A Group of 15 Cuban Rafters Land on a Beach in Cancun on Christmas Eve

The migrants from the island, including two women, have been detained in a facility of the National Migration Institute

14ymedio, Mexico City, 25 December 2024 — At least 15 Cuban rafters landed on Christmas Eve at Playa Caracol, near the Continental Hotel, in Cancun, Mexico. According to the Reporte24Qr website, Navy personnel “secured the migrants, including two women” and handed them over to the National Migration Institute (INM) in Playa del Carmen.

At the Immigration office, 14ymedio was denied details about the migrants from the island. “The staff on duty is not authorized to offer information,” a woman responded by phone when questioned about the status of the rafters. “Leave your number and we will call you back,” she stressed.

The rafters will remain under the protection of the authorities and their situation will be defined in the first days of 2025, the period in which the Migration officials will return to their activities.

The rafters will remain under the protection of the authorities and their situation will be defined in the first days of 2025

Municipal police officer Dagoberto Canul confirmed to this newspaper that a raft had been abandoned in Punta Cancún. According to testimonies from tourists, “more than 15 people had arrived on the boat, but it would be risky to give a number.” Inside the boat they found cans of food and some clothes. The officer has no report of the names of the migrants because the operation was carried out by the Navy, which “at this time of year conducts patrols on the beach.”

Canul acknowledges the increase in clandestine journeys from the Island. In the most recent case, “I have no doubt that it is linked to a network of coyotes, who abandon them upon disembarking.” With this group, says the municipal police officer, “between January and December so far there are a total of 117 irregular migrants who were placed at the disposal of Immigration.”

The official, who has closely followed several of the clandestine arrivals, regrets that no one has been arrested in connection with the operation. “The Cubans are very secretive, I don’t know if it’s out of fear or because it’s part of the agreements they reach with human traffickers.”

A clandestine trip, according to Canul, costs Cubans between $5,000 and $7,000 per person

A clandestine trip, according to Canul, costs Cubans between $5,000 and $7,000 dollars per person. The editorial staff of this newspaper has received information about the routes exploited by coyotes. The main arrival points are the Sian Ka’an Biosphere Reserve due to “its poor surveillance,” Isla Mujeres and Cancun. “Dozens of rafters have been allowed to come from Isla de la Juventud and land in Cancun,” said the official.

Javier Robles, a fisherman who owns a catamaran that he rents to tourists in Cancún (Quintana Roo), told 14ymedio that the clandestine arrivals have left several boats stranded on the coast, to the point that “Isla Mujeres is becoming a cemetery of abandoned rafts used by Cubans to reach Mexico.”