EFE (via 14ymedio), Tegucigalpa (Honduras), 27 August 2022 — About 80,000 ‘irregular’ migrants traveling with the idea of arriving in the United States have arrived in Honduras so far this year, mostly of Cuban nationality, according to figures from the National Institute of Migration (NIM), consulted this Friday by EFE.
Between January and 19 August 2022, 79,667 migrants entered the Central American country trying to advance north with the aim of reaching the United States, according to official data.
The NIM said that so far this year the ‘irregular’ migrants entering Honduras include: 44,535 Cuban migrants, 19,222 Venezuelans, 4,795 Ecuadorians and 3,051 Haitians.
The numbers from other countries are: 642 from India, 636 from Colombia, 592 from Senegal, 569 from Angola, 470 from Bangladesh, 478 from the Dominican Republic, 446 from Brazil, 423 from Ghana, 403 from Nicaragua, 329 from Cameroon, 278 from Somalia, 256 from China, 239 from Nepal, 209 from Eritrea, and 2,094.
In comparison, according to NIM statistics for the same period last year — between January and 19 August 2021 — a total of 10,032 ‘irregular’ migrants entered Honduras. Of these, 4,294 were from Haiti and 3,622 from Cuba, the predominant nationalities in this group.
Men comprise 55% (43,676) of the immigrants, 28% (22,728) are women and 17% (13,263) are children and adolescents of both genders.
Of the total number of migrants this year, 53% (41,847) were under 30 years old, and 47% (37,820) were over 30.
The Migration Institute also indicated that 77% (61,556) of migrants entered Honduras through the municipalities of Danlí and Trojes, in the department of El Paraíso, on the border with Nicaragua.
In recent months, El Paraíso has become a new route that migrants, mainly from Cuba, Venezuela and Haiti, are using to continue on to the United States.
At the beginning of August, a legislative decree entered into force that exempts migrants ‘passing through’ who enter Honduras from the payment of an administrative fine of more than $200.
The immigration amnesty was published on August 3 in the official newspaper, La Gaceta, three months after its approval in the Honduran Parliament.
Most immigrants who enter Honduras do so in “blind spots” through human traffickers, known as “coyotes,” who don’t always take them to the border with Guatemala.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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