EL PASO (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 06th February, 2021) US immigration enforcement continues to expel Central American migrants to Mexico despite the Mexican government's decision to stop abiding by the Trump-era health policy, Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center Executive Director and attorney Linda Rivas told Sputnik.
"We have confirmed with our colleagues in Cd. Juarez [Mexico] that this is not the case in this region. Central Americans, including family units, are still being expelled on a daily basis," Rivas said.
On Wednesday, the Washington Post reported that the Mexican government would stop allowing the US government to expel Central American migrants back to Mexico under a Trump-era policy, known as Title 42, which has allowed US immigration enforcement to immediately expel migrants at the southern border without going through traditional immigration proceedings.
The policy was implemented in order to prevent the novel coronavirus from spreading in Border Patrol stations and immigration detention centers. More than 390,000 migrants have been subject to "expulsions" since the policy went into effect last March.
The new development has worried immigration advocacy groups on the border, which are concerned that another migrant humanitarian crisis may be looming ahead amid the pandemic.
Rivas said immigration advocacy groups over the last several weeks have been preparing to aid asylum seekers in the El Paso region in light of recent events.
"People migrating doesn't have to be a crisis. We should be allowing asylum seekers to present," Rivas said. "DHS [Department of Homeland Security] needs to be ready to process asylum seekers in a humane manner and avoid a crisis, they have the power to do this."
Earlier this week, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said it has seen a steady increase in border encounters since April 2020, which has caused some facilities to reach maximum safe holding capacity. The agency said it will avoid keeping migrants in a congregate setting for any length of time amid the pandemic.
CBP data shows that more than 70,000 migrants have been apprehended at the US-Mexico border each month from October to December. The numbers for January will be released later this month.
President Joe Biden has ordered a review of the current US immigration policies and a temporary stop to the so-called "Remain in Mexico" asylum program, officially known as the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), which required asylum-seeking migrants to temporarily return to Mexico for the duration of their immigration proceedings. More than 60,000 asylum-seeking migrants have been affected by the rule
