Central America
Guatemala opens centers to apply for legal migration to the U.S.
June 13 |
A program announced by the United States and Guatemala to discourage irregular migration from Central America began Monday with the launch of a website that will receive applications for refugee status, family reunification and visas from those seeking to reach U.S. territory.
The program, called Secure Mobility, on the website https://movilidadsegura.org will be administered by the US government, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), according to the Guatemalan Foreign Ministry.
“A form must be filled out, data must be entered; then an appointment will be scheduled in which it will be explained to people personally if they are eligible to opt for any of the existing mechanisms to migrate to the United States,” explained the Secretary of Communication of the Presidency of Guatemala, Kevin Lopez.
For his part, the US Ambassador to Guatemala, William Popp, said that it is “a virtual platform for Guatemalans, Salvadorans, Hondurans, Nicaraguans can access through a virtual way to find opportunities for legal channels for a safe migration, also orderly, between family reunification, work visa opportunities and also to apply for opportunities for the refugee program.”
Although it was announced that the platform would be available to schedule appointments from 10:00 a.m. on Monday morning it was not, and only in the afternoon were those interested able to start their formalities.
The Centers for Attention to Migrants and Refugees (Capmir), are located in the Guatemalan Air Force, Petén, Quetzaltenango, San Marcos, Quiché and Huehuetenango.
With the opening of these centers at origin, financed by the US, Washington is trying to establish migratory actions in countries that, like Guatemala, are used as transit countries by migrants fleeing poverty and violence in the region.
According to the website, all citizens covered by the Central American Free Mobility Agreement (CA-4), that is, citizens of Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua who are in their countries, can register.
However, “not all persons requesting an evaluation will qualify or benefit from the program,” the site explains.
Those interested must be 18 years old, have a valid email address, a valid phone number or an international data plan. In addition, they will be asked for a stable internet connection, digital photographs of the applicant and their family members, as well as scanned copy or photographs of their identity documents such as passport and identity card, as long as they are available.
The information is completely free of charge. The pilot plan will run for six months.
The White House announced that these offices will also start working in Colombia on June 19, one week after Guatemala.
Central America
Venezuelan opposition leader to meet Costa Rican president Rodrigo Chaves on thursday
Venezuelan opposition leader Edmundo González Urrutia will meet with Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves this Thursday, the Presidential Office of Costa Rica announced today.
“We will give a warm welcome to the person who won the July elections in Venezuela, and we continue to denounce electoral fraud,” President Chaves stated during his weekly press conference.
Meanwhile, Costa Rican Foreign Minister Arnoldo André explained that González Urrutia is visiting Costa Rica to “inform the president and provide details about the situation in Venezuela, the victory he achieved with over 7 million votes on July 28, and the electoral fraud committed by Nicolás Maduro’s regime, which fraudulently swore him in as president.”
González Urrutia is currently in Guatemala, having arrived from the Dominican Republic as part of a tour through several countries ahead of the controversial inauguration on January 10, during which the Chavista leader Nicolás Maduro was sworn in as president by the National Assembly, controlled by the ruling party.
Central America
President Arévalo highlights anti-corruption and drug trafficking efforts in first year report
Guatemalan President Bernardo Arévalo de León highlighted this Tuesday the progress made in the fight against corruption and drug trafficking as cornerstones of his first year at the helm of the Guatemalan government, during a session in Congress.
“We are in a process of transformation, but the commitment must be focused on eradicating the corruption that has oppressed us for so long,” said the president during the presentation of his first government report.
Arévalo de León urged lawmakers to “work together for structural change” in the country and thanked the president of the Legislative Body, Nery Ramos, for their joint efforts in the approval of various laws and the alliances formed during 2024.
The Guatemalan president highlighted as an achievement of his administration the denunciation of dozens of corruption structures embedded in state entities, such as fraud networks involving businessmen and former officials.
Central America
Honduras arrests former military leaders over 2009 killings
Former Chief of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of Honduras, General Romeo Vásquez, was arrested on Sunday as the alleged person responsible for the 2009 killings of two individuals by military personnel, just days after leading the coup against former President Manuel Zelaya.
Along with him, the Deputy Chief of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Venancio Cervantes, and the former commander of the Joint Operations Command were also detained, according to the Secretary of State for Security (Interior), Gustavo Sánchez, on his social media account X.
“The three arrests were made moments ago by the Honduran Police in coordination with the Public Ministry in Tegucigalpa and La Paz (west),” Sánchez said.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office had issued an arrest warrant for the three ex-military officials “on charges of homicide and aggravated assault” against Obed Murillo and Alex Zavala, who were attacked by “members of the Armed Forces,” according to the Public Ministry.
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