(San Pedro Sula) Hundreds of migrants organize themselves in San Pedro Sula, in Honduras, to leave for the Guatemalan border, the first stage of the long march towards the United States.
Posted at 10:09 a.m.
Saturday morning, men, women and children gathered at dawn on a parking lot in this city, to leave on foot towards the promised land, namely the United States, with the hope of being able to find a better future there.
Some left before the sun even rose. Carrying their meager possessions in a backpack or bags they carry, they head for the mountains that separate them from Corinto, a small Honduran town bordering Guatemala.
If they succeed in crossing, they will then have to cross Honduras and then Mexico.
They know it’s “a very, very hard road” ahead of them to reach their goal, as explained by Ovaldo, a Nicaraguan who prefers not to give his surname.
But in the end, it’s “a better future for our families”, he adds, explaining that the situation in his country “is very difficult”.
Around him that day, they are about 500. Some are from Honduras, others have come from Haiti, Venezuela or Nicaragua.
Some have even crossed the ocean from Africa.
They seek to escape the violence of drug traffickers and gangs, climatic disasters, floods or drought that have destroyed their lives, or simply poverty.
They come to join the endless stream of migrants trying to reach the United States, which a very small minority will succeed.
2000km
Upon arrival in Corinto, the group splits to pass the Guatemalan immigration services.
Those who do not have proper papers or no proof of a negative COVID-19 test are immediately turned away, an AFP photographer noted.
The Guatemalan authorities estimate that, in addition, approximately 150 undocumented people managed to enter by crossing the border outside the authorized crossings.
Once past immigration, a hundred migrants are suddenly stopped by the police who intend to force them to go back. Migrants respond with throwing stones and other objects, injuring a dozen according to an official.
The last caravan that passed through San Pedro Sula left in January 2021, and numbered around 7,000 people.
Once they arrived in Guatemala, they were stopped by hundreds of soldiers who, using truncheons and tear gas, forced them to cross the border in the other direction.
For those who managed to cross, in mid-January 2022, the road is still very long to reach the border of the United States, 2000 km away.