By Juan Manuel Blanco
Tapachula, Mexico (EFE).- Activists and authorities at Mexico’s southern border have set up a daycare that offers a safe place and child care services for 90 days for migrant children fleeing violence and insecurity in their countries.
Gabriela Rueda Pérez, the director of the facility in Tapachula, Chiapas, told EFE that this place offers hope and refuge, providing a welcoming environment where minors can feel safe, while their families complete asylum applications, migration processes, or go to work.
“This place represents a great help for them. While they look for stability, they are also searching for a safe place for their families and children. It is a place where children can learn, play, and emotionally stabilize,” she said.
The facility can accommodate 300 migrant children and provides them with comprehensive services.
Currently, they are sheltering children from Cuba, Haiti, Venezuela, Brazil, Hong Kong, France, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. Children arrive from 9:00 am and leave at around 4:00 pm.
Facing risks
Activists noted that both accompanied and unaccompanied children face various risks when migrating to southern Mexico. These risks include getting lost, robbed, sexually assaulted, kidnapped, or assaulted, especially if they are accompanied by someone who is not a family member.
Cecilia Izaguirre, a human rights defender in Tapachula, explained that the dangers faced by adult migrants are high, but these risks increase for children and adolescents.
“They are vulnerable to traffickers for any purpose,” she noted.
She highlighted that human trafficking has always been a problem, with children being used for begging or even organ trafficking.
“One of the greatest risks is human trafficking, or being used for drug peddling,” she warned.
Mey Lyn Wong Vázquez, the municipal secretary of education and culture in Tapachula, told EFE that the Chiapas government provides this support, as do organizations such as United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (ACNUR).
This aid is not only for migrant children, but also for Mexican minors in a context of mobility.
A few days before the start of the new school year in Mexico, this shelter has seen an influx of 2,800 foreign students.
The administration of United States President Donald Trump has eliminated several migration programs and benefits created by his predecessor, Joe Biden.
These include the “humanitarian parole” program for Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Haiti, as well as the CBP-One application, which allowed individuals to request a legal entry appointment.
As a result, over 500 people have either been left in legal limbo while the courts decide on the program’s legality or have found themselves in an irregular migration situation.
These changes in policy align with Trump seeking to accelerate deportations and detentions to fulfil his campaign promise to expel the over 11 million undocumented migrants living in the country. EFE
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