The US on Monday sent 68 immigrants from Honduras and Colombia back to their countries, the first government-funded flight of what the Trump administration is calling voluntary deportations. In the northern Honduran city of San Pedro Sula, 38 Hondurans, including 19 children, disembarked from the charter flight carrying $1,000 debit cards from the US government and the offer to one day be allowed to apply for legal entry into the US. Experts say the self-deportation offer will appeal only to a small portion of migrants already considering a return, the AP reports.
In a statement about the flight from Houston, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said: "If you are here illegally, use the CBP Home App to take control of your departure and receive financial support to return home. If you don't, you will be subjected to fines, arrest, deportation and will never be allowed to return." Honduras Deputy Foreign Minister Antonio García said his government would support the returning migrants with $100 cash and another $200 credit at a government-run store that sells basic necessities. Among the migrants arriving voluntarily Monday were four children who were born in the US, García said. When García met them at the airport, they told him that being in the US without documents required for legal immigration or residence had been increasingly difficult, that the atmosphere was growing more hostile, and that they feared going to work, he said.
Kevin Antonio Posadas, from Tegucigalpa, had lived in Houston for three years but had already been considering a return to Honduras when the Trump administration announced its offer. "I wanted to see my family and my mom," said Posadas, who described the process as easy. "You just apply (through the app ) and in three days you've got it," he said, per the AP. "It's good because you save the cost of the flight if you have the intention of leaving." Posadas said he hadn't feared deportation and liked living in the US. He added that he might later take up the US offer of allowing those who self-deport to apply to return legally.
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