/cd/HND?fiscal_year=

 

Honduras 1.63 Billion

Guatemala 2.224 Billion

El Salvador: 2.067 Billion

 

Total Nearly 6 billion

 

add to that 4.36 Billion to Mexico in the same time frame.

 

Add to that the billions spent in previous decades.

 

Where does it end? how much taxpayer money has to be spent to actually have these places become

a place that doesn't keep their citizens in poverty and their leaders in corrupt luxury?

 

You can't answer that, and it will never be enough as long as the ridiculous liberal ideology of blaming the

white western culture for everyone else's problems exists.

 

[doggie1955]

This is what the Liberal Democrats want in America...

 

https://www.facebook.com/theunityspot/videos/vb.226131044926117/1890541897709958/?type=2&theater&hc_location=ufi

 

[Hanaguma]

The last thing the US needs is another group of hundreds/thousands of uneducated and unskilled people. Jobs are already drying up in the service industries, what are these people going to do if they are allowed in?

 

Not to mention how interesting it is that the reporter/photographer manages to find perhaps the only woman with kids in the area and makes her the focal point of the photo. Never mind that the vast majority of the caravan people are single men, that doesn't fit the political narrative.