Hundreds of residents of the border city of Tijuana took to the streets on Nov. 18 to protest the massive arrival of Central American migrants waiting to seek asylum in the United States.
With flags and banners and shouting slogans, they demanded the departure of caravan members from the country, accusing them of generating insecurity and violating Mexican laws.
“They are invaders! They are armed! Get out of the country,” they shouted as they crowded into an emblematic city roundabout. The protest also involved some residents of the nearby U.S. city of San Diego, California.
Thousands of migrants who have arrived in Tijuana have saturated the shelters, and many more sleep in the streets. Local authorities have asked for federal support to give them humanitarian aid and the services they need during their asylum process to the United States, which could take months.
The mayor of Tijuana, Juan Manuel Gastelum, said on Nov. 16 that he expected the arrival of about 10,000 migrants to the city.
On the other hand, authorities of Mexico and the United States increased the measures of security at the border. Since Nov. 17, large iron barricades were seen on the side of Tijuana in some of the vehicular lanes of the port of entry to San Ysidro, considered the busiest crossing in the world.
On the San Ysidro side, large portions of barbed wire were also placed on top of the steel wall that separates the two countries. At the Mexican border, it is unusual to close ports of entry to the United States.
Local authorities estimate that since Nov. 12, about 6,000 Central American migrants have arrived in both Tijuana and another neighbouring border city, Mexicali, many of them accompanied by their children.
Members of the crowded caravan have said that they could choose to stay in Mexico and look for work, since any option would be better before returning to their countries.
In another area of the city, a smaller group of people demonstrated against the discrimination against migrants and asked for the assistance to continue.
