Immigration Officers Rescue 6,733 Children from Human Traffickers in Mexico Latin American Herald Tribune
go to original June 22, 2015

A Salvadoran immigrant carries her son while standing in vegetation to hide from organized crime bands in Huehuetoca, near Mexico City, on June 1. (Edgard Garrido/Reuters)

Mexican immigration officers rescued 6,733 minor illegal immigrants from human traffickers who had promised to deliver them to their families in the United States.

The National System for Integral Family Development, DIF, and the National Institute of Migration, INM, said in a joint statement Sunday, the rescued children were mostly from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

They said they have implemented common strategies to protect the rights of children and adolescents during their stay in the country after INM rescued them from irregular routes used by traffickers, where they were exposed to different kinds of abuse including forced labour, rape, physical and verbal assault.

Upon rescue, the children were immediately sent to state and municipal DIF systems for protection and specialized care.

Consular representatives are verifying their nationalities from their countries of origin, to reunite them with their families.

The state and municipal DIF systems have specialized staff including physicians, psychologists and social workers to attend to all children and adolescents in the shelters.

Read the rest at Latin American Herald Tribune

Related: Central American Migrants Escape Mexico Kidnapping (BBC News)

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