Border & Immigration

Mexico’s Migrant Crackdown On Its Southern Border Raises Human Rights Questions

Published June 21, 2016 at 12:11 PM CDT

The words read, "Christ Lives." Migrants and goods such as oil and foodstuffs are transported illegally on a raft below this bridge, an official port of entry linking Mexico and Guatemala. (Lorne Matalon/Fronteras)

In 2012, a senior official in the Department of Homeland Security declared that Mexico’s southern border with Guatemala was now, essentially, the southern border of the U.S. Two years later, gang violence and poverty in Central America drove tens of thousands of young migrants from Mexico’s southern neighbors to cross into Mexico with hopes of reaching the U.S.

Since then, the U.S. has expanded its own border enforcement efforts by assisting Mexico on its southern border. And in 2015, fewer Central Americans made it to the U.S. But, human rights activists say there’s also been evidence of a rise in abuses.

Lorne Matalon from the Fronteras Desk at Here & Now contributor KRTS in Marfa reports.

Reporter

Lorne Matalon, Fronteras Desk reporter based in Marfa, Texas at Marfa Public Radio. He tweets @matalon.

Lorne Matalon reports from KRTS in Marfa, not KJZZ in Phoenix as we incorrectly identified earlier.