Call my mom and tell her that I am doing ok?

By, David Muñoz, Regional Communications Manager, with inputs from Natalia Korobkova, Campaigns and mobilization manager

Due to security reasons names have been changed to protect the identity of the persons.

State of Mexico, Mexico.

Cargo railroad crosses all Mexican territory from Chiapas in the southern border with Guatemala, to the northern States in the border with the US. This is the most common transportation used by immigrants fleeing from Central America from violence and other reasons, which lead them to seek refugee in the US. This train is best known at “the beast”, the steel cargo train that help migrants to reach the US border while dodging dangerous situations: kidnapping, robbers, drug dealers and the constant treat of falling from the train while its moving and be run over.

Apaxco is a Community located 2 hours north, driving from Mexico City; it’s the nearest point to the Capital City from where “the beast” passes by. It’s also a railroad stop where Magdala Project has its operations center and a temporary shelter for migrants that pass by.

It’s a cold morning and the train is ready to leave heading north. Migrants hurry to get to the roof where they will travel for almost eight hours until the next stop, if there is not an additional forced stop from drug dealers that kidnap the train only to assault the migrants. Some of the migrants ride in the first cars of the train and just a few ride in the very back; they say it’s safer at the back. But today luck is not on their side. The train starts to move and all of sudden, a small group realized that the car that they are riding is not connected to the train; it’s too late to run or to ride into a different car, so they have lost their ride today.

Seven migrants descend from the train; tired, weary and disappointed because they will have to walk today.

They are hungry and with no strength to keep walking. Luckily they are at the train stop where Madgala Project has its shelter and operations center; a non-profit organization, which assists migrants, that pass by.  As soon as they found out that some migrants were left behind, staff from Magdala hurries to prepare breakfast and hot coffee; all with the support of World Vision staff who has come today and donated food, cloths and other provisions to relief the migrants.

Once the breakfast is ready the relief group from World Vision and Magdala Project heads to the railroads to encounter 7 persons: 2 men from Honduras, 3 men from El Salvador, one youth, and 2 from Guatemala.

They look tired, weary and again very hungry. Before World Vision, a medical van from “Médecins Sans Frontières  (MSF) ” arrived and is checking their health up and making sure that they are not ill or injured.

Coffee and a hot breakfast changes the mood of this group of men from Central America. “This time there are no children on this group, or women, they must have been on the front of the train and were not left behind”, adds Hector.

But here it is “Melvin”, from Honduras who travels alone and has joined this group, “it’s safer to travel within a group”, he says. He just turned 21 years old. “My birthday was a couple of days ago and I celebrated in Chiapas (a southern State of Mexico in the border with Guatemala)”, says Melvin with a big smile in his face.

Melvin left Honduras in January of this year fleeing from the haunting violence he was facing and it’s being a long journey heading to the US seeking for a safer place to live and also to improve the economic conditions of this family left in Central America.

“I was accused of a murder, a crime I did not commit, but the Maras (gangs in Honduras) said I did. The Maras has too much power in Honduras; they control almost everything and if you do not do as they say, they attack you, your family and accuse you of crimes they did and then they just keep chasing you”, relates Melvin.

Melvin lived with the terror of being chased by the Maras and began migrating internally in Honduras, from one community to another. Feeling completely unprotected in his own Contry, his only option was to leave to protect his life. “I had to ran away, otherwise I’ll be death by now! One morning I grabbed a backpack with very little supplies and without telling anybody, but my parents I left home”, says Melvin with a homesick look, but still a smile on his face.

“I just did not know the route to take, but I know I will reach the US soon”, adds. Even though there is more than 2,000 kilometers from Honduras to the nearest border in Mexico with the US.

A couple of weeks later Melvin arrived to Chiapas, a southern State in Mexico in the border with Guatemala.

“I stopped here (in Chiapas) because by then I had ran out of money and needed to work. I was able to get a job at the airport, doing some errands, of course, working illegally, but able to save some money to continue my journey to the US”, he adds.  Like Melvin most immigrants that pass by Mexico get illegal jobs to get some money to keep traveling north, most of the times dangerous jobs or get paid very little.

“I am lucky, I know that. I did not have a place to sleep and I needed to save all the money I was making to keep traveling. I met a wonderful couple in Chiapas who offered me to stay at their home!. They treated me like if I were his son and persuaded me to stay with them”; a rare case for a migrant, much luck as Melvin says, because most of the migrants sleep under bridges or in the top of the cargo train facing a constant danger of falling down and being ran over by the train.

Melvin worked in Chiapas for 4 months and was able to save money for his journey seeking to stay alive. “This couple insisted that I should stay in Chiapas with them, that I did not need to go because this journey it’s too dangerous, but my goal is the US. It’s dangerous, yes. Some gangs recently assaulted us in Veracruz. I was severely beaten by them and they took all of the money that we had. They requested a fee to cross and charged us $100 USD. They took all we had, but I am still alive”, says Melvin.

Melvin has made it to the center in Mexico, still 1,000 kilometers away from the US border.

“I recently knew that the Maras that were accusing me were killed by another gang! That’s good news, because I can go back to Honduras and no one will threat me again, at least not for this murder that I did not commit. I am too far now from home so my goal is the US; I know I am very close and I am almost there”, he says. “It’s been a very tiring and dangerous journey, so if I cannot make it this time, I do not think I’ll try again, but I am almost there”, Melvin adds.

Before saying goodbye and as heading to the tracks he says to us, “I’ll go back to Honduras one day, when I know it’s safer for me to go back, Maras will be there If I go back now, even when I know that some of the guys that were threating me are dead, but now I am heading to the US, I’ll be safe there and will find a job”.

“Can I ask you a favor? Could you call my mom in Honduras and tell her that I am doing ok?”, Melvin smiles and lay down his head. He grabs a paper and writes down his mom’s name and phone number. “I think you are good persons (staff from World Vision) and I know I can trust you, but please do not give this phone number to anybody else. Just tell my mom that I had breakfast with you today and that I am heading to the US, almost there; I’ll call her once I am in the US”, adds with a light of hope in his eyes.

“Do not take pictures of me, the Maras could identify me and chase me, even in Mexico”, ends Melvin.

World Vision in coordination with Magdala Project distributed coffee and breakfast to Melvin, and the other migrants today. “That’s the only we can do so far”, says Hector, but World Vision is working on different options and emergency relief operations to help migrants, specially unaccompanied children or youth like Melvin.

In Honduras, World Vision works with communities and families to prevent all types of violence and to protect children as well.

How this story will end?

Two days before Magdala Project contacted World Vision with news from Melvin and the migrants that were traveling with him.

“Melvin was caught by the Immigration Police in Mexico the same day you met him”, said Hector, “that afternoon the police in a community nearby intercepted them and caught them to deport them back to their home countries”.

The next day World Vision staff called Melvin’s mom planning to give the latest news. Surprisingly Melvin had just called home! “He was caught by the Immigration Police, but escape!. My son is now in Monterrey (a northern city in Mexico, located 300 km from the US border) at a shelter for migrants, he is looking for a “coyote” (person who helps migrants to cross illegally into the US) to help him cross”, said Melvin’s mom gratefully; “Thank you guys for helping my son as he was passing through Mexico!”, she added.

Melvin’s mom mentioned that his son will call back once he arrives into the US, but also mention that “they will call World Vision back” to update about his location and situation.

Providing a small breakfast, but specially a time to listen impacted Melvin’s life. Eager to update this story, we hope to hear from him soon.