Some residents of Mexico’s Tijuana irked by presence of migrants

A ruckus took place in Tijuana as residents traded shouts and insults with a group of Central American migrants who arrived in this northern Mexican border city in the last few days.

Some 150 residents from the Playas de Tijuana borough gathered Wednesday afternoon to protest the presence of the Central Americans, threatening to block the access roads to the neighborhood.

Gathered outside a church, the residents demanded the presence of local authorities to address their concerns.

The crowd became increasingly upset as no authorities arrived to meet with them, which is when several protesters threatened to block the access roads, though others successfully deterred them.

The residents then marched to the borough’s administrative offices to demand attention, but municipal authorities did not meet with them.

Soon afterward, dozens of residents walked over to the site where some 250 Central Americans are camping, which is when the ruckus began.

As shouts and insults were traded, the migrants began chanting “Honduras” and some threw plastic water bottles against the Playas de Tijuana residents.

Several dozen migrants agreed to relocate to shelters, where most of the nearly 800 Central Americans who arrived in Tijuana are staying, but others decided to stay put.

On Wednesday night, local authorities readied a sports complex in downtown Tijuana as a shelter for the migrants.

Meanwhile, more Central Americans, coming mainly from Honduras, continue to arrive in Tijuana, and it is expected that 2,000 will reach the city on Friday.

These Central Americans are part of the first migrant caravan that left San Pedro Sula, Honduras, on Oct. 13 and entered Mexico six days later.

The caravan is made up of some 4,000 people, most of whom continue to travel through northwestern Mexico on their way to Tijuana.