Hidalgo, Texas — After rolling out the Department of Justice’s new ‘zero tolerance’ policy – prosecuting all illegal border crossings – the Trump administration has asked migrants to seek asylum the ‘right’ way. However, some people are being turned away.
It’s a sight seen almost daily at the Hidalgo international bridge: people walking up from Mexico to a long line for document inspection at customs.
Lately, an unusual sight: men, women and children, laying on the ground along the walkway, camping out.
A Honduran mother standing at the bridge said she spent a night with her two children waiting for U.S. Customs and Border Protection to allow her in and request asylum.
She was told this was the way to do so, as indicated by CBP’s parent agency, the Department of Homeland Security.
“If you are fleeing and having to come into the United States, please come to the ports of entry,” DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said at a May 8 congressional hearing in Washington.
This ‘zero tolerance’ policy introduced in April aims at prosecuting everyone choosing to cross illegally between the ports of entry, essentially separating children from their parents, who would then be deemed criminals.
The word has now reached asylum seekers through the media in Central America.
“They are criminally charging people that cross the river,” said a 32-year-old Honduran father, who said he learned about the policy before leaving his country.
The Honduran father and his son have waited four days outside the port of entry along with 20 others, rather than choosing to go back to Mexico.
They fear they we fall into the hands of kidnappers and extortionists.
During a press conference on binational security collaboration the same morning, the KENS 5 Border Team asked officials from both sides of the border what was being done to ensure their safety while waiting outside, but a Border Patrol spokesman wouldn’t allow the officials to answer.
A statement from customs and border protection reads:
“U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is taking a proactive approach to ensure that arriving travelers have valid entry documents in order to expedite the processing of lawful travel. That being said, CBP processes undocumented persons as expeditiously as possible without negating the agency’s overall mission, or compromising the safety of individuals within our custody. The number of inadmissible individuals CBP is able to process varies based upon case complexity; available resources; medical needs; translation requirements; holding/detention space; overall port volume; and ongoing enforcement actions.”
Meanwhile, migrants from Central America, Cuba, and even Eritrea who were at the bridge Thursday said they depend on charity groups to bring them food, clothes, and comforters to sleep on. They admitted that attending to their hygiene was their greatest challenge.
They said fewer than a dozen are allowed in each day while more keep arriving on America’s doorstep.