The government of Honduras regretted that the USA has withdrawn the Status to its citizens, but thanked that it was kept for 20 years

Leer en español: Honduras: otro país que queda sin el Estatus de Protección Temporal

The Department of Internal Security of the United States gave 18 months to Hondurans covered by the Temporary Protection Status (TPS) -until January 5, 2020- to organize their return trips or search an alternative legal immigration route in the US. As with El Salvador and Haiti, the announcement comes with a prudent time so that the response of the immigrants is accommodated and prudent. The Honduran Foreign Ministry figures that 44,000 citizens have been affected by the suppression of the TPS, although the numbers of the US indicate that it is more than 56,000 people.

Honduran support for its citizens

For its part, the government of Honduras announced on Monday, May 7, two days after the announcement of the end of the TPS, that it will give "…legal support to the nearly 60,000 immigrants of that origin to whom the United States canceled the TPS, this in order to help the Hondurans who do not want to return to their country of origin". The announcement was made by Monday President Juan Orlando Hernandez in a statement.

The president also indicated that the legal advice will be present in the consulates accredited in several American cities so that people who are with TPS can make their inquiries about the procedures to achieve permanent residency. Hernandez says that "you can not force them to return, they already have a life in the United States". 

Protests against the decision

The organization of Latin American immigrants Centro Presente, based in the city of Boston, along with Democratic congressmen from the United States. They protested last Monday May 7 against the cancellation of the TPS to Honduras and other countries. Congressmen Joe Kennedy and Jim McGovern joined together with other elected officials to protest in solidarity with the migrants protected by the program that is coming to an end.

Centro Presente ensures that Honduras is not ready to receive and reintegrate immigrants who benefit from the TPS program. "Every year, 100,000 Hondurans leave their country due to the level of extreme violence they face on a daily basis", the organization added. The NGO recalls that in "2018 the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean declared that Honduras is the poorest country in Latin America displacing Haiti".

Impact in the United States

A report from the Immigrant Legal Resource Center shows that there will be a huge negative impact on the finances of the United States. According to the document, Hondurans pay a little more than 1,000 million dollars to the US GDP. This means that in just one decade approximately 11,000 million dollars will be lost for the economy of this country.

On the other hand, the US workforce will also be affected, since according to the Center for Migration Studies, Hondurans with TPS contribute mainly labor to the construction, care of children and seniors, and the garden.

The states that will be most affected by the decision are: Texas, California, Florida and New York

20 years with the TPS

In 1999, President Bill ClIGNORE INTOn granted the TPS to Hondurans who were already in the United States or who were migrating to that country due to the destruction caused by Hurricane Mitch. Now, the US government assures that the TPS for Honduras was also terminated since the circumstances that led to its designation, the devastation of Hurricane Mitch, are no longer present and, therefore, that permit must expire.

Since his arrival at the White House, Trump has finished with the TPS of Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Haiti, Sudan, and Nepal.

Latin American Post | Carlos Eduardo Gómez Avella

Translated from "Honduras: otro país que queda sin el Estatus de Protección Temporal"