MEXICO CITY – Four Central American countries – Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua – are struggling, still burdened by the legacy of the last century’s wars. They are resilient yet incomplete democracies, challenged by poverty, violence, and corruption – and all but forgotten by the international community. But now there is reason to hope that these countries’ prospects could improve.
Flares of violence in Central America’s Northern Triangle have sparked a sudden rush of migrants seeking refugee status in Costa Rica, according to Immigration Administration Director Kathya RodrÃguez. In the face of this rush, immigration officials have been working to reactivate its long-lauded refugee system after no refugee applications were granted in 2014.
The new policy applies to children from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador who face harm from violence and other dangers. Admission is also possible for spouses and grandchildren of immigrants in some cases.
The plan was formulated in the wake of last year’s unprecedented exodus to the U.S. of families and children traveling alone from Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. Many were fleeing violence and poverty in their home countries.
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, during a visit to Guatemala earlier this week, strongly hinted that keeping the U.N. International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala was a condition for U.S. support of a new regional development plan for Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.
Barack Obama's administration has asked the U.S. Congress to approve $1 billion in funding for Central America to bolster security and stem illegal immigration into the U.S. from its southern neighbors.
Customs offices are scheduled to be removed along the two countries’ shared border in December of this year. Authorities and business leaders hope the move will cut costs and speed up transportation of goods throughout the region.
GUATEMALA CITY – The presidents of three Central American nations that were the source of a wave of child migrants to the United States this year are going to Washington with a plan to boost economic growth and reduce violence in their countries.
“I left for the U.S., but halfway there I had the accident. I was riding above with some friends on the roof, and when we were arriving to the first immigration station, I was climbing down and all of the sudden a gust of wind came out of nowhere. I closed my eyes, and when I opened them, I was underneath the train."
WASHINGTON, D.C. – This year’s highly publicized influx of child migrants from Central America via Mexico to the U.S. border has sparked intense debate about the proliferation of gangs in El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala. But efforts by the three countries to eliminate gang violence have been ineffective and often counterproductive.
