June 7
Belén Migrant House, El Ceibo, Guatemala
During the route Ceibo-Tenosique, Fr. Juan and Francisco, both volunteers with the Structural Change program, pointed out the communities allied with La 72, as well as the places where people are most vulnerable to local criminals and criminal groups. The 50-minute journey in the tropical jungle of Tabasco with its scorching heat allows us to observe how difficult it is to walk that route, totally exposed to natural and human-caused hazards.
Upon arriving at Casa Belén, located just 350 meters from the El Ceibo Border Port, we were received by Carmen Gómez and Vivian Yat Milian, both psychologists. They told us that the house only shelters migrants for one day, who arrive mostly in the afternoon and at night, and then leave at dawn the next day to continue their journey and cross the Mexican border. La 72 and Casa Belén have established links in the referrals of cases with families separated on the road, unaccompanied children, people in a situation of violence. In cases like this people can stay longer than usual.
With a capacity for 50 people, the house has what is necessary to provide a decent rest, food, personal hygiene products and clothing. Despite having few people on the team, with the day to day organization helps them keep up, although being in an isolated area and with little electricity, the risks of insecurity and harassment are high. Carmen and Vivian told us that their own life has been exposed to this lack of security. As workers of the shelter, they are easily identified. They also know who distributes drugs, commits crimes, extorts and defrauds migrants.
Currently, they are expanding areas of the house to have more space and to provide better care.
The Franciscan Network for Migrants appreciates the support and constant collaboration of Quixote Center to our organization. This visit was the first and we are in the dialogue to plan more to the southern border of Mexico. We also thank the houses for migrants who received us despite their commitments. We admire the hard work they do every day to seek the defense of the human rights of migrants. It doesn’t matter if we are from different religions or secular, we are always willing to collaborate for our brothers and sisters. We hope to meet again soon!