Illegal Honduran migrants walk along a road in Guatemala on Jan. 16. They are preparing to travel to the United States. (JOHAN ORDONEZ/AFP via Getty Images)
Biden will reportedly unveil a new immigration policy on the day he is sworn in on the 20th that will provide a pathway to citizenship for the nation’s estimated 11 million illegal immigrants. At least 9,000 illegal immigrants have allegedly broken through the Guatemalan border in preparation for their journey to the United States. The Guatemalan government has condemned these illegal immigrants as a violation of its sovereignty, and Guatemalan police have released tear gas on the highway in an attempt to disperse the crowd.
A number of sources close to the situation said that Biden will announce a new immigration policy on his inauguration day on Jan. 20, seeking to grant citizenship to some 11 million illegal immigrants within eight years and expand the issuance of green cards to immigrants in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (or Dreamers).
But the U.S. is currently plagued by an epidemic and economic problems, and it is not yet known how quickly the new administration will deal with the illegal immigration issue.
Biden’s appointed White House chief of staff, John Kline, said Biden would submit a new immigration bill to Congress on his first day in office, but both he and Biden’s office declined to give details.
Garcia, the former president of the League of Latin American Citizens, said Biden gave a phone briefing to the group Concerned About Immigration on Jan. 14 and was surprised at how quickly the new administration acted.
Nulani, president of the National Immigration Forum, who was also briefed, said immigrants can obtain citizenship in eight years, faster than applicants for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, commonly known as the Dreamers program, and Temporary Protected Status.
Biden overturns Trump‘s immigration policy
During the past four years of President Trump’s administration, combating illegal immigration has been one of his priorities. The Trump administration has finalized agreements with Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras to restrict illegal immigrants from seeking asylum in the United States.
But Biden campaigned on a promise to end Trump’s Migrant Protection Protocol (MPP), seen as the cornerstone of the Trump administration’s effort to end the Democrat-backed “catch-and-release” policy that has seen 90 percent of illegal border crossers either deported quickly or returned to places like Mexico to await asylum claims.
The Trump administration says the MPP has effectively eliminated the pull factor that attracts illegal immigrants to the border, and warns that reversing the policy would lead to a surge in illegal immigration at the border.
Acting Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Director Mark Morgan also warned, “If MPP goes away, it would be absolutely devastating.”
Biden previously promised sweeping changes to Trump’s immigration policies: including a halt to the construction of a border wall; a 100-day moratorium on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deportations; a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants; and an end to asylum cooperation agreements with Northern Triangle countries. These agreements have helped stem the flow of illegal immigrants to the U.S. border.
The Northern Triangle countries refer to Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador in Central America.
9,000 Illegal Immigrants Emerge at Southern Border
As Biden’s inauguration day approaches, a large army of illegal immigrants has resurfaced at the U.S. southern border.
At least 9,000 Honduran immigrants have entered its territory, Guatemalan officials said on 16, and the group is making its way north in hopes of eventually entering the United States.
Most of the migrants came on foot seeking to escape poverty, unemployment, gang and drug violence, and post-hurricane hardship. They previously entered Mexico and then the United States, a journey thousands of kilometers long.
Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei (Alejandro Giammattei) issued a statement on 16 December calling on Honduran authorities to “control the mass exodus of its inhabitants.
The statement said the migrants broke through the Guatemalan border zone between 15 and 16, and that efforts by some 2,000 police and soldiers to stop them failed. Most of these people did not show negative test results for the Chinese Communist virus.
Giamatti called on “Central American governments to take measures to avoid putting their populations at risk during the health emergency caused by the outbreak.”
Mexico continues to train thousands of members of the National Guard and immigration agents at its southern border in a show of force aimed at stopping the caravan from entering the country.
Guatemalan Government Condemns Illegal Immigration Violation of Sovereignty
Alejandra Mena, a spokeswoman for Guatemala’s official migration agency, told CNN on Sunday that two separate groups of more than 3,000 Honduran migrants forced their way into Guatemala without registration on the evening of the 15th as part of a larger plan for a caravan of illegal immigrants. A third group of illegal immigrants entered Guatemala on the 16th.
A video tweeted by investigative reporting journalist Drew Hernandez (Drew Hernandez) on 16 shows a large number of Honduran migrants breaking through police officers and soldiers to cross the Guatemalan border and head to the United States.
AFP reporters in the Guatemalan town of Vado Hondo, on the border with Honduras, witnessed security forces surround a group of people on a highway before firing tear gas to disperse the crowd.
The Guatemalan government has condemned the migrants for violating its sovereignty and called on Honduran authorities to “curb the mass departure of residents through permanent precautionary measures.” Since the 16th, Guatemala has set up nearly a dozen control points on the highway and may begin sending more migrants back to Honduras by bus.
Reuters said that once the migrant procession arrives in Mexico, it is feared that it will face pressure to disintegrate. Mexican officials said the country’s immigration agreement with the United States is still in place, which means the migrant team will be driven away.
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