Migrants forced to cross dangerous desert in northern México due to increased surveillance

While México and the U.S. claim a reduction in the migrant flow at their border due to increased surveillance, thousands of undocumented persons are taking higher risks in the deserts of northern México to evade growing migration controls.

The most recent case occurred just on Tuesday when authorities found four migrants from Colombia and Venezuela trapped in the dunes of Samalayuca in the desert of the state of Chihuahua. They got lost while trying to evade military control south of Ciudad Juárez, on the border with El Paso, Texas.

Thousands of undocumented individuals are choosing to challenge the Chihuahua desert, walking over 400 kilometers (248 miles) of road and dunes in the final stretch of their journey to the U.S. to avoid increasing checkpoints in Mexico.

México reports that more than 32,000 military personnel are involved in immigration functions at the borders.

“At this point, I don’t have any money to go on. They told us it is a four- or five-day walk from here to the border,” said Jhonan Iker José Pérez, a Venezuelan who arrived in Chihuahua City by train.

The migrant, who now stays in a camp with over 2,000 foreigners near the railroad tracks in the city of Chihuahua, 444 kilometers (275 miles) from the border city of Ciudad Juárez, said that agents from the National Institute of Migration (INM) capture them if they find them on buses or taxis.

He feels that his only options are the dangerous journey on the freight train or to walk across the desert to the border.

A journey with more restrictions

The Mexican government strengthened controls in 2024 after a 77% increase in irregular immigration in 2023, with over 782,000 migrants under this situation.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said in March that the daily findings of migrants at the US border dropped by nearly 55% from December to March.

Despite the situation, Subendez Ortega Quevedo, who left Venezuela due to limited economic opportunities, told EFE that people dare to continue boarding the train that crosses México from south to north, known as La Bestia (The Beast).

The Venezuelan pointed out that in the face of immigration authorities’ “harassment,” people are “responding with violence.”

“If they find us, they return us to the Guatemala-México border. Starting over again is what affects us the most,” he said.

He also denounced that the operations on the means of transport push the migrants to more dangerous routes.