Ahead of next week's elections, US President Trump said he will sign an order to bar anyone who illegally entered the US from claiming asylum. He also hinted he would let the military shoot at people throwing stones.
Image: picture-alliance/C. Kleponis
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US President Donald Trump said on Thursday he plans to sign an order next week to require asylum seekers in the United States to come into the country through a legal port of entry.
The move could also lead to a large-scale detention of migrants crossing the southern border.
"Migrants seeking asylum will have to present themselves lawfully at a port of entry," Trump told reporters at the White House.
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"Those who choose to break our laws and enter illegally will no longer be able to use meritless claims to gain automatic admission into our country," he said without going into the specifics.
US immigration laws make clear that any immigrants in the United States may apply for asylum, regardless of whether they enter the country through a legal port of entry. It was not clear whether Trump's executive order would pass legal muster.
Critics immediately lashed out at Trump's latest attempt to decry immigration for political advantage, accusing him of stoking fear and energize his political base ahead of the midterm elections on November 6.
Under the planned executive order, migrants who do enter the country through a legal port would be housed in "massive tent houses" while their cases are processed.
"We're going to catch, we're not going to release," Trump said. Under existing protocol, many asylum seekers are released while their cases are heard in immigration courts — a process that can take years.
Rocks vs. rifles
Trump has ramped up his tough stance on illegal immigration in recent days, specially targeting a Central American caravan of migrants making its way through Mexico to the US' southern border. He labeled the caravan's effort an "invasion."
Mexico on Wednesday put the size of the caravan that left Honduras in mid-October at 2,800 to 3,000 people. Other caravans, also made up of people who have left poverty and violence at home, have since followed.
On Thursday, the US president said he had told the US military mobilizing at the border to treat rock-throwing by migrants as equivalent to gun usage.
"They want to throw rocks at our military, our military fights back. We're going to consider, and I told them to consider it a rifle. When they throw rocks like they did at the Mexico military police, I say: Consider it a rifle," Trump said.
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Fear mongering
Critics said Trump was stoking fear ahead of the elections, in which his Republicans are battling to maintain their congressional majorities.
"President Trump's attempt to paint peaceful families seeking asylum as a national security threat is as absurd as it is cruel," said advocacy group Human Rights First in a statement. "The president is fear mongering to score political points ahead of a contentious election at the expense of people's lives."
Greg Chen of the American Immigration Lawyers Association said Trump was "trying to scare the American public into thinking these are thousands of dangerous thugs."
"It's a classic strategy that goes back to 19th-century nativist thinking," he said.
Honduran refugees risk their lives to get to US border
Refugees from Central America are trying to draw attention to the human rights abuses they face while trying to get to the US. Sanne Derks documented their experiences in and around a shelter in Apizaco, Mexico.
Image: Getty Images/D. McNew
On the move
Most Central American migrants travel on top of cargo trains, to reduce the risk of being stopped and deported. Buses are more often stopped by migration officers. Crossing the American border is a challenge. In case they cannot afford a "coyote" — a human trafficker— many of the young men consider carrying drugs as a means to pay for the border crossing that is controlled by drug cartels.
Image: DW/S. Derks
Risking life and limb
Catching a moving train is not without danger: Alex Garcia, who used to be a farmer, lost his leg while trying to get off a moving train. He is recovering at a refugee shelter and doesn't know where to go afterwards.
Image: DW/S. Derks
Keeping a low profile
According to Miquel Angel (above) the biggest risk along the road is being kidnapped by organized criminal groups, like the Zetas. Most migrants do not carry a cellphone or a notebook, in case they are caught and extorted.
Image: DW/S. Derks
Respite from the hazardous journey
The migrants try to find shelter along the route in one of Mexico’s 52 albergues, or shelters. In Apizaco they are allowed 24 hours to rest, except when they are the victim of a crime or accident. All four men in the picture have permission to stay longer, as they were either shot or otherwise physically injured during their journey.
Image: DW/S. Derks
The waiting game
Sometimes the migrants have to wait for days for the next train. Delmin Flores (center), and his two cousins Alejandro Deras and Luis Deras sit in the sun for hours in front of the shelter. They were forced to leave their coffee-growing region in Honduras after coffee prices plummeted. At night, they risk being robbed or killed by organ trade traffickers.
Image: DW/S. Derks
Clambering to safety
Hardly any children or women take the journey by train. The risk of falling into the hands of traffickers or being violated is very high. This woman and child are accompanied by the husband, who has tried the journey more than 17 times.
Image: DW/S. Derks
A close call
Herdin Varga recounts how he was shot by a guard on the train. The bullets hit him in his arm and neck. One centimeter to the right and he would be dead. He's been given permission to recover in the shelter and is in the process of requesting a temporary permit to travel Mexico so that he can continue his trip by bus.
Image: DW/S. Derks
Praying for safe passage
The shelter was founded and funded in 2010 by the Catholic priest Ramiro Sanchez. It later turned into a civil organization, independent of the government. Before meals are served, refugees pray together. Many of the migrants are religious and believe that God will provide protection during their journey.
Image: DW/S. Derks
On the outside looking in
If they've checked out of the shelter, migrants cannot enter again to spend the night. This rule has been installed to protect the safety of the employees who fear that the migrants may have been come into contact with human traffickers. "The shelter is for humanitarian aid, not for people making business out of it," shelter employee Sergio Luna told DW.
Image: DW/S. Derks
All in vain
This group of migrants boarded the only train that passed that day, but it stopped immediately after leaving the railway station. They were forced to walk back to the shelter and try their luck next time.
