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US to help Guatemala address causes of undocumented migration
WASHINGTON, Feb 18, 2021 (BSS/AFP) – As President Joe Biden works to
overhaul US immigration policy, the top US diplomat Wednesday told his
Guatemalan counterpart that Washington would help address the root causes of
irregular migration.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken “emphasized the US commitment to addressing
the structural problems that trigger irregular migration” in a phone call
with Guatemala’s Pedro Brolo, State Department spokesman Ned Price said.
These include “endemic corruption and impunity, lack of economic
opportunity, and insecurity,” the statement read, also emphasizing the
“shared interest in ensuring a safe, orderly, and humane approach to
migration.”
Guatemalan officials last week warned that a new caravan of undocumented
migrants mainly from neighboring Honduras was preparing to head to the
southern US border.
Guatemalan police used force and tear gas to prevent a similar caravan
from crossing their country in January, and warned against mass movements of
people across their border.
Since 2018, thousands of Central Americans, pushed by crime and poverty,
have headed to the United States in large caravans.
Price said that Blinken and Brolo also “discussed the importance of
securing an independent judiciary, through an open and transparent process,”
and Blinken “raised the need to improve democratic governance, promote
respect for human rights, and root out high-level corruption.”
BSS/AFP/MSY/1140 hrs