Central America
Threats from the migratory route in Guatemala: dengue, arrests and climate change
Thousands of migrants cross the border between Honduras and Guatemala daily on their way to the United States, facing the threat of tropical diseases such as dengue, the arrest of security forces and their subsequent deportation or the impact of a route hit by climate change.
On the border of El Corinto, between Guatemala and Honduras, the country’s Red Cross serves migrants who need medical assistance.
“Our job is to alleviate the suffering a little and dignify the lives of people who are in transit,” explains to EFE Mariana Bonilla, who works with the Red Cross at the Care Center for Migrants and Refugees (CAPMIR), located on the Guatemalan side of the border.
Every morning, Bonilla, 31, and the rest of her team, track the border road surrounded by African palm, banana plantations and the imposing Motagua River, the largest in Guatemala, in search of groups of migrants to guide them and indicate the points where they can receive support.
Within its center of attention, supported by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), migrants receive both medical and psychosocial assistance. “Many come with traumas from their passage through the Darién jungle” between Colombia and Panama, explains Bonilla.
Two kilometers after crossing the border, on the migratory route, is the village of Jimeritos, a community made up of farmers dedicated mainly to the cultivation of bananas that for six years has turned its small communal room into a refuge for migrants to rest.
“We are motivated to work with migrants. They leave their countries to seek an improvement for their family and here we give them what we can, because we do not know when we will have the same need,” explains Felicita Palencia, a resident of Jimeritos who was trained by the Red Cross to take care of migrants.
The community lounge has a bedroom with capacity for 12 people and, according to the leaders of the village, there are nights where they receive up to 30 migrants who seek refuge before continuing their journey to the Mexican border of Tecún Umán, located about 540 kilometers at the other end of the country.
Community community members pay attention despite the difficulties they are going through, such as strong dengue epidemics that affect the department of Izabal, where in 2023 more than 500 cases were registered and the region was put on red alert by the health authorities, a disease from which migrants are not freed either.
On May 2, in the community room, the Red Cross gathered the children of the Jimeritos public primary school to give them a talk about hygiene and sanitation measures to eliminate the mosquito that transmits dengue, as well as tools to identify the symptoms of this disease.
Carlos Linares, who has lived in this migrant host village for 42 years, assures EFE that the biggest concern for them is climate change, since the rainy season is approaching and in years such as 2001 and 2020 many houses were destroyed by storms.
“This part of the road is the most difficult to get to the United States, because there are a lot of police and they can return us to Honduras,” Mario Alvarado, a Honduran migrant who decided to look for the “American dream,” explains to EFE.
With temperatures of 40 degrees, Alvarado crossed the border, bordering the Motagua River and the African palm plantations, to end up arrested by the Guatemalan authorities.
Alvarado is the third time he has been on his way to the United States. He does it with his compatriot Danny Gámez, the same one with whom a few months ago they were deported from Texas, United States, after a journey that allowed them to work in the North American nation as painters.
Like Alvarado and Gámez, thousands of migrants seek to cross Guatemala every year and so far in 2024 alone, almost 8,000 have been arrested by the security forces for their subsequent deportation, according to figures from the Guatemalan Migration Institute (IGM).
“It doesn’t matter how many times we are deported. If there are no conditions to live in Honduras, we will always find a way to leave again,” Alvarado reiterates, before moving away between the path of a plantation with his journey companion.
Central America
Honduras’ China–Taiwan Future Hinges on Sunday’s Presidential Election
The future of Honduras’ diplomatic relations with China—or a possible reestablishment of ties with Taiwan—will hinge on the results of the presidential election taking place this Sunday, November 30. The ruling left-wing party is seeking to remain in power, while conservative parties aim to return to government.
If the ruling party’s candidate, Rixi Moncada of the Liberty and Refoundation (Libre) Party, secures victory, Honduras is expected to deepen its relationship with China. The country established formal diplomatic ties with Beijing in March 2023, cutting relations with Taiwan entirely under President Xiomara Castro.
However, the bilateral trade relationship with China has not yielded the expected benefits. Economic Development Minister Fredis Cerrato acknowledged that negotiating with Beijing has proven challenging. “We are proceeding with caution,” he said, referring to ongoing efforts to secure better conditions for Honduran exporters and business owners, who are demanding greater speed in technical agreements.
With Castro’s term ending in just two months, the long-anticipated free trade agreement with China has yet to be finalized. Despite this, Chinese companies have already secured multimillion-dollar contracts in infrastructure projects across the country, particularly in the energy sector.
Central America
Trump Pardons Former Honduran President Hernández and Warns of Aid Cuts Ahead of Election
On Friday, President Donald Trump granted a pardon to former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández — who was convicted on drug trafficking charges — and threatened to cut U.S. aid to the Central American nation if his preferred candidate loses Sunday’s presidential election.
Trump announced the pardon for Hernández, who is currently serving a 45-year prison sentence in the United States, through a post on social media.
In the same message, the former U.S. president voiced his support for Nasry Asfura, the candidate representing Hernández’s right-wing party in the Honduran elections.
“If he doesn’t win, the United States will not waste any more money, because the wrong leader can only bring catastrophic results to a country, no matter which one it is,” Trump wrote on his platform Truth Social.
Asfura, a 67-year-old construction magnate and former mayor of Honduras’s capital, is competing in a tight race against attorney Rixi Moncada of the ruling leftist Libre party and television host Salvador Nasralla of the right-leaning Liberal Party.
Central America
Washington calls for oversight as Honduras faces allegations of electoral interference
The United States government urged members of the Organization of American States (OAS) on Tuesday to support a transparent electoral process in Honduras, free from intimidation, interference, or fraud, just days before the general elections scheduled for this Sunday.
The call was made by U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau during an extraordinary session of the OAS Permanent Council. The meeting was convened at the request of the United States in response to reports of irregularities marking the final stretch of Honduras’ electoral process. Landau expressed concern over the situation in the country, warning that Honduras is facing an institutional crisis. “I fear that Honduras faces an uncertain future. Therefore, I urge you to use your collective voice to warn Honduran officials about the consequences of interfering in the electoral process,” he stated.
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump reaffirmed its support for electoral integrity and called on Hondurans to exercise their right to vote. “We hear you and we stand with you. Go out and vote on November 30 to be part of the democratic future of this country,” Landau said in Spanish during his remarks.
In response, Honduras’ ambassador to the OAS, Roberto Quesada, rejected the allegations and said there is no evidence of election-related crimes. “We are surprised that a Permanent Council meeting was called when no crime has been committed,” the diplomat said, dismissing reports of repression against journalists. “These narratives are invented because, as we know, fake news runs wild on the internet,” he added.
The session was also requested by Argentina, Ecuador, and Paraguay, whose governments expressed concern over the direction of the Honduran elections.
The process has been questioned due to the actions of the Public Ministry and the Armed Forces, both accused of interfering in matters under the exclusive authority of the National Electoral Council (CNE). The Attorney General’s Office has opened investigations into senior electoral officials, while the military has been accused of improperly intervening in civilian affairs.
Marlon Ochoa, a CNE councilor, maintained that despite the pressure, “general elections will be held despite the conspiracy that has been attempted against the electoral process,” and confirmed that all logistical materials are ready.
Colombia’s ambassador, Luis Vargas, announced that his country will provide “accompaniment” during the election, while Argentina’s representative, Carlos Bernardo, stressed that “there is no room for rigged electoral processes” in the region.
The main presidential contenders are Rixi Moncada of the Libre party, Salvador Nasralla of the Liberal Party, and Nasry Asfura of the National Party.
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