More of 12,000 Guatemalan migrants were deported in the first two months of 2023from the United States and Mexico, including 1,247 minors.
Between In January and February, Guatemala received 63 deportation flights with 6,668 people from the US and another 1,943 sent from Mexicoas reported this Thursday by the Guatemalan Institute of Migration (IGM).
In addition, Mexico deported 3,838 Guatemalans by land, the same source detailed.
In all, it was12,449 people were deported, which represents a decrease of 15,478 Guatemalans returned by force compared to the same period of 2022.
According to the immigration authorities, the majority of returnees originate from Quiché and Huehuetenango, two departments (provinces) in the northwest of the country that have a majority indigenous population.
Among the returned migrants, Mexico and the United States sent 1,247 minors and 711 of them traveled without company of an adult relative.
During 2022, the United States expelled 40,713 Guatemalans, an increase of 128% compared to 2021, when 17,806 people were deported.
Every year some 300,000 Guatemalans try to emigrate to the United States in search of better living conditions to flee the poverty and violence that plague the Central American country, according to expert estimates.
