Mexico to allow migrants back in while asylum requests in U.S. unfold

Mexico

’s foreign ministry said on Thursday that it would allow some non-Mexican migrants back into the country temporarily for humanitarian reasons while they have their U.S. immigration status processed.

The ministry statement said that the U.S. government told Mexico it planned to implement a section of its immigration law that would allow it to send non-Mexican migrants back to Mexico.

At 8:00 in the morning , the U.S. government informed the Mexican government through the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that they had the intention of implementing a section of their migration law that would allow for them to send migrants back into the country so that they could wait for their migration process in the United States to unfold, according to Mexico’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (SRE) .

Mexican authorities responded that the country reaffirmed its right to admit or reject the entry of foreigners to their territory as part of their migration policy.

Faced with this situation, Mexico decided to protect migrants, specially unaccompanied and accompanied minors, as well as their right to request for an asylum process in the United States.

The Ministry informed that it would temporarily authorize the entry of certain foreigners coming from the United States and who have been captured at customs posts, for humanitarian reasons.

“Based on the present Mexican legislation and the international commitments that we have subscribed to, such as the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment , among others,” stated the Ministry.

Furthermore, the Mexican government will allow for foreigners who have received subpoenas to request entry in the national territory under conditions of “stay for humanitarian reasons” as their legal process unfolds. Mexico has made a commitment to protect the migrants’ human rights during their stay in the country.

The Mexican government will also procure technical and operative coordination with other governments to develop mechanisms that allow for the participation of migrants during their hearing before a U.S. Migration Judge , providing unbiased access to information and legal services so as to prevent fraud and abuse of authority.

Trump tweeted on Nov. 24 that migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border would stay in Mexico until their asylum claims were individually approved in U.S. courts.

Mexico’s new president, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, took office on Dec. 1

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The arrival of several thousand Central Americans in Mexico’s border city of Tijuana about a month ago prompted Trump to mobilise the U.S. military to beef up border security, while restricting the number of asylum applications accepted per day.

Illegal crossings at the southern border have dropped dramatically since the late 1970s , but in recent years applications for asylum have ballooned and more Central American families and unaccompanied children are migrating to the United States .

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