Sheinbaum noted that Mexican migrants deported from the US are received immediately, but stressed that they must arrive "in conditions that do not violate their human rights." Photo: EFE
The Mexican president criticized the opening of the controversial "Alligator Alcatraz" detention center in the U.S. state of Florida
Mexico City, July 2 (RHC)-- In a clear message addressed to the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum denounced the criminalization of migrants on Tuesday and described the new mega-detention center in Florida, known as "Alligator Alcatraz," as a "violation of human rights."
During her morning press conference at the National Palace, Sheinbaum emphasized the importance of migrants, especially Latinos and Mexicans, to the United States economy. "We do not agree with treating migrants as criminals," she declared, while recalling that the neighboring nation was historically built on migration.
"Alligator Alcatraz" is a detention center located in the Everglades swamps near Ochopee, Florida. It has been compared to the infamous Alcatraz prison due to its isolation and harsh surrounding conditions, including the stifling heat, pests, and alligators and wildlife that live in the surrounding area. Environmentalists also criticize its location due to the flora and fauna present.
Built in just two weeks on an abandoned airstrip, the facility has the capacity to house at least 3,000 migrants and is part of the "hardline" strategy promoted by Trump, who oversaw its opening alongside Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
Sheinbaum warned that the mass deportation of migrants would not only severely affect the US economy but would also represent a systematic violation of human rights. "Wanting to label a migrant as a criminal or seeking the deportation of millions of migrants, as they say, will affect the US economy. But it also totally violates human rights," she stressed.
The opening of the center has sparked outrage among human rights organizations and environmental groups, who denounce that its accelerated construction ignored environmental regulations in an area of high natural value, near Everglades National Park. Protesters gathered outside the site with banners reading: "Migrating is not a crime."
Sheinbaum reiterated that Mexico will welcome deported Mexicans, but demanded that their basic rights be respected. "We will defend Mexicans, whether they spend a month, two months, ten years, or twenty years there," she stated.
The Mexican president's denunciation follows that expressed on Monday by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who denounced the US's "kidnapping" of 18 Venezuelan children separated from their families in detention centers.
During his program "Con Maduro +," the president demanded their repatriation "as an act of justice and humanity," referring to the case of Maykelis Espinoza, a two-year-old girl returned to Venezuela last May following an international campaign.
[ SOURCE: teleSUR ]
