The authorities of the Mexican state of Quintana Roo warned about the disembarkation of 50 Cuban rafters in the last 27 days. The most recent arrival occurred this Sunday, when 14 people were located on Isla de la Pasión, a protected natural area of Cozumel surrounded by mangroves. A “failure” of the raft’s engine and the force of the wind took them to this tourist destination, he confirmed to 14ymedio Officer Stephen.
A group of tourists denounced the presence of strange people on the island, where snorkeling is usually practiced, kayaking activities are carried out, and tours through the Laguna Ciega are organized. The municipal police in coordination with members of the National Guard went to the place, finding six women, a minor and seven men, with their passport as the only identification.
“The migrants were provided with water and food and transferred to the corporation’s facilities for a medical check-up,” said the director of municipal Public Security, Rodrigo Rodríguez Peña. According to what the rafters declared, their intention was to reach the United States.
Minutes after five in the afternoon, they took the people out of the security headquarters, loaded them into a Migration van, and transferred the Cubans escorted by several patrols, as if they were criminals, to the immigration headquarters, located in the Cozumel tax pier. The authorities refused to provide the names of the detainees.
Rodríguez explained that the National Migration Institute will be in charge of defining the legal situation of these people. The Migration Law establishes in article 69, paragraph V, the possibility of “regularizing their situation”, but several compatriots have denounced extortion and arbitrary detention.
Last September the Cuban Graviel Garciawho was waiting for a response to his asylum request in Mexico, told this newspaper that from Pinar del Río he had knowledge of clandestine departures from the Island to Cancun and Isla Mujeres.
Between the months of August and September, the Mexican authorities counted the arrival of 80 Cuban rafters. García, whose appointment was changed for December 7, indicated that “it would not be strange if these landings have to do with coyoteswho ask you between 5,000 and 7,000 dollars to get you out of Cuba and when they see the lost thing they abandon you”.
Last Thursday six Cubans landed on Isla Mujeres, also in Quintana Roo. People crossed the road and went in various directions, getting lost in the streets of the La Gloria neighborhood. Although the authorities conducted tours of the area, they could not find these migrants.
The last week of October, a Navy vessel rescued 30 Cuban rafters who were adrift 10 nautical miles north of Isla Mujeres. The migrants, seven women and 23 men, were taken to the Puerto Juárez Naval Station, where they received medical attention and are currently under Migration custody.
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