GUATEMALA CITY – Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei decreed a “state of prevention” Monday along the country’s border with Honduras, amid reports that a new migrant caravan may be forming in Honduras.
The emergency decree would restrict open-air gatherings and demonstrations without permits, and will be in effect for two weeks in the five Guatemalan provinces along the border with Honduras.
The government justified the restrictions in a statement, saying “groups of people could put at risk the life, liberty, security, health, access to justice, peace and development” of Guatemalans.
Guatemala issued a similar decree in January to stymie a previous caravan, arguing it represented a public health risk amid the coronavirus pandemic.