Migrant tragedies won’t be stopped while governments play the blame game

Deaths in Mexico and the English Channel highlight the hypocrisy of countries whose promises of action are undermined by restrictive migration policies, writes Kieran Guilbert

An altar in memory of Domingo Raymundo Mateo, who died in a truck crash in Mexico, in Chajul, Guatemala (Reuters)

Two migrant tragedies, just two weeks apart. In the English Channel, 27 people drowned attempting the crossing from France to the UK. In Mexico, 55 people aiming to reach the US were killed when their truck crashed.

It is impossible to fathom the fear that must have gripped these migrants as they said goodbye to their friends and families and put their lives in the hands of people smugglers.

Yet the ensuing responses from the aforementioned countries – and their rhetoric – was all too predictable. No sooner had the deaths occurred than the finger pointing and blame game began.

In the UK, the prime minister, Boris Johnson, vowed to crack down on smuggling gangs while also urging France to “step up” and do more. In turn, the French president, Emmanuel Macron, hit back at London while calling on neighbouring European countries to prevent irregular migration into France.

Across the Atlantic, governments responding to the truck crash appeared more collegial, with the US, Mexico and five other nations announcing the creation of an action group to work together. However, its focus is on apprehending the network of smugglers responsible for the incident – which mainly killed migrants from Guatemala – with seemingly no consideration of immigration and asylum policies that drive people to make increasingly dangerous journeys.

While the dynamics and drivers of migration differ between these two tragedies, there are still important parallels to be drawn. This year has seen record numbers of migrants passing through Mexico towards the US border, and trying to cross the English Channel from France to the UK, as people flee violence, persecution, and economic crises exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.

More than 4,470 migrants have died on their journeys so far this year, the UN said last week, with the death toll exceeding the figure for the whole of 2020. One might expect such stark statistics to spur a change of approach or policy from governments regarding their borders, rather than resorting to the usual strategy of pinning the blame on criminal networks and passing the buck to other countries.

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In fact, behind the posturing and politicking after the recent tragedies lies a darker reality. In the UK, the government is seeking to pass the Nationality and Borders Bill, which would reduce avenues for migration to the country and make it even easier for officials to expel migrants. This comes despite acknowledgement from the Home Office that the policies in this draft law risk leaving more people at the mercy of smugglers and likely to embark on more dangerous journeys.

Meanwhile, in the US, the Trump-era “Remain in Mexico” policy was reinstated this month, meaning that asylum seekers must wait in Mexican border cities while their claims are processed. Rights groups have recorded hundreds of cases of migrants being raped, robbed, extorted and abducted by organised crime networks in these areas.

It’s no surprise then that human rights campaigners are urging governments to stop the hypocrisy and drop the blame game before more migrants die trying to reach their borders.

Yours,

Kieran Guilbert

Deputy international editor