Officials in Baja California, Mexico, are bracing themselves for a potential increase in deportations from the United States, following Donald Trump’s return to office.
Throughout his presidential campaign, Trump promised to deport large numbers of migrants if he regained the presidency. With his victory on Tuesday, officials in the state expect an elevated number of deportees to be sent back to Mexico or their home countries.
“We are getting ready for elevated returns,” said Jorge Rivera Manzo, director of governmental migrant affairs with the state government. “Every time there are changes in the United States, it directly impacts us, especially when people are being returned.”
Right now, shelters in Tijuana and Mexicali have relatively low occupancy rates, with 60% and 70% vacancy rates respectively.
Migrants at a shelter called Movimiento Juventud 2000 are worried about the expected migrant traffic and the potential impact on their asylum claims. “When people are waiting for asylum, hoping the United States will help, it leads to a lot of uncertainty among the migrants we have here at the shelter,” said José MarÃa GarcÃa Lara, who manages the shelter.
Some migrants, like Emir Garcia, remain hopeful that Trump will decide to help those seeking asylum. “We’re all afraid, all the migrants, we need his help,” she said. “We know he has to take care of his country, but he also needs to help others around the world.”
Others, like Lucia Chique from Mexico, are less optimistic about the incoming Trump administration’s policies on immigration. “Donald Trump doesn’t want us, he doesn’t want Latinos, he doesn’t want Mexicans,” she said. “There are going to be a lot of deportations of those seeking asylum, it’s going to get very complicated.”
The CBP One app, which helps migrants land appointments to lawfully cross the border and ask for asylum, is also a concern among some migrants. The app provides 1,450 daily appointments, but users worry that Trump may discontinue the program once he takes office.
One user, Jesus Ramos, wants Trump to continue the CBP One program. “I’ve been waiting three months for an appointment, I just want to get to the U.S. to see my grandparents one more time,” he said. If the program is discontinued, Ramos believes migrants will be forced to use smugglers.
“I’m going to cross regardless, I’ll use a coyote (smuggler) if necessary,” he said.
Source: News Nation Now
