Mexico fails to protect migrants, says Amnesty International

The Mexican Government "routinely fails" to protect migrants arriving into the country, by returning them to their countries despite they are at risk of being persecuted and at serious human rights violations, claims the organization Amnesty International.

Overlooked, Under Protected: Mexico's Deadly Refoulement of Central Americans Seeking Asylum, by Madeleine Penman, representative of the Americas of Amnesty International, considered the violations to the principle of non-refoulement are affecting human lives by denying protection to those who need it the most.

“The information presented demonstrates that the Mexican government is routinely failing in its obligations under international law to protect those who are in need of international protection, as well as repeatedly violating the non-refoulement principle, a binding pillar of international law that prohibits the return of the people to a real risk of persecution or other serious human rights violations,” reads the report.

In the investigation, Amnesty International included interviews with 500 migrants and asylum seekers traveling through Mexico, reporting that 84% of the people arrested by Mexican authorities did not desire to be returned to their country of origin . Of these, 54% identified violence and fear as their main reason for not wanting to go back, while 35% claimed it was because of direct personal threats to their life.

In response, the National Institute of Migration (INM) informed that they have created mechanisms to protect the life of illegal migrants, in addition to detailing they are undertaking “unprecedented” actions for this purpose.

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