By “El Huaso” for Borderland Beat
The Guatemalan government has deployed 100 soldiers to its northern border with Mexico to provide assistance to Mexican refugees and “guarantee the sovereignty” of its borders, they announced in a statement this morning. 580 men, women , and children have fled criminal violence in the Mexican border state of Chiapas to seek refuge in Guatemala.
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| Photo: David Toro (EFE) |
This follows on two years of violent conflict between the Sinaloa Cartel and the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), a war which has startled the nation by plunging the once safe state of Chiapas into violence. According to InSight Crime, the fight is over drug trafficking and human smuggling routes.
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| Guatemalan military arriving in the border region. |
This turf war has caused thousands of civilian displacements as locals have found themselves in the crossfire. For years, locals report they have been forced into the ranks of organized crime, used as human shields, and forced to man criminal road blocks.
Despite the presence of numerous Mexican military bases, the Mexican has largely stayed out of the fight.
In recent weeks, locals have fleeing the violence have crossed the border into Guatemala. So far, 580 men, women , and children are living in Guatemala, according to the nations Immigration Ministry.
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| Families from Chiapas |
This story relies heavily on the reporting of Isain Mandujano of Chiapas Paralelo.