This article was originally published by Jorge Rocha in Aztec Reports, a sister publication.
Since President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) took office in December 2018, Mexico’s armed forces have infiltrated the country’s immigration system, shaping its policies in a militarized effort to keep migrants away from the US border. , a new study reveals.
According to a report by the human rights group Fundación para la Justicia y el Estado Democrático de Derecho (FJEDD), Mexico’s migration policy has been overtaken by the military, often conducting operations in violation of human rights.
The investigation shows that AMLO’s administration has tasked the National Guard, a military-led public security institution, with executing its migration policies, while Mexico’s military has taken control of migration within the country.
In addition, current and former members of the military branch were placed in key positions within Mexico’s National Institute of Migrants (INM), with 19 of the 32 state branches of the INM under the control of the military, which specialize in the military, prisons and prisons and public safety duties.
Today, Mexico’s migration policy consists of military operations that include detention and deportation, emphasizing its presence on the southern border and deploying troops to migrant hotspots.
Of the 46,254 detentions carried out between January 1 and February 28, 2022, more than 40% took place in southern Mexico, thus serving as a barrier to immigration.
The efforts of Mr. López Obrador to crack down on immigration seems to have been heavily influenced by the political and economic interests of the United States. Just as his administration was beginning, AMLO had to face a series of threats made by then-President Donald Trump, who demanded tighter control of the Mexican borders.
After the US threatened to impose tariffs on Mexican exports and close the border, Mr. López Obrador implemented a series of executive orders empowering the armed forces and national guard to carry out immigration control duties.
Mr Trump would eventually praise his Mexican counterpart for deploying military forces along Mexico’s borders.
As of January 2022, there were 28,397 immigration enforcement personnel stationed at Mexico’s northern and southern borders. Almost 50% are members of the army, while the remaining members belong to the National Guard.
Although the National Guard was created as a civilian-oriented institution, over 80% of its members are ex-military. Moreover, its training and control fall under the Mexican Secretary of Defense.
Furthermore, over 85% of its agents do not have a police clearance, indicating that most National Guard members do not have adequate training to protect civilians in the context of public safety.
Their military nature and lack of civil defense training have resulted in numerous cases of human rights violations and abuses, such as racial profiling during detention, sexual violence and excessive force.
For example, Doctors Without Borders documented that in 2018, 68% of refugees and migrants under their care reported some form of violence, with sexual violence reported by a third of the women they interviewed. According to the organization, “Patients reported that perpetrators of violence included members of gangs and other criminal organizations, as well as members of the Mexican security forces responsible for their protection.”
Additionally, the military’s focus on immigration has pressured migrants to seek alternative, more dangerous routes on their journey to the US border, often leaving them vulnerable to organized crime elements.
Effectively, the strategy of Mr. López Obrador has resulted in a wall of military personnel erected to stop the flow of migrants at the US border, further endangering the lives of migrants making the journey north through Mexico. From 2014 to 2021, 3,059 migrants have died on their journey to the US-Mexico border – 659 within Mexico’s migration routes.
