Mexico offers hotline help in US
MEXICO has set up a 24-hour hotline that its citizens in the US will be able to use to report immigration raids after Donald Trump becomes president.
Mr Trump has said he plans to deport two to three million illegal immigrants after taking office in January and previously claimed Mexico was sending rapists and drug dealers across the border.
In response to his victory, Mexico’s 50 consulates in the US have expanded services for Mexicans living there, including bolstering defences against deportation. Consulates will streamline the process for Mexicans to obtain identification documents, and make it easier for those wary of deportation to contact the relevant authorities.
Claudia Ruiz Massieu, Mexico’s foreign secretary, told Mexicans in the US: “These are uncertain times. The gov- ernment of President Enrique Peña Nieto and all Mexicans are with you. We are going to be closer than ever.”
Ms Nieto urged them to contact consulates to find out whether they might be targeted for immigration raids under the Trump administration.
Carlos Sada, Mexico’s ambassador to the US, said recently that the consulates would be stepping up their efforts in response to anxiety from Mexicans over Mr Trump’s policies.
There are five to six million Mexicans currently living illegally in America. Some cities, including New York and Chicago, have said they will increase protections for illegal immigrants.
Melissa Mark-Viverito, the speaker of New York’s city council, has said the city is considering purging government records to make it more difficult for the Trump administration to track down illegal immigrants.
Both legal and illegal residents can receive identification cards in New York. “We are having conversations – obviously we are committed to ensuring that that conversation remains confidential – and yes, we are exploring the idea of purging information,” she said.
Rahm Emanuel, the mayor of Chicago, reassured those living in the city illegally that it “will always be a sanctuary.” He said that “to all those who are nervous and filled with anxiety” after the election, “you are safe in Chicago, you are secure in Chicago and you are supported in Chicago”.