Guatemala now a new safe haven for refugees

BOGOTA: Guatemala is emerging as an unlikely safe haven for refugees fleeing rampant gang violence in El Salvador and Honduras, a new destination for Central Americans who have traditionally beaten a path to the United States, according to the United Nations.

Gang violence, poverty and few jobs drive hundreds of thousands of people every year from El Salvador, Honduras, and to a lesser extent Guatemala, to seek refuge and a better life mainly in America.

Until recently, Guatemala was a transit country for migrants and refugees, including women and children travelling alone, making the overland journey north.

But now, more Salvadoran and Honduran refugees are regarding Guatemala – where asylum requests rose by more than 200% from 2014 to 2016, as a “country of refuge”, said Filippo Grandi, the head of the UN refugee agency UNHCR.

“There are many people who end up asking for asylum in this country, particularly from El Salvador and Honduras,” Grandi said during a visit this week to Guatemala and other countries in the region.

Guatemala has granted refugee status to 178 Salvadorans and Hondurans since 2014, the UNHCR said.

To enforce control, Central American street gangs, known as maras, rape women and girls, murder, force children to join their ranks, and extort money at gunpoint, according to UNHCR.

During his visit to Mexico this week, Grandi said on Twitter he was “shocked and sad” after hearing refugees speak of“horrifying” abuses carried out by gang members.

“The fundamental challenge is to address root causes, especially the root causes of the violence that cause so many people to flee,” Grandi said in a statement earlier this week. — Reuters