On Tuesday, the Biden administration formally ended the Trump-era “remain in Mexico” policy, which had forced potential Central American asylum-seekers to stay in Mexico to wait out their result for their asylum hearings in the United States.
Department of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas announced the program's ending in a memo, adding that it did not “adequately or sustainably enhance border management."
According to Reuters, President Joe Biden paused the program, known formally as Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), on Jan. 20. Since then, more than 11,000 migrants have enrolled in the program.
"Over the course of the program, border encounters increased during certain periods and decreased during others," Mayorkas said in the memo. "Moreover, in making my assessment, I share the belief that we can only manage migration in an effective, responsible, and durable manner if we approach the issue comprehensively, looking well beyond our own borders."
The policy was initiated in 2019 as part of former President Donald Trump’s crackdown on border control policy.
