On June 30, local time, the death toll in the immigrant truck tragedy in Texas, USA, rose to 53. On the same day, another death of an illegal immigrant occurred in the United States. A car carrying illegal immigrants crashed while avoiding the police, killing at least four people. During the same period, 20 bodies were found in the desert on the border with Libya. The victims included illegal immigrants trying to enter Libya. An immigrant ship also sank on the central Mediterranean route near Libya, leaving at least 30 people dead or missing.
According to International Organization for Migration records, from 2014 to 2022, more than 48,000 people have died or disappeared during migration worldwide, covering the Americas, Africa, Europe and Asia, involving the US-Mexico border, North Africa to the Mediterranean Sea, etc. Dangerous migration routes. Death figures include bodies found, migrants who are missing and presumed dead, and unknown deaths that remain unreported, and are only the lowest estimates for each region.
Deadly smuggling route on the US-Mexico border
Data shows that in the Americas, more than 6,000 people have been reported dead or missing during smuggling since 2014. 60% of these deaths were recorded at the border between Mexico and the United States. On the U.S.-Mexico border alone, recent tragedies have pushed the total death toll in the first six months of 2022 to 290.
In the tragic death of migrants in a truck that occurred in the United States this year, the truck was about 250 kilometers away from the Mexican border. Mexico's National Immigration Institute reported that the deceased were mainly from Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and other places. It is understood that Central America countries have always been the largest source of illegal immigrants in the United States. Due to local political unrest, rampant gangs, economic downturn and other reasons, immigrants often set off from Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala, converge in Mexico, and continue to move north. Trying to cross the U.S.-Mexico border.
In front of the more than 3,000-kilometer-long U.S.-Mexico border, some people crossed the desert, some waded across the river, some jumped on passing trucks, and some were trapped on the border bridge. In the view of some illegal immigrants, the asylum application process takes too long and risks being deported. Tens of thousands of immigrant families have been arrested at the U.S. border in the past.
According to statistics from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection , there were more than 400,000 incidents of officials encountering illegal immigrants in the United States in 2020. Among them, a total of 247 immigrants died at the U.S.-Mexico border due to various reasons. Among the 400,000 illegal immigrants, 81.3% are men, 18.7% are women, and 14.% of them are minors. In addition, 54,400 people were prosecuted for illegal entry into the country and carrying prohibited items. About 128.72 tons of marijuana, about 7.68 tons of cocaine and 546 illegal weapons were found during immigration searches.
After the tragic death of a migrant in a truck in Texas, the United States, on June 30, local time, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Biden administration could stop the Trump-era "Remain in Mexico" immigration policy. It is reported that this policy requires immigrants seeking asylum to return to Mexico to wait while their documents are processed. Border controls have been tightened during the Trump administration. Biden suspended this policy shortly after taking office and allowed more than 10,000 immigrants seeking asylum to enter, but restored the policy at the end of last year.
What other dangerous smuggling routes are there in the world?
In addition to the Americas, tens of thousands of immigrant deaths have been reported in other parts of the world. Among them, air routes are not common, and stowaways from all over the world mainly take land routes and sea routes.
Data shows that more than 11,400 deaths have been recorded across the continent, with many occurring on transit routes through the Sahara Desert to North Africa, and on sea routes across the Mediterranean to Europe. According to statistics from the EU Border and Coast Guard Agency, nearly 300,000 stowaways have been rescued on the Mediterranean route since 2015.
In June this year, illegal immigrants died in the desert area on the Libyan border. It is reported that Libya is a transit point for refugees from Africa and the Middle East heading to Europe. Migrants usually try to cross the desert or across the Mediterranean Sea to reach Europe, but many people die on the way. Ship capsizes are frequent and difficult to monitor.According to records from human rights organizations and United Nations agencies , illegal immigrants are often mistreated during immigration and are even blackmailed by smugglers when they arrive in the destination country, making them victims of transnational human trafficking.
In Asia, there are currently more than 4,600 recorded immigrant deaths, usually related to Rohingya . On the specific route, since the Rohingya refugee crisis in 2017, nearly 700,000 Rohingyas have flowed into neighboring Southeast Asian countries, mainly Bangladesh. In the other corner of the Asian continent, more than 2.2 million Afghan refugees have flowed into Iran and Pakistan. When the situation in Afghanistan was turbulent in 2021, a large number of Afghan refugees tried to pass through Iran and reach Europe via Turkey.
The International Organization for Migration pointed out that because deaths mainly occur during the irregular flow of migrants, which means that they usually choose marginal areas to avoid detection, therefore, the remains are often not found or cannot be found for a long time, and the death may not be known. Will report to the authorities. When deaths occur at sea, many bodies may not be found, passenger lists are missing, and the number of missing persons is even more unknown. In addition, some deaths in illegal immigration activities involving crime are actively covered up.
IOM and UNHCR have recently continued to call for action to encourage regional cooperation to protect the rights and lives of people on the move, while addressing root causes of displacement or irregular migration, thereby reducing the loss of life along migration routes around the world.
Produced by: Nandu Big Data Research Institute
Data collection: Lin Xinxin
Design: Gan Dan, He Xin
Data sources: International Organization for Migration, UNHCR, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, EU Border and Coast Guard agencies, public reports Wait for
