Miami, United States
The September 15 foundation on Friday called on Democratic Congressman Albio Sires to put pressure on the Honduran government to send the new national identity documents to the Honduran community in the United States, without which they will not be able to legalize their situation here or vote in their home country. the country.
Juan Flores, president of the Fort Lauderdale-based Foundation, told Efe that the old Honduran ID cards expire in May, and migrants in the United States have not yet received the new cards, without which they will not be able to vote in the November election. future in Honduras.
They will also not be able to benefit from immigration measures, such as a possible new renewal of the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program, which includes about 44,000 Hondurans that will expire at the end of this year and allow beneficiaries to live. and work. legally in the United States.
The directors of September 15 Foundation They met on Friday with Sires, of Cuban descent, who was elected chairman of the Western Hemisphere subcommittee of the House of Representatives, where he represents New Jersey.
Sires and Norma Torres, a California Democratic congressman, wrote a letter to President Joe Biden last week expressing their commitment to working with his administration to address the root causes of migration in the North American triangle and stressing the importance of a TPS. Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua.
In his view, there are “extraordinary and temporary conditions” in these countries that prevent them from returning safely to their places of origin.
“Northern triangle devastated by pandemic, two hurricanes and four years in office Donald Trump, which has weakened the protection of human rights and strengthened the most corrupt actors in the region, “Sires wrote on his Twitter account last week.
The need to promote respect for human rights and to fight corruption in these countries and to help those affected by Hurricanes Eta and Iota and society at large to protect themselves from covid-19 is the central idea of Sires and Torres’ letter to Biden, whom he describes as the most experienced American president in Central American history for his performance as vice president with Biden. Barack Obama.
Flores said they talked to Sires for an hour and explained that TPS could be a relief in the crisis facing Honduras, because if migrants outside that protection need to return, the situation will it would get worse.
They also stressed the “democratic point,” said Flores, who believes that if migrants participate en masse in the November elections, they can help choose candidates who are willing to really fight corruption and defend the validity of the state. law and freedoms.
Flores said there was no “good faith” in the authorities’ responses Honduran at their request, so that the new identity cards reach Honduran migrants as soon as possible and they asked Sires to help them get what they ask for.
The administration of former President Trump announced the expansion in December last year TPS for citizens of El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Haiti, Nepal and Sudan by October 2021.
The program grants temporary work and legal residence permits to citizens who, at the discretion of the US government, have left their countries due to natural disasters or armed conflict, and a large number of foreigners with this protection have lived in the United States for decades. . .
Currently, there are about 400,000 people in the United States covered by TPS, mostly Salvadorans (250,000), Hondurans (75,000) and Haitians (50,000).