Page 2 - aruba-today-20220315

A2 UP FRONT
Tuesday 15 March 2022

Continued from Front other Russians, including
Even before Russia's in- the man's wife, 5-year-old
vasion of Ukraine led to daughter and year-old son
punishing sanctions from were in the SUV. Passen-
the U.S. and its allies, the gers raised their hands and
United States was already yelled, "Asylum!"
seeing an increase in Rus- "All that he saw were the
sian asylum-seekers. More bright lights of San Ysidro,"
than 8,600 Russians sought Molina said. "He wanted to
refuge on the U.S. border get there."
with Mexico from August The judge ordered the
through January — 35 times driver released after nearly
the 249 who did so during three months in jail. The As-
the same period a year sociated Press is not identi-
earlier. Nine in 10 used offi- fying him at the request of
cial border crossings in San Molina, who said his client
Diego. feared exposure may jeop-
Migrants from other former ardize his safety. The man,
Soviet republics follow the who opposed Russian inter-
same route in lower num- vention in the Chechnya
bers, though some authori- region, planned to seek
ties are now anticipating asylum with his family in
more Ukrainians. The U.S. Brooklyn, New York.
admitted a Ukrainian fam- Other incidents have raised
ily of four on humanitar- security concerns, Plantz
ian grounds Thursday after said. Also on Dec. 12, the
twice blocking her. driver of a car with migrants
Russians do not need visas from Ukraine and Tajikistan
to visit Mexico, unlike the ignored an officer's orders
U.S. Many fly from Mos- to show identification and
cow to Cancun, entering struck the officer's hand
Mexico as tourists, and go with a car door mirror when
to Tijuana, where they pool accelerating past him,
money to squeeze into cars according to court docu-
they buy or rent. Adrenaline ments.
rushes as they approach "They're probably a little
San Diego's San Ysidro bor- disoriented themselves, not
der crossing, where about sure exactly what they're
30,000 cars enter the Unit- doing, but they are failing
ed States daily. A Customs and Border Protection officer stands at the entrance to the San Ysidro Port of Entry to yield, hitting the gas,
Concrete barriers funnel Wednesday, March 2, 2022, seen from Tijuana, Mexico. blowing through," Plantz
24 lanes of traffic to a bor- Associated Press said.
der marked by a few rows A federal judge in San Di-
of yellow reflector bumps "The children with us, every- anteed a shot at asylum if help arrange travel, said ego has ruled it is illegal to
— like the ones that divide one was very worried, very they touch U.S. soil, even Chad Plantz, special agent block asylum-seekers but
highway lanes — before much." though President Joe in charge of Homeland Se- has not given specific in-
vehicles reach inspection Russians swap travel tips on Biden has kept sweeping, curity Investigations in San structions, allowing authori-
booths. A buffer zone sep- social media and messag- Trump-era asylum restric- Diego. ties to continue their prac-
arates the bumps from the ing services. One unidenti- tions. Border agents can While Moscow to Cancun tices. Erika Pinheiro, litiga-
inspection booths. fied man narrated his trip deny migrants a chance to is the most common route, tion and policy director for
Migrants just have to reach from Moscow's Red Square seek asylum on the grounds some Russians fly from Am- Al Otro Lado, an advocacy
that buffer zone to claim to a San Diego hotel room, that it risks spreading CO- sterdam or Paris to Mexico group that sued over asy-
asylum on U.S. soil. But U.S. with layovers in Cancun VID-19. But cost, logistics City and then go to Tijuana, lum limits at border cross-
officers stationed on the and Mexico City. and strained diplomatic Plantz said. ings, said U.S. authorities
Mexican side of the border His YouTube video shows relations make it difficult to It has produced some tense coordinate with Mexican
first try to block them, peer- him confessing to nerves send people of some na- confrontations. officials to keep migrants
ing into vehicles, motion- after buying a used car in tionalities home. In one, a 29-year-old Rus- from reaching the buffer
ing motorists to flash travel Tijuana, but he says later in Russians and others from sian man accelerated after zone.
documents and stopping San Diego that everything former Soviet republics fa- passing the reflector bumps Yuliya Pashkova, a San Di-
cars they deem suspicious. went smoothly — despite vor driving through official at San Ysidro on Dec. 12 ego attorney who repre-
"It was a very scary moment two days in U.S. custody — crossings, rather than try- and slammed the brakes, sents Russian asylum-seek-
for all of us to experience," and that others consider- ing to cross illegally in des- causing a sedan with six ers, traces the spike in arriv-
Derzhko, who crossed in ing the journey shouldn't be erts and mountains. They Russian asylum-seekers to als to the imprisonment of
August, said in an interview afraid. generally do not hire smug- hit him from behind. An of- Russian opposition leader
at his home in Los Angeles. Russians are virtually guar- glers, but "a facilitator" may ficer fired four shots but no Alexei Navalny last year.
one was injured by gunfire, Asylum-seekers include Pu-
LIKE US ON according to CBP, which tin opponents, gay people,
says the incident is under Muslims and business own-
investigation. ers who have been extort-
The SUV driver hit the gas ed by authorities.
in a state of excitement "When they think of Amer-
when he saw an opening ica, they think of freedom,
between lanes, his lawyer, democracy and, frankly, a
Facebook.com/arubatoday/ Martin Molina, told a judge good economic situation,"
earlier this month. Eleven she said.q