Guatemala prepares for possible migrant caravan at the end of July

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Government of Guatemala advised on Tuesday (13) that it is preparing for the possible arrival of a new migrant caravan at the end of July, made up of Central American citizens.

The Guatemalan Institute of Migration told journalists in a brief press release that it was alerted about the possible caravan, scheduled for late July and made up of “people of Central American nationalities” without ruling out “extra-continental nationalities”.

“In this sense, the authorities are already preparing the Plan of Attention and Protection to the migrant to be able to attend it in an orderly and integral way,” the entity pointed out.

According to the Guatemalan Institute of Migration, the caravan “would enter Honduras” to get to Guatemala. However, “it is unknown” what would be the specific border point at which they would access the local territory.

According to the same source, once the massive mobilization of the caravan is confirmed, the government of Guatemala will summon several institutions linked to migrant care to “comply with the biosecurity protocols established” for Covid-19.

Last January, the last massive migrant caravan took place with the participation of around 9,000 Hondurans, who were blocked and broken up at the Guatemalan border by security forces.

However, some 3,000 Hondurans did manage to advance through Guatemala and sneaked into Mexico in small groups, intending to reach the United States in search of the “American dream”.

The blockade by Guatemalan security forces was due to the decision of the government presided over by Alejandro Giammattei not to allow those without identity documents and negative proof of Covid-19 to proceed.

The goal of the migrants is to reach the United States to have better living conditions, away from the poverty and violence that plague the Central American isthmus, especially after the pandemic and hurricanes Eta and Iota, in November 2020.

On October 13, 2018, the first caravan left from Honduras, with more than 4,000 migrants, on their way to the United States.