Venezuelan migrants in Mexico worry for their loved ones as political unrest roils their homeland
Living in makeshift camps in the heart of Mexico City, many Venezuelan migrants grow increasingly anxious for their friends and family back home
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Yenny Morales, 33, left her native Venezuela because she felt she had no other option. Her 9-year-old son has a mental health disability, and in a country where 80% of people live in poverty, she couldn't afford a specialist.
“I had to flee, because my son couldn't see a neurologist. The health of my kids comes first,” said Morales, who has been waiting in Mexico for an appointment to request asylum in the United States.
Since Sunday’s presidential election in Venezuela, in which both incumbent President Nicolás Maduro and the country’s main opposition coalition claimed victory, her worries have shifted to her family back home. “This is fraud,” she said, referring to the widely criticized results. “And now that’s what our families are fighting against.”
She said she had not heard from her family since Tuesday morning.