Page 12 - aruba-today-20190423

A12 WORLD NEWS
Tuesday 23 april 2019
Mexican police detain hundreds of Central American migrants

By SONIA PÉREZ D. napping everyone back
Associated Press there."
PIJIJIAPAN, Mexico (AP) Agents had encouraged
— Mexican police and im- groups of migrants that
migration agents detained separated from the bulk
hundreds of Central Ameri- of the caravan to rest af-
can migrants Monday in ter some seven hours on
the largest single raid on the road, including about
a migrant caravan since half of that under a broiling
the groups started moving sun. When the migrants re-
through the country last grouped to continue, they
year. were detained.
Police targeted isolated Agents positioned them-
groups at the tail end of selves at the head of the
a caravan of about 3,000 group and at the back.
migrants who were mak- Some people in civilian
ing their way through the clothing appeared to be
southern state of Chiapas participating in the deten-
with hopes of reaching the tions.
U.S. border. After seeing what hap-
As migrants gathered un- pened, some migrants
der spots of shade in the began walking in dense
burning heat outside the groupings and picked up
city of Pijijiapan, federal stones and sticks.
police and agents passed A Central American migrant is detained by Mexican immigration agents on the highway to Pijijia- Officials from the National
by in patrol trucks and vans pan, Mexico, Monday, April 22, 2019. Human Rights Commission
and forcibly wrestled wom- Associated Press observed the action from a
en, men and children into distance.
the vehicles. up in the raid, according to and strollers littered the agents. Sitting on the prop- "We are documenting what
The migrants were driven Associated Press journalists scene after they were tak- erty, he yelled to them: is happening," said Jesús
to buses, presumably for at the scene. en away. "Why do you want to arrest Salvador Quintana, a com-
subsequent transportation Some of the women Kevin Escobar, a 27-year- me?" mission official. "We cannot
to an immigration station and children wailed and old from Honduras, was Escobar vowed that he will tell authorities in charge
for deportation processing. screamed during the de- one of about 500 migrants never return to his home- what to do, but yes, we are
As many as 500 migrants tentions on the roadside. who fled onto private prop- town of San Pedro Sula, documenting and we will
might have been picked Clothes, shoes, suitcases erty to avoid immigration saying "the gangs are kid- investigate."q

In Venezuela, women sell hair as another way to get by

sions as the demands of as feeling "light" and said it she said.
daily survival force them had been hard to maintain Carmen Merchani, a
to abandon the kind of her flowing hair in the past. 49-year-old hairdresser,
self-care long an obsession "There are times when you knows that well. After de-
with a country known glob- go two or three weeks with- cades of cutting and styl-
ally for its success in beauty out washing your hair," she ing hair, she said things
pageants. Seven Miss Uni- said, alluding to frequent have never been worse
verse winners have been water shortages in past and she's had to adapt to
Venezuelans, as have six weeks, caused by nation- maintain her salon on one
Miss Worlds. wide blackouts that shut off of the steep hills of Catia,
Some women are washing water pumps. a Caracas district. About
their hair with dishwashing Her mother, Yeny Gómez, a year ago, Merchani said,
liquid because they can't laughed nervously and she started to do barter
afford to buy shampoo tried to buoy her daugh- deals with her clients, get-
that costs more than the ter's spirits. ting food in exchange for
minimum monthly salary, "You don't notice it," Gó- hair stylings, manicures and
Nelly Navarro sits with her kids Nerianny and Luis in a beauty
salon where she came to consult how much money she could now equivalent to just a mez, a 43-year-old teacher, pedicures.
get for her hair, in Caracas, Venezuela, Tuesday, April 2, 2019. few dollars. Many have to said of the drastic haircut. Local shops that sell beau-
Associated Press adapt to make personal Despite sacrificing her hair, ty products are also rein-
care products last longer, Díaz said she still tries to buy venting themselves to stay
By FABIOLA SANCHEZ money she'll use to help her with no sign of an end to a cosmetics, using money afloat. International cos-
Associated Press family and buy a cellphone crisis that has pushed more she earns from making and metics brands have disap-
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) at a time when Venezu- than 3 million Venezuelans selling bracelets. peared from storefronts, re-
— Valery Díaz covered her ela's sharp economic de- — one-tenth of the popula- But Gómez said she hasn't placed by cheaper goods
eyes and held her breath cline has led to shortages tion — to leave the country bought lipstick or any other from China as well as lo-
before looking in a hair of food and medicine, and in recent years. cosmetics for more than a cally made products that
salon mirror to see herself hyperinflation has made Díaz gazed silently at the year because she's saving use honey and other ingre-
without much of the long salaries nearly worthless. mirror and attempted a whatever money she earns dients.
dark hair that used to frame Increasing numbers of positive spin on the loss of to get food for her and Díaz said she still dreams of
her face. women in poor neighbor- locks that she had worn her two daughters. Beauty becoming a Miss Venezue-
The 16-year-old student was hoods are selling their hair since she was a young care has become second- la someday, when "my hair
paid $100 for the shorn hair, for use in wigs and exten- child. She described herself ary for most Venezuelans, grows again."q