EFE.- The Secretary of Homeland Security of the United States, Alejandro Mayorkas, attributed this Tuesday the increase in illegal migration on the southern border of the United States to “violence, natural disasters, food insecurity and poverty” in Central America and Mexico.
Mayorkas appeared before the Senate Homeland Security Committee in a hearing to discuss his agency’s request for resources in the budget for the 2022 fiscal period that begins October 1.
Senator Bob Portman of Ohio and the senior Republican on the committee warned that illegal migration “has been increasing every month since the inauguration” of President Joe Biden’s administration on January 20.
“An increase in migration is underway that has reached the highest levels in two decades,” added Portman. “President Biden said it was a seasonal phenomenon, which would moderate with the summer.”
“But we are in the summer and (the migrants) keep coming. We are not preparing in any way and the government is overwhelmed by the arrival of minors without the company of responsible adults and families ”added the Republican senator.
About 189,000 undocumented immigrants were detained last June at the southern border of the United States, which represented an increase of 4.5% over the previous month’s figures, which had been a historical record of more than two decades, and all despite the high temperatures suffered by immigrants who cross the border irregularly.
Mayorkas pointed out that, in addition to the conditions that have led millions of migrants to leave their countries, the Government has had to deal with the global Covid-19 pandemic.
“And on top of these challenges was the lack of long-term planning and a comprehensive strategic framework by the previous government,” Mayorkas added.
The government of former President Donald Trump “ended the program for Central American minors and cut hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras,” the official said.
“Simply put, the previous government dismantled our country’s immigration system,” Mayokas added.
President Biden’s budget proposal includes $ 1.2 billion for the modernization of controls at points of entry to the United States, of which $ 655 million will go to improving land ports of entry.
“The budget includes a 50% increase for paperwork services within the Immigration and Customs Control Service (ICE) alternatives to detention program, Mayorkas explained.
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Likewise, the request to Congress for funds for DHS includes $ 345 million for the hiring of more personnel, the acquisition of equipment and support services for the immigration system.
“These improvements will provide the resources to reduce the backlog in procedures and will allow the Citizenship and Immigration Service to strengthen its interview capacity in order to meet the government’s goal of accepting up to 125,000 refugees each year,” he said.
Another $ 163 million requested from Congress will be for medical services provided to migrants detained by Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Mayorkas said.
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