MEXICO CITY (AP)— The Mexican government announced Saturday that it will offer non-Mexican immigrants with appointments to apply for asylum in the United States escorted bus rides from the south of the country to the northern border.

According to the National Institute of Migration (INM), these buses will depart from the southern cities of Villahermosa and Tapachula. The initiative appears to be aimed at making it more attractive to schedule asylum appointments in the United States from southern Mexico, instead of having immigrants travel north, either to Mexico City or directly to the border.

The announcement came a week after Washington approved access to the CBP One app in southern Mexico. Before this measure, the app—which allows asylum seekers to register and wait for an appointment—was only available in the northern and central regions of the country.

The Mexican government is seeking to keep more migrants in southern Mexico, away from the U.S. border. But migrants often express frustration at the lack of work in the south of the country, which can prolong the wait for months. Many are in debt and feel obliged to find work.

Migrants who use the bus service will also receive a permit that will allow them to legally transit through Mexico for 20 days, the INM said in a statement. Previously, Mexican authorities had said they would honor migrants who could prove they had an appointment at the border to request asylum, but some migrants reported being stopped at checkpoints and sent back south, resulting in the loss of their appointments.

The INM also noted that security for the buses will be provided through the collaboration of local, state and federal security forces, and that food will be offered along the way.

Such bus trips may also discourage some migrants from making the dangerous trek north on foot. This week, three migrants were killed and 17 injured after being hit by a vehicle on a highway in the southern state of Oaxaca.

Mexico had asked the United States to expand access to the CBP One app in part to reduce the concentration of migrants in Mexico City. Last year, many migrants chose to wait in the Mexican capital for their appointments, where there were more job opportunities and relative safety compared with cartel-controlled border cities.

Those with the resources often buy plane tickets to the border crossing where their appointments are scheduled, in order to minimize the risk of being detained by Mexican authorities or kidnapped by cartels demanding ransom.

Amlo presume el humanismo de su Gobierno con inmigrantes de Sudamérica y los programas sociales como “Sembrando vida ” y “Jovenes Construyendo el Futuro ” pic.twitter.com/B6N6iWTjjs

— RUMBO MÉXICO 2024 (@RUMBO_MEXICO) September 1, 2024

AMLO announces the creation of a financial institution for welfare that grants small loans and delivers remittances to families of migrants with the collection of fair commissions,” Andrés Manuel López Obrador said in his latest government report.

▶️ “Se creó la financiera para el bienestar que otorga pequeños créditos y lleva la entrega de remesas a familiares de migrantes con el cobro de comisiones justas”, Andrés Manuel López Obrador en su último informe de gobierno.

Sigue la transmisión por #Canal6 pic.twitter.com/vKqhyOEHKi

— Telediario Guadalajara (@TelediarioGDL) September 1, 2024

SOURCE: Based on information from AP

Original by Maria Herrera Mellado at Gateway Hispanic.