Wednesday, November 27

Mexican migrants are forced to travel in a caravan due to threats from drug traffickers and authorities

Thousands of countrymen shield themselves against possible extortion by criminals, and even policemen, traveling in caravans on highways from the United States to their towns in Mexico to enjoy the festivities with the family December.

One case is that of the group “Federación Orgullo Zacatecano”, which for the second time since 2019 will make its way from Laredo, Texas, to Tamaulipas, Nuevo León, Coahuila, San Luis Potosí, Aguascalientes, Querétaro and evidently Zacatecas.

Countrymen travel to Mexico for New Year’s Eve parties.

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For Rafael Esparza, leader of the group of Zacatecans who since 1979 decided to emigrate to the United States, the decision to protect himself with a large caravan of hundreds of vehicles It is because the “bad guys” –as they call them– are barely waiting for 100 meters from crossing the border to extort at least a thousand dollars.

With long weapons, the “promise” to let them move freely and take care of them , the members of cartels fill their pockets in the middle of the federal highway , without anyone doing anything to prevent families with men, women and children from suffering extortion, he explains in an interview.

On this occasion, says Esparza, they agreed that National Guard trucks, as well as municipal and state emergency teams, help them on a journey that began yesterday at five in the morning in the area known as Milla 13, on the US side.

“This is precisely due to the climate of insecurity that exists in Mexico, unfortunately at the border and throughout the journey, the countrymen are extorted, the countrymen do not see They come because of the insecurity on the road.

“If it is not by caravan, we do not recommend that they leave through Nuevo Laredo (Tamaulipas), but rather through Piedras Negras or Acuña (in Coahuila) , which is quieter, here are the bad guys right away, there immediately at 100 meters People leaving grab them and many are left without a vehicle, on foot, the money is not given, they take everything they have, there is extortion of a thousand dollars, people say why am I going, if they take my money? ”, says the leader of the migrants.

In the case of Zacatecas, they have also identified extortions in a gap known as “Bañón”, which connects with the Municipality of Fresnillo, adds Esparza, originally from Río Grande, Zacatecas, who since 1984 became a US citizen and currently lives in Waco, Texas.

“In Zacatecas too, the countrymen are continually extorted, not just in the border eh, there is a path to shorten, not to reach the entire federal highway, it cuts into a branch called Bañón, to go to Fresnillo, there too.

“They are not bad boys They are pseudogroups that pretend to be them, put stones on the road, people stop and take vehicles s, their belongings from everyone, pseudogroups have emerged and one sees them armed and oh dear you are or you are not !, have the truck, just don’t hurt me “, he narrates.

” This whole trip involves a risk, but the satisfaction of being there with the old, brothers, many countrymen are going to organize parties of XV years, baptisms, it is worth , because there is the satisfaction of being there with the people of one, the pride of returning to One, although later they tell us that you bring a borrowed truck for the one you owe, we work all day, we are not going to show off or get robbed, we are going to enjoy our beloved people. ”

So, in this occasion, for the caravan that left yesterday, its members had to have vehicle permits, individual permits and the payment of taxes ready to avoid legal problems when entering Mexico.

If the final destination is Zacatecas, the route drawn will be to go from Laredo, Texas, to Tamaulipas, later Nuevo León, Coahuila and Zacatecas , where finally the countrymen, after a minimum of 13 hours of road, will be distributed on roads that lead mainly to Río Grande, Juan Aldama and Sombrerete.

“We put rubberized vehicles to distinguish the caravan, so that authorities there (Mexico) know that we are going in caravan, that we are part of a caravan and it has a lot of respect, because we are not extorted by the federals or by the bad guys ”, adds the Mexican citizen.

With information from the Reform Agency

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