Guatemala City, by Brenda Larios -AGN- Guatemalan authorities continue operations to strengthen preventive measures against the irregular entry and transit of migrants into the country.
Inter-institutional coordination is carried out through patrols on land, motorcycles, sea, and air and at checkpoints at different points.
The operations involve members of the Guatemalan Army, the National Civil Police, and the Guatemalan Migration Institute, among others.
The operations
According to the Army authorities, on July 20 and 21, the checkpoint of the Inter-Institutional Council for the Prevention and Fight against Tax Fraud and Customs Smuggling -Coincon- supported the immigration authorities.
The Coincon, established in Vado Hondo, Chiquimula, helped to solve the legal situation of a group of 18 migrants comprised of:
- Eight men, three women, and two children from Venezuela
- Two Ecuadorians
- Five Hondurans
They traveled through Guatemala without complying with the current immigration and sanitary regulations.
Support from the Guatemalan Army
During the first semester of this year, the Guatemalan Army cooperated in identifying and returning 929 migrants of different nationalities, such as Venezuelan, Ecuadorian, Honduran, Indian, and Haitian.
These actions are part of the Government’s strategy to guarantee the well-being and security of Guatemalans, based on the Fundamental Axis of the National Defense Policy 2021–2032: Defense of Sovereignty and Territorial Integrity.
Returnees
From July 17 to 21, a thousand Guatemalans returned to the Reception Center for Returnees, located in the Guatemalan Air Force, after being found by U.S. Border Patrol officers.
Government authorities offered special assistance to migrant children, humanitarian aid, medical care, and psychosocial assistance during the reception of the groups.
From January through July 21, a total of 28,367 Guatemalans have returned, including 24,162 by air from the United States and 4,205 by air from Mexico.
The Guatemalan Institute of Migration continues implementing actions to assist this population adequately. Fully aware of the right to migrate, the call is to do so in a regular manner.
