Immigration in Guerrero Deports 140 in 2010

(Taxco, NA 9 December) The Guerrero office of the National Migration Institute (or “INM”), Mexico’s immigration authority, announced that to date in 2010 they have “repatriated” 140 undocumented immigrants, the vast majority from Guatemala. Some of those deported were from the United States. Almost all of those detained in Guerrero were young men looking for work, arrested in Acapulco. Office director Gloria Ocampo Aranda added that over 2,300 foreigners with legal documents are living in Guerrero, whilst a million or more Guerrero natives are living and working in the United States.

The occasion of the announcement was the “International Migrant’s Day,” celebrated in Taxco with Distinguished Citizen and Distinguished Immigrant awards.

Detentions result mainly when local residents report an illegal person to the immigration authorities, usually as revenge for some perceived wrong, dispute or prejudice. Illegal visitors also come to the attention of authorities if accused of some common crime. Guatemalans in transit to the US border are often caught at highway roadblocks where police check credentials. Deportations have fallen off from a high of 200 in 2005, and have remained more or less steady at 150 per year.

Most of the foreigners legally resident in Guerrero live in Acapulco, and come from the United States and Canada. About 40 percent are not employed, but rather live on pension income paid from abroad. Ten percent are self-sufficient or are exchange students. The rest are employees of foreign companies, who have been stationed in Guerrero.

In the case of outbound migration, the most recent figures are from the year 2000, when Guerrero occupied seventh place among Mexico’s states for persons who leave the country.