Victims or perpetrators? Adolescent Central American asylum seekers in Mexico fleeing gangs

• In Event: Childhood/Youth, Forced Migration, and Humanitarian Aid in the Central America-US corridor

Abstract

Contemporary migratory movements are complex due to the multiple causes of forced migration, and the high vulnerability of those involved. One of the greatest challenges the Central American region (particularly El Salvador and Honduras) currently faces is the internal and cross-border forced displacement of young people by transnational organized crime, particularly gangs. As a result, asylum requests in Mexico have increased significantly, particularly from adolescents from 12 to 18 years old who are victims of violence and forced recruitment by gangs. In some cases, this includes those who actually are gang members, and seek a way out of the gang life and new opportunities through international protection or asylum. However, when they are currently or were previously gang members, it is more complicated to be recognized as refugees and granted asylum, as they are perceived only as perpetrators of violence, even though they are victims of structural violence. This presentation will analyze what it means to be an adolescent living within a context of everyday violence in order to challenge the common binary perception of these young people as victims or perpetrators. It is necessary to discuss the factors that construct the Central American region, particularly Honduras and El Salvador, as a space of violence for adolescents; understand the processes through which they interact with violence; and analyze their experience throughout the asylum process, especially their possibilities to be recognized as refugees in Mexico.

Author

• Olimpia Montserrat Valdivia Ramírez