For the time being, the US has failed to implement its plans to reject Central American refugees on the Mexican border. The regulation, according to which asylum seekers at the San Ysidro border crossing should only be allowed to enter the country after a positive decision, was not put into force yesterday.
According to the authorities in the US and Mexico, the first 20 people were to be sent back from Central America to Mexico yesterday afternoon. But by noon, none of them had to leave the US.
„Very delicate location“
A representative of the Mexican immigration authority said that the planned measures could not be completed until Monday at the earliest. He spoke of a „very delicate situation“. Those affected already have a hearing in court in the US, meaning that the US authorities recognize that their lives may be in danger. „If something happens to them in Mexico, their family could sue the US government for not protecting it,“ the official said.
Mexico had previously criticized the new regime. At the same time, the Foreign Ministry announced that it would issue a visa to people on the border for humanitarian reasons, so that they could wait for their asylum application in Mexico.
The government of US President Donald Trump had already announced the tightened rule in December. However, she wanted to wait until the inauguration of the new Mexican president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. The proposed action is part of Trump’s harsh policy against illegal immigration.
