Reporting on July 20, 2023, the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative (KBI), recounted five cases of Mexican asylum seekers being deported without fear interviews to assess their eligibility for an asylum process. Among cases cited, a young mother fleeing Southern Mexico with her son and other family members turned themselves into Border Patrol to request asylum. The mother and child were separated from the family members they were traveling with and were not asked their reason for requesting asylum. Border Patrol made the young mother sign for her voluntary return. She and her son were sent to Nogales, Sonora at 9 pm, in violation of bilateral agreements that required the repatriation of unaccompanied women between the hours of 8 am and 6:30 pm. The mother approached Border Patrol agents at the Nogales Port of Entry for help in seeking asylum and was told by an officer that “they couldn’t do anything”.
Kino Border Initiative. 2022. “Congressional Year End Report 2023.” Https://Www.Kinoborderinitiative.Org/Annual-Report/. Kino Border Initiative. https://www.kinoborderinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Congressional-Year-End-Report-2023_.pdf.