– Our system needs to be fixed – VG

According to CNN figures, a total of 3,700 children and youth are now in the custody of the border police, 1,100 more than the “record” of 2,600 in June 2019 under former President Donald Trump.

According to Reuters, the figure is four times higher than at the end of February.

Children are kept in what are described as prison-like detention centers built for adults, and they are kept here longer than they should. Last week’s average was 107 hours, even though the law says they must leave within 72 hours.

The US media reports that the children are being held in what are described as cells in the detention centers. The light is on 24 hours a day and there are few opportunities to play.

“Some of the children said there were so many people that they had to switch to sleeping on the floor,” attorney Neha Desai told CBS.

He represents minor migrants in the US judiciary and says this week he interviewed about 12 children and youth at a temporary detention center in Donna, Texas.

According to Desai, some of the children she interviewed had been at the center for a full five days and had only showered once.

– It is deeply disturbing to see young children on the premises for several days, where they are not allowed to shower, call their families or see the sunlight, he says.

According to the lawyer, she and her colleagues from the National Youth Law Center were not allowed to inspect the premises themselves.

– I even have a six-year-old son

The detention centers will function as temporary residence for the children, before their transfer to the centers administered by the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs is scheduled. From here, they can be reunited with family members in the United States or be cared for in other ways.

Due to the corona pandemic, the capacity is lower than normal.

The US Border Patrol CPB will not comment on Desai’s remarks. in a previous interview However, Acting Leader Troy Miller said children have access to food, snacks and medical care. He also claims that they can shower every 48 hours.

– Many of us, perhaps most of us, are parents. I myself have a six-year-old and our officers do what they can every day to take care of the children, he said, but added that they “struggle to handle the number of children and youth” in their custody.

As President Joe Biden and his administration struggle to cope with the number of children arriving at the border, they will not refer to the situation as a crisis.

– I think the most important thing is that we do what we do no matter what people call the situation. Our system needs to be fixed, there is an agreement from the president and below, Roberta Jacobson, who is responsible for border affairs, answered questions from the press at the White House on Wednesday.

The White House is clear that they believe they have inherited a broken immigration system from former US President Donald Trump and that they should have been able to find ways to welcome migrants rather than spend time building a border wall, writes ABC. .

Under Trump, children who came alone were also sent to the border because of the crown situation, and this was one of the things that Biden changed from the beginning. His administration has also started admitting families with young children.

However, the majority of adult migrants continue to be deported at the border without applying for asylum, due to the corona pandemic – in February alone, this amounted to around 100,000 people, according to ABC.

Believe that Biden can thank himself

However, several prominent Republicans believe that Joe Biden is due to the situation on the border with Mexico, as he has made it clear that he wants a more humane immigration policy.

– We are seeing an increase in children crossing the border alone. Why? Joe Biden has promised amnesty, Texas Republican politician Ted Cruz writes on Twitter.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott is also critical and write on Twitter that the Biden administration has “created a crisis at the border.”

House Republican Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy also describes the situation as a crisis.

He will travel to the Mexican border in Texas with several other Republican congressmen on Monday and says he has tried to have a meeting with the president about the situation.

“Biden has not even recognized the crisis that he has created, nor has he set aside time to meet to resolve it,” he said. Reuters.

– It may have led people to make that decision.

Also in the White House, they acknowledge that their own policies may be one of the reasons why more people are trying their luck at the border, in addition to, among other things, the crushing effect of the crown crisis on the Latin American economy.

“I don’t know if it’s a coincidence, but I think the idea of ​​a more humane policy may have led people to make that decision,” Jacobson of the Biden administration told CNN.

She cautions that smugglers appear to be using this for what it is worth to spread misleading information, and is aware that the United States today does not have an “open door” policy.

– The perception that the border is open does not correspond to reality.