Tuxtla Gutierrez.- Some 300 Central American migrants rioted on Wednesday at the installation of the National Migration Institute (INM), known as “El Cupapé”, in the city of Tuxtla Gutiérrez, capital of the state of Chiapas, southeastern Mexico.

The protesters, including women, men and minors, demonstrated inside the INM offices and demanded the presence of authorities and the media.

They complained about the lack of medical attention, water, maintenance of the facilities and an alleged case of covid-19, they also demanded from the authorities better treatment, food, better sleeping conditions and above all that they are not returned to their places of source.

The protests of the migrants lasted just over an hour and when their demands were not met, they began to shout, bang on doors and tear down the metal security fences that separated them from the offices and from the main door leading to the outside.

One of the migrants from El Salvador named Alma managed to reach the concrete fence of the INM, with her 3-year-old son, and assured Efe that she was pregnant, that she was traveling with her husband and another child, however she said no she knew nothing about her family since they had been separated and she feared for her baby’s health as she did not have prenatal care.

The woman, in her 30s, demanded that the authorities meet with her family and that if they were going to deport them to their country that they should all go together since she did not feel safe in the facility after the rumor spread that the doctor who He treats them, presumably he is infected with covid-19.

«They say that the doctor is ill and that is how he is treating those of us who are in here and there are many people. I am distressed because I am a month pregnant and I have no control, “the woman told Efe.

She said that her husband and other son had not seen them for more than 20 days, when they were arrested. “They separated us and I don’t know anything about them, when we go out to the patio we don’t coincide and I want to be with them.”

For his part, José Carrasco, also from El Salvador, said that he has been detained for more than 20 days with his two children and asked that if they are going to deport them to us that they better leave them pounds since the room was contaminated with covid-19, also there was no space and he slept on a mattress on the patio.

After an hour of protests, INM personnel controlled the situation.

Carrasco assured that in the facility “there are people who have been locked up for more than a month,” the authorities did not issue any statement about the incidents.

This Wednesday, the INM reported the detention of 31,492 migrants between January 1 and March 21, which represents an increase of 18% compared to the same period in 2020.

In a statement, the INM said that the figure represents 4,779 more irregular foreign migrants, compared to the 26,713 detained in the same period of 2020.

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