Communique from the Central American Exodus (Central Mexico)

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This communique is an update from the Central American caravan as they make their way through the central coastal states of Mexico. The original in Spanish was published by Ké Huelga Radio and can be found here.

November 13, 2018

7:00 AM

To the State Governments of Jalisco, Nayarit and Sinaloa

To the Civil Society

To the Media

To the National and State Human Rights Commissions

Last night, after a long trip hiking on the highway, the five thousand members of the Central American Exodus arrived exhausted to the city of Guadalajara at 10 PM, where we were received with a roof, food and water.

In a very late meeting last night, the Secretary of Interior of Jalisco told us that they did not have enough resources nor food for us to stay and rest the following day. Despite the fatigue of the group, they asked that we leave the city.

We were offered transportation to the limit of Jalisco and it was suggested that the State of Nayarit would probably transport us to the Sinaloa because the Nayarit is in critical condition after the recent hurricane.

The agreement reached was that the transportation from the Jalisco would pick us up in Guadalajara and would leave us at a point near Ixtlán—the limit between Jalisco and Nayarit. From there, other transportation would pick us up to securely take us to Sinaloa. In a telephone call during the reunion, the office of the Governor of the State of Sinaloa also informed us that we would be transported as quickly as possible today to Sinaloa.

Today in the early morning we began the journey, but when getting off where the busses stopped, we realized that they were leaving us some 90 kilometers from the point in which the transportation would pick us up in Nayarit to continue toward Sinaloa.

This is a clear decision by the State of Jalisco to take us out of the city of Guadalajara without fulfilling their word. Like that, they have put the physical integrity, security and health of thousands of families with children at risk—families that are left in the dark of the early morning at a desolate and unknown point of the highway without transportation nor service, nearly 100 kilometers from the point where they can safely leave for the next long leg of the journey. Keep in mind also that a cold front is arriving that will bring freezing temperatures to various part of Northeastern Mexico.

After the tragic events of three weeks ago with the hurricane, the coast of Nayarit has been devastated. Our intention was never to be a burden to the State of Nayarit. That’s why we made the agreement last night.

We hold responsible the Government of Jalisco for whatever aggression, accident or mishap that may occur in the section between the toll booth of El Arenal on the Guadalajara-Tepic highway and the point near Ixtlán where transportation waits for us to take us to Sinaloa.

We call on the Governments of the States of Jalisco, Nayarit and Sinaloa and civil society to jointly resolve this grave problem to not leave drifting and insecure vulnerable families who relied on the word of the State of Jalisco. Meanwhile, we have agreed to stay for security purposes near the toll booth of El Arenal where they are leaving us, and we invite the media to arrive to document what is happening.

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