Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico — “Every corner has a gun”, Evens Odmond said of his home country of Haiti.
Odmond, his wife and their four-year-old son arrived in Mexico six months ago, hoping to claim asylum in the United States. They are now stuck in limbo in a border city rife with violence and unable to turn back.
“I left Haiti because there’s no life there. I’m just trying to get a better life for me and my family”, he said.
This month, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said violence in Haiti had reached “unimaginable and intolerable levels”. Between April 24 and May 16, at least 92 people who were unaffiliated with gangs were killed in coordinated attacks in Port-au-Prince, the UN reported. The violence — including beheadings, chopping and burning of bodies, and sexual assault — has forced droves of people to leave.
“We just want to get into the USA, that’s the only dream we have”, he said, referring to himself and other Haitians waiting in Tijuana for the border to open.
They must continue to wait for...
English (US) ·