Source: CCTV news client
Five migrant children abandoned at the border are only 11 months old
Recently, 5 young children were found abandoned by snakeheads at the U.S.-Mexico border, lonely and helpless, the youngest being only 11 months old.
The five girls, from Honduras and Guatemala, were 7 years old and the youngest was only 11 months old. On the 9th, they were found by a farmer in the texas border town of Kemado. When they were found, they had spent an entire night in the wild.
Texas Farmer: That's where we found them. They were crying, very scared, not knowing where their parents were. At 8:30 a.m. on Sunday morning, my husband called me and sent me a picture of five little girls lying on a dirty blanket not far from the river.
Subsequently, U.S. border enforcement officers transferred the five children to a makeshift shelter.
Farmer: The border migration crisis is out of control
Multiple farmers in the Texas border area say they often find illegal immigrants crossing the border, and some pass through their farms from time to time.
Texas Farmers: From time to time we see people walking past our farms, and from time to time there are illegally operated vehicles coming to the farm (picking up immigrants).
The farmer believes that the migrant crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border is now out of control.
Crossing the River and Climbing over the Wall Illegal immigrants ventured into the United States
Illegal immigrants continue to enter the United States from Mexico. On the 11th, dozens of immigrants arrived in the United States under the cover of night in rubber boats, most of them women and children.
Some time ago, CNN reporters followed the smugglers and recorded the process of smuggling immigrants led by them. The smuggler led two young immigrants from Ecuador in an attempt to climb over the border wall into the United States. To avoid being spotted, they briefly crossed the desert area. After arriving at a location, the smuggler used a pre-prepared ladder to assist the two migrants to climb the border wall separately.
Whether crossing a river or climbing over a border wall, this method of smuggling is fraught with danger. Earlier this month, a stowaway boat capsized off the coast of the U.S. border city of San Diego, near Mexico, killing three people. A footage released at the end of March showed snakeheads directly "throwing" two young children over a border wall more than 4 meters high.
A large number of migrants have poured into the Mexican border city of Tijuana
And in the city of Tijuana on the Mexican side, a large number of migrants gather at the border. It is facing serious problems in terms of public security, health and epidemic prevention.
Tijuana is a city on mexico's northwestern border and one of the most important land transit cities on the U.S.-Mexico border.
Because of its proximity to the United States, the city became a gathering place for Central and South American immigrants, with large numbers of migrants gathering in multiple temporary settlements in Tijuana, waiting for permission from the U.S. government to initiate the immigration process.
Sheng Jiadi: I am now located in Tijuana, a small city on the Mexican side of the border between the United States and Mexico, and the specific location is a local non-governmental self-organized rescue station, less than 200 meters from the border between the United States and Mexico. Refugees now line up here to receive breakfast. Such a concentration of migrants is already getting worse along the Mexican side of the border, especially earlier this year, when the Biden administration came to power with some changes and iterations in immigration policy, and many immigrants from Central and South America could not enter the United States to apply for asylum. The large number of migrants has also caused security problems in the local area, especially in the context of the epidemic, Mexico is still facing the serious test of the new crown epidemic.
Resident of Tijuana: The U.S. threw immigrants into Mexico
Currently, U.S. government policy requires these immigrants to wait on the Mexican side for the results of the grant of asylum applications. Many Central and South American immigrants who should have been repatriated from the United States have also been thrown directly into Mexico.
Locals in Mexico: So many immigrants are here to create a lot of problems. Our city is dirty and they all live on the streets. The United States has thrown these immigrants to Mexico, and the United States has made progress on the issue of immigration.
Many migrants travel two months to reach the border. During the trip, many people encountered crimes such as extortion, sexual violence, kidnapping and human trafficking. Finally arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border, the wait may be a long stay and a longer wait.
Honduran Immigration: I've been waiting here in Tijuana for three years, and I'm still looking for an application to go to the United States, filling out those forms and documents.
There are places near the resettlement sites where migrants are given breakfast free of charge, about 500 breakfasts are given away every day, and some local residents drive to the vicinity to distribute food to the migrants.
Local citizens: We come once a week to deliver them, and these are all cooked by ourselves.
Reporter: What do you think about the issue of immigration at the border?
Local citizen: I think it's a very tragic situation, so we want to help a little bit.
For some time in the foreseeable future, there will still be no clear solution to the migration dilemma in the border areas.
The number of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border reached a new high in April
On the 11th, data released by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency showed that in April this year, the number of illegal immigrants arrested by law enforcement officers at the U.S.-Mexico border reached 178,000, an increase of 3% over March, a new high in 20 years; according to a data obtained by the Associated Press, the number of immigrant children detained and hosted by the U.S. federal government has doubled in the past two months. As of this week, about 21,000 children were in federal detention facilities and shelters. Some of these detention and shelters are overcrowded and in very worrying conditions.
The situation of migrants on the U.S.-Mexico border is miserable under the COVID-19 pandemic
Despite repeated claims by the U.S. government to address the issue of border migration, the migration crisis has intensified and humanitarian tragedies have continued to occur.
U.S. policies in Latin America have led to chronic poverty in countries of origin
Sheng Jiadi: I am now in Tijuana, Mexico. Due to its proximity to the United States, the city has become one of the centers of Immigrants from Latin America, with a large number of migrants currently gathering in several temporary settlements in Tijuana.
In fact, over the past few days, we have also visited a number of local temporary settlements for migrants in Tijuana, including local help points for migrants. For example, in the temporary settlement where I am now located, a temporary tent city has been set up. It is conceivable that places like Tent City, where sanitary conditions are very poor, there are not enough epidemic prevention materials, and there is no way to maintain the necessary safe and sanitary distance, which has become a high incidence of epidemic infection, resulting in a large number of immigrants infected with the new crown virus.
Due to the increase in immigration, there have also been many security problems in the local area, for example, some criminal groups have targeted these unguarded and unhelped immigrants in an attempt to exploit them. These immigrants became the target of violent crime.
Residents of the Mexican border city of Tijuana whom we interviewed said that the United States had thrown immigrants to Mexico, which was bullying Mexico. In fact, the United States' Latin American policy has led to chronic poverty in the countries of origin of immigrants, which has contributed to this phenomenon. Many immigrants arrived at the U.S.-Mexico border only to learn that the U.S. immigration policy had changed over and over again, resulting in them being trapped at the U.S.-Mexico border in a miserable situation.
The increase in unaccompanied children is contributing to a humanitarian crisis
Liu Xu: I am now on the U.S.-Mexico border on the san Diego side of California, behind me is the U.S. Border Agency, and further back is the land passage, which can cross the border and enter Mexico directly. This land crossing is a relatively formal passage, and there is an iron border wall about 10 meters high on both sides of the port.
Since the outbreak of a new wave of refugees, border security procedures have become more complex and the efficiency of customs clearance has been greatly reduced. There is a new phenomenon in this new wave of immigration, with more and more unaccompanied children trying to enter the United States. We also see in local news reports that detention centers in the United States have been overwhelmed by the dramatic increase in the number of unaccompanied children. Many people are worried that the overcrowding of children's detention facilities in the United States and the increasing difficulty of epidemic prevention may lead to a humanitarian crisis.
The U.S. government's unclear immigration policies are also the cause of the crisis. Unclear policies and implementation standards have invisibly led to countless migration tragedies and disasters.