USA will accept the asylum of immigrants from four Latin American countries | Petitions can be made by people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela

2023-07-29 05:01:00

The White House National Security Adviser, Jake Sullivan (photo), reported this Friday that the United States will accept asylum requests from people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela, who are already in Mexico waiting to cross into US territory. , in an attempt to decongest the border on the Mexican side.

The announcement is the result of an agreement with the Mexican government, which comes days after a meeting in Mexico City between a US delegation and Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Sullivan said in a statement. As part of that agreement, the Mexican Executive promised to create a “multipurpose international space” in southern Mexico to offer new asylum and employment options to the most vulnerable people in the country. The communiqué does not specify what this “multipurpose international space” will consist of, and the Mexican government has not yet offered any details in this regard.

The Joe Biden government implemented various measures to encourage legal migration and prevent thousands of people from crossing the border with Mexico on foot in search of asylum or better economic opportunities, which put great pressure on the resources of some border communities. To apply for asylum in the US, anyone must show that they face persecution because of their race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a specific social or ethnic group.

Currently, the main way to request asylum in that country is through a mobile application called “CBP One”, which allows those in Mexico to make appointments with US authorities to present their asylum cases. That app only offers 1,250 appointments a day, which means available slots fill up fast. Another program created by Biden allows nationals of Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela to apply for immigration permission to enter the US, but only those who arrive by plane to the territory and have a sponsor who can prove that they will help them in their journey qualify. adaptation to the country. That program, however, establishes that the delivery of immigration permits will be limited to 30,000 people per month.