Ana Gabriela Urízar, lawyer of the world’s largest immigration firm, based in New York, said she has observed, during migrants, a hardening in detention and deportation practices, as well as a decrease in humanitarian approach.
According to Urízar, at the beginning of the Donald Trump government, the deportations of people with criminal records were priority; However, in recent weeks migrants have been arrested who are requesting permanent or asylum residence.
There were also reports from American citizens of Latin ancestry who have been arrested, despite identifying themselves as such and requesting demonstrating it with a passport. “They are not allowing them to return home,” he explained.
He added that among the most violated rights of migrants are: access to a lawyer, the possibility of making a call, the unjustified separation of family nuclei and the denial of due process in deportation.
“All immigrants have the right to legal representation. It is they who must pay it, but they have the right to that access,” he said.
He added that they have observed the use of force by immigration agents when migrants ask to see an arrest warrant signed by a judge.
What should migrants do before Guatemala’s consulates?
The lawyer recommended to the Guatemalans in the US. Uu. Go to the consulates of their cities to register and process their passport.
“That they register in the address where they live in the US. And that request the emergency telephone of the Consulate. For example, the Consulate of Guatemala in New York has an emergency number and provides advice to migrants on their rights,” he said.
He said that it is important that migrants document any illegality committed by migration agents and that, being in front of a judge, present a request to expose the facts that could help them recover their freedom.
“If they are already detained and are not allowing them to speak with a migration lawyer, it is important not to sign anything, especially a voluntary deportation order, and insist on talking to a judge,” he said.
The lawyer in Migration said that she has detected cases in which people who have traveled to the United States with a work visa or other have been questioned and, sometimes, agents have violated their rights.
Consulate supports Guatemalan migrants
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MINEX) indicated that it provides monitoring to the case of 50 Guatemalans arrested during a series of migrants in Houston, Texas, USA.
He pointed out that 28 of the nationals were deported to Guatemala and another group was transferred to a detention center in Harlingen, Texas, waiting to be returned.
“There, the Consulate of Guatemala in McAllen, Texas, will follow up on its immigration process,” he confirmed.
The Foreign Ministry reported that the nationals were part of a group of 400 undocumented people from several countries, arrested by agents of the Immigration and Customs Control Service (ICE), who, for the most part, had been accused or convicted of at least one criminal offense.