A group of 50 Cubans took hostage this Tuesday the driver of the tourist bus they were traveling in the Mexican state of Veracruz, with the aim of not being detained by members of the National Guard. The officers, who intended to hand them over to the National Migration Institute (INM), intercepted the vehicle in a section of the Transístmica highway, which connects the municipalities of Sayula de Alemán with Acayucan.
“In Acayucan they deport you, we are not going there,” the Cubans warned the National Guard and said they intended to continue their journey to Mexicali, from there to cross into the United States. One of the migrants assured that each Cuban paid 2,500 pesos ($75) for transportation.
An officer confirmed 14ymedio that there were several children in the group and that “although the people presented residence and free transit permits, these were for the states of Chiapas and Oaxaca,” he explained.
Insisting that their situation should be resolved by Immigration, the Cubans cornered the driver and took the bus keys from him. In support of the National Guard, other vehicles arrived, but this annoyed those detained even more. After five hours of negotiations, they were allowed to return to the state of Oaxaca, warning that recidivism in transit without permission is penalized.
Migration did not issue any report on the incident, nor details on the arrest, this Tuesday, of 29 other migrants after persecution in the city of Cordoba.
Last April, the lawyer José Luis Pérez Jiménez denounced that the detention of Cubans and their internment in the Migration center of Acayucan became a collection channel of money for the coffers of officials.
Wilmer Mantos, a 27-year-old Cuban who was imprisoned in Acayucan, told 14ymedio that this place “is a prison where human rights do not exist: they have you without a cell phone, without papers, you eat because you are hungry, but the food is spoiled and there is hardly any water or medical assistance.”
In their transit through Mexico to reach the United States, Cubans have had to face arbitrary arrests, violation of their human rights and extortion. On the last day of September, a group of 14 migrants from the Island denounced that a high-ranking Immigration official he demanded $70,000 not to deport them.
The Cubans were arrested in Campeche and transferred to Mexico City and despite having legal protection, they were held for several days. They are currently heading for the US border.
Nearly 200,000 Cubans have arrived by land in the United States and more than 6,000 by sea since October 2021.
________________________
Collaborate with our work:
The team of 14ymedio is committed to doing serious journalism that reflects the reality of deep Cuba. Thank you for joining us on this long road. We invite you to continue supporting us, but this time becoming a member of our newspaper. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.
