Mexico’s López Obrador says U.S. has done “nothing in years” for Central America

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Thursday (8), before the High-Level Economic Dialogue (HLED) being held in Washington, that the U.S. government has done “nothing in years” to help Central America and Central American migrants,

“That is what is going to be raised again today with the U.S. government, that work is done immediately in Central America because there has been nothing in years. Some things through agencies and the so-called civil society, but the support does not reach the people,” said the President during his morning press conference.

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He said that it is important to start a new stage because there has been no attention to the population that is forced to emigrate. “There has not been in years, nothing,” he emphasized.

He indicated that President Biden’s government should “immediately” decide to support “the poorest countries, the Central American countries” and attend to the migratory phenomenon’s causes.

“That migration is optional, not forced, that is it not due to lack of jobs, hunger, necessity, insecurity. That people have the possibility to work and be happy where they were born,” he said.

He pointed out that today, at the meeting in Washington, the issue will be raised again and that programs such as Sembrando Vida and Jóvenes Construyendo El Futuro can be implemented. “In six months, we will have results,” he said.

He pointed out that in the letter he sent a few days ago to Biden, he spoke to him about the need to implement temporary work visas since the plans to strengthen the infrastructure of the United States will require a workforce.

For this reason, he considered that there must be a change and trusted that thanks to the good relationship Mexico has with the U.S. government, they will work “for a new policy” on the immigration issue.

On Wednesday, López Obrador had reiterated that his government would not be “pressured” by anyone and that it was not a “servant” or “employee” of the U.S. government on migration issues.

The region has been experiencing an unprecedented migration wave in years. As proof of this, last July, the United States detained 212,672 undocumented immigrants at its southern border, the highest figure in 20 years.

The HLED, held this Thursday in Washington, will be attended on behalf of Mexico by the Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Marcelo Ebrard; the Secretary of Economics, Tatiana Clouthier; and the Undersecretary of Finance and Public Credit, Gabriel Yorio.

According to the White House, this will be the first time since 2016 that the HLED has been held.