In the last months, more than 10 thousand Central Americans, mostly families with children, have left their countries fleeing from gangs, state violence and poverty, joining the hundreds of thousands of Central Americans forcibly displaced for these reasons for more than 15 years. Facing this situation, we partnered with the Minerva Bello Center, who is monitoring migrants' travel to protect their human rights, and offering shelter and legal assistance to those seeking refuge in Mexico.
Without an integral accompaniment it is very difficult for migrants to integrate into active life, through the social, economic and cultural inclusion of the place where they arrive. School and health systems in Mexico are not yet inclusive to receive this population; this is why our legal support and accompaniment plays a crucial role. Another challenge is to have access to a safe environment, as well as to offer a safe place to live, study and work.
We have established collaborative relationships with the local office of the federal government's Migration National Institute (Instituto Nacional de Migracion) to receive vulnerable migrants that seek asylum or refuge in Mexico; and also we have placed migrants in training and employments projects in alliance with local entrepreneurs. In coming months we hope to establish links with educational institutions to enroll Jefferson Rodriguez, a young man from Honduras, in law school.
In their long and difficult passage through Mexico, migrants face high risks of violent crimes -as murder, kidnapping, extortion, sexual abuse and person trafficking- by the numerous criminal gangs, as well as of serious human rights violations by authorities. This is why we focus on personal integrity protection of migrants and, along with other human rights centers, act to change public policies that may prevent such crimes and violations.