Precis

Rarely does America see anything like this - a huge press of humanity streaming through Mexico, dreaming of life across the US border. Donald Trump, his administration paralysed over the $8 billion wall he needs to shut them out, calls them invaders. 

So who are these people and what are they fleeing?

They’ve killed most of my family - my dad, my brother.  We’re running. Only God is with us – Tatyana, on the gang violence in her homeland Honduras

Now Tatyana and the other migrants have been warned, by none less than President Trump, that they risk being shot by US agents if they push too hard at the border.

She and her husband Ruben, with their two small children and another well on the way, press on.

I’m prepared to die trying to make a better future for my family - Ruben

Daniel, 13, is risking his life to buy a future. He is estranged from his mother, who sells drugs for a gang back home in El Salvador. His only choice there, he says, was to join a gang or run.

Too much violence and drugs, they kill you for nothing.  I need to study, just study – Daniel

On the long road, rumours swirl.

I heard that the president will open the doors for us – Victor, a teenager from El Salvador

Over several weeks Foreign Correspondent follows the halting progress of two migrant caravans – one from Honduras, one from El Salvador – as they slowly wend their way through Mexico.

Most migrants say they are fleeing gang violence. Now they face a kidnap and murder threat from drug cartels as they make their way up La Ruta de la Muerte, or “Road of Death”.

Constant movement equals constant fatigue. At 5 am a weary mother rouses her teary child when it’s time to move again: Let’s go, let’s go -- No, no I don’t want to, I want to stay here on my own!

Some give up on their American dream and turn back home.

We have come this far for nothing – Honduran man

But when Eric Campbell catches up with the thousands of migrants massing in Tijuana, near the US border, he finds that for a lucky few, fortune has swung their way.

Story teaser. Wall running through beach/Migrants/Trump GFX:
foreigncorrespondent

ERIC CAMPBELL: A wall that’s dividing America,

00:00

a caravan of desperate migrants trying to cross it. 

00:06

And a President trying to stop them.

00:12

PRESIDENT TRUMP: “And we’re not letting them into our country, they’re not coming in.”

00:15

ERIC CAMPBELL: Tonight, we walk in the shoes of two mums…

00:22

MIRIAM CELAYA: “Are you going to keep going with us?  Let’s go! Let’s go!”

00:24

ERIC CAMPBELL: And two boys fearing for their lives.

00:27

VICTOR: “I didn’t get to say goodbye”.

00:30

ERIC CAMPBELL: One of them will make it to the US, the others will be trapped in Mexico, in a new wave of migration that’s created a political storm.

PRESIDENT TRUMP: “Barbed wire used properly can be a beautiful sight”.

00:33

GFX:  Foreign Correspondent

Chant: 'Build that wall… Build that wall…

00:47

Road sign on highway. Mexico distance

Music

00:53

Drone shots highway. GFX:  Veracruz, Eastern Mexico

00:59

GVs. Veracruz

01:11

GFX:  Walk in Their Shoes

01:26

Campbell walks among migrants resting on farm. GFX:  Reporter: Eric Campbell

ERIC CAMPBELL: Eastern Mexico is dangerous territory.  It’s the heart of cartel country. 

01:47

For these 2000 exhausted travellers, it’s their first break since they left El Salvador 12 days ago, crossing jungles, rivers and hostile borders.

02:04

Migrants rest in stables

A farmer has offered them stables to rest in.  Safe, for now, it’s time to celebrate like there’s no tomorrow. 

02:26

People dancing

Music

02:37

Daniel watches dancers

ERIC CAMPBELL:  For Daniel, who’s 13, it’s part adventure and part nightmare. He and his friend Victor joined the exodus after gangsters tried to kill them.

02:50

Daniel interview

DANIEL: “They will kill you for nothing.  What we want is a better life.  That’s the reason for this journey.

03:03

Campbell with Daniel and Victor

ERIC CAMPBELL: They were targeted because they refused to work for a local drug gang.

03:13

Victor interview

VICTOR: “At first we didn’t believe the threats.  But then they shot up our house one night.  We went into hiding until the day this caravan left, and we joined”.

03:18

CAMPBELL: “What do you miss about your home town, in El Salvador?”

03:33

VICTOR: “My mum.  When we left, we escaped in a truck so they wouldn’t see us leave.  So I didn’t have a chance… to give her a hug.  [upset] I didn’t get to say goodbye to her”.

03:37

Migrants queue for drinks

SONG LYRICS: “Kiss me… kiss me lots… as if this were our last night together…”

03:59

ERIC CAMPBELL: Since October huge groups of migrants have been fleeing the so-called

04:20

Migrant caravan on highway. GFX Map showing Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico

Northern Triangle, the violent crime ridden states of Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala.  Known as caravans, they’re travelling thousands of kilometres through Mexico, towards the US border. 

04:23

Migrants resting and sleeping. Children

Donald Trump says they’re a threat to national security, claiming they’ve been infiltrated by terrorists and drug traffickers.

DONALD TRUMP: “This vicious gang has transformed once peaceful, beautiful communities that I know so well, I know them all!  Into blood stained killing fields, savagely murdering, raping and mutilating their victims”.

04:40

ERIC CAMPBELL: Central America is terrorised by gangs.  They exhort businesses, pay off police and force children to sell drugs. 

05:11

Campbell with Victor and Daniel

For kids like Victor, the choice is stark – join a gang or get out.

05:23

Victor interview

VICTOR: “If we go back to El Salvador they’ll kill me and my family.  So that’s why we’re here, asking God to help us keep going”.

05:30

Juan Carlos walks taking photos

ERIC CAMPBELL: Photographer Juan Carlos, who was born in El Salvador, understands what it’s like for a child to flee.  His mother smuggled him to the US when he was 11 to escape a civil war between leftists and US-backed dictators.

05:47

JUAN CARLOS: “It was very personal to see this amount of people leaving at once… escaping,

06:12

Juan Carlos interview

in a way the same things people were escaping in the '80s during the war, you know lack of opportunities, violence, now gang violence”.

06:19

Migrants resting in stables/Juan Carlos takes photos

ERIC CAMPBELL: He’s documented the rise of the gangs which he traces to that war time exodus. 

06:25

Juan Carlos's photos of gangs

Some of these men grew up in gang ridden parts of Los Angeles.  They formed their own gangs for protection, so the US deported them back to Central America.

JUAN CARLOS: “They’re Americans, they’re Americanised.  Their Spanish might not be good enough to get a job, I mean

06:33

Juan Carlos interview

and they start doing what they’re known to do.  So they start organising themselves in those neighbourhoods and you know creating their own cliques and gangs to the point that extortion is a big thing.  You know pretty, much if you live in a neighbourhood that is controlled by them, you’re either with them or against them. If you’re against them then pretty much your life is at risk”.

06:55

Victor

CAMPBELL: “Do you think you’ll be able to get into the USA?”

VICTOR: “Yes.  Because I heard that the president will open the doors for us”.

07:15

Police vehicles on farm

ERIC CAMPBELL: First they have to cross cartel country.

“Well this is one of the most dangerous stretches of the journey.  It’s called La Ruta de la Muerte,

07:35

Campbell to camera

the “Road of Death” because of the hundreds of kidnappings and murders in recent years as two rival drug cartels fight for control”.

07:54

Police vehicles. Armed police on vehicles

Weeks earlier a mass grave was found nearby with 174 bodies.

08:02

Father Daniel walks, talks on phone

A local priest, Father Daniel Ovache, is terrified of what may lie ahead on the Road of Death. He tries to find buses to take them safely to Mexico City.

08:09

Press around Father Daniel

FATHER DANIEL OVACHE: “We are trying to stop people from leaving in trucks or other methods. We are trying to find dignified travel, especially for women and children, families”.

08:25

Buses arrive

08:42

Migrants head for buses.

ERIC CAMPBELL: The arrival of buses creates a wave of excitement. It will save them three weeks walking, but there aren’t enough to take all 2000 people.

08:47

Man addresses queueing people

MAN ADDRESSING LINES OF PEOPLE: “You didn’t listen.  You are not leaving yet.  You are making lines for nothing. You’ll be waiting a long time. We have the buses, but we haven’t paid for them yet. We still don’t have all the money, but it’s coming in little by little”.

09:03

ERIC CAMPBELL: They won’t be leaving tonight.

09:21

Sunset

Music

09:28

People gather again for buses

ERIC CAMPBELL:  The next morning, they wake to good news, the money has arrived, there are buses for everyone.

09:38

COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT: “All the coordinators please organise your groups.  What’s going to happen is we’re leaving for Mexico City”.

09:45

Crowd cheers

[cheering from crowd]

09:53

Parents and children head for buses past armed police

Music

09:56

ERIC CAMPBELL: With an armed escort, the caravan departs for the Mexican capital.

10:24

Buses on highway. GFX: Map over. Veracruz to Mexico City 490kms

Music

10:29

Fade to black.

ERIC CAMPBELL:  From there they’ll plan their next route to the US frontier.

10:38

Mexico City skyline. GVs GFX:  Mexico City

Music

10:52

Caravan in stadium

ERIC CAMPBELL:   Mexico City is 500 kilometres closer to the border and the first of the caravan from Honduras is already here.  They walked and hitched rides the entire way.

ANNOUNCER: “This event is for you all! Especially all our migrant brothers that are here in Mexico, on their way to the USA. A round of applause for you all!”

11:07

Show wrestling match. Campbell watches

11:30

ERIC CAMPBELL: This caravan of 6000 is bedded down at the national football stadium, courtesy of the city government.

11:39

Woman organiser

ORGANISER: “One line only!  Or we won’t be able to give you the clothes. Please make one line and we’ll see what we have left”.

11:49

Migrants wait for clothes etc

ERIC CAMPBELL: They’re getting fresh clothes, food, medicine, even haircuts, ahead of their final push to the border.

11:55

Tatyana, Ruben and family in stadium

Tatyana Ramirez and her husband Ruben joined this caravan to escape the gangs of San Pedro Sula, one of the world’s most violent cities.

12:07

TATYANA RAMIREZ: “They have killed the majority of my family, my dad, my brother.

12:19

Tatyana interview

They have tortured us.  That’s why we are running away”.

12:25

Ruben interview

RUBEN RAMIREZ: “In truth… it wasn’t a hard decision to make.  To die walking north or to die in my country. I’d rather die trying to make a better future for my family”.

12:32

Migrants resting in stadium

ERIC CAMPBELL: They were among the first to join the caravan as they walked across Central America, thousands joined them… all believing there is safety in numbers.

RUBEN RAMIREZ: “If the caravan crosses over, we cross with them.

12:42

Ruben interview

If the caravan asks for asylum, we ask for asylum too”.

12:57

Tatyana interview

ERIC CAMPBELL:  Tatyana who’s 21 is carrying her third child.

TATYANA RAMIREZ: “The truth is I feel terrible because I’m pregnant.  The walking has affected me a lot.  They had to give me fluids because I was dehydrated.  They journey is very dangerous. Only God is with us”.

13:01

Campbell to camera at stadium

ERIC CAMPBELL: “It is hard to convey the enormity of what we’re seeing here, because there are literally thousands of people who have walked more than 1600 kilometres to get here and this is the first place they haven’t been worried about being robbed or killed, or that women and young girls have had to be fearful of being raped, and it’s a brief respite, because if they continue to go north and most say they will, it’s more than a 1000 kilometres to the US border where thousands of combat troops have been sent to stop them.  But that’s a risk they’re prepared to take for just a chance of security for themselves and their children”.

13:25

Mexican flag over building

14:02

Miriam an children in home having meal

One of the most determined travellers we meet is Miriam Celaya.  She’s persuaded a local woman to let her and her two kids stay in her home.  Miram’s also looking after Cindy, a 19-year-old solo traveller who she met on the road.

14:07

Miriam interview

MIRIAM CELAYA: “Caravans are bad.  Because men do not respect women and children. They only care for themselves, and will leave you behind”.

14:29

CAMPBELL: “How are your daughters?”

MIRIAM CELAYA: “What can I say? Sick. They’ve gotten sick on the road. They cry because they don’t want to keep walking. But I put them on my shoulder and we keep going”.

14:40

Miriam holds up photo of family with husband

ERIC CAMPBELL:  Four years ago, her husband paid people smugglers to get across the border, they abandoned him to die in the desert of hypothermia.

MIRIAM CELAYA: “My oldest daughter has special needs.  She is deaf and mute.

15:01

Miriam interview

My husband was going to America to get money for an operation. Now I’ve left Honduras with the caravan to get her the operation in the US”.

15:15

Cutaway of fan

ERIC CAMPBELL: She can’t see why Donald Trump won’t let her in.

MIRIAM CELAYA: “Americans go to Honduras.  They get in and out, no problem.

15:26

Miriam interview

Why can’t we do the same? We are going to work, we are going to work for them.  We are giving them everything to work for them. Because it’s weird and rare to find an American who likes to work.  People from Honduras are the one doing the work.  All I want is an opportunity.  He should open the door to all of us.  All who are coming. Because in our country we cannot live”.

15:36

Migrants at stadium. Woman makes announcement

ERIC CAMPBELL:  Back at the stadium the decision has been made to push on.

ANNOUNCEMENT: “The mothers and kids can’t keep the same pace as the rest of us, we have pregnant women and we shouldn’t take risks with them. We are human, we are not animals.  That’s why we ask for patience.  We will get there”.

16:05

Miriam with children

ERIC CAMPBELL:  Miriam returns to get ready, vowing to bring her daughters and her friend Cindy to safety.

16:31

Miriam on phone

MIRIAM CELAYA: [on mobile phone] “We leave tomorrow at 5 a.m.”.

16:45

Tatyana and Ruben sheltering in wooden box

ERIC CAMPBELL:  Nearby, Tatyana is getting sick.  They’ve moved into a cardboard box for comfort.

16:50

Tatyana interview

TATYANA RAMIREZ: “It was so cold over there I felt like I couldn’t breathe.  It was freezing, here it is warmer. Here is much better”.

17:00

Birthday cake

17:10

Family share cake

ERIC CAMPBELL: They spend the last afternoon here celebrating their older daughter’s fourth birthday.  It will be the family’s last treat for some time.  Ruben’s wallet has been stolen; they now have no money”.

17:18

Early morning. Caravan starts to leave

MAN WALKING: “We are going to the USA!”

17:40

ERIC CAMPBELL:  At 5.00 am the first weary migrants start to leave.

17:44

Boy crying

YOUNG BOY: “I don’t want to go! I’d rather stay here on my own”.  [crying]

17:48

Young child beside pram

ERIC CAMPBELL: For Miriam, the border is that much closer.

18:01

Miriam preparing to leave

MIRIAM CELAYA: [excited] “Hello friends, good morning, how are you? How did you wake-up?  Strong? Are you going to keep going with us?  Let’s go!  Let’s go!”

18:06

Tatyana with children, prepares to leave

ERIC CAMPBELL: Tatyana packs up the kids.

RUBEN RAMIREZ: “She still has a cold but we’re leaving anyway”.

18:13

CAMPBELL: “And the kids?”

RUBEN RAMIREZ: “They’re going too.  They’re sleepy, but it’s time to leave”.

18:25

ERIC CAMPBELL:  Ruben is uneasy. He shows us a death threat sent to his phone.

RUBEN RAMIREZ: “I am going to kill you for being a piece of shit”. The message was sent from one of the gangs.  But I have nothing to do with them”.

18:32

Ruben shows threatening text

CAMPBELL: “Are you scared?”

RUBEN RAMIREZ: “Yes, a little.  For them more than anything.  For me it’s OK, but I am afraid for my family. I want them to get to the USA”.

18:46

Families head off

Music

18:59

ERIC CAMPBELL: As welcoming as the city authorities have been, they’re keen for the caravan to move on, organising two trains to get them out before dawn.  To avoid the worst bandit areas, they’ll head to the Pacific, a journey almost three times longer than the direct route north.

19:20

Campbell to camera at train station

“And so it begins.  The first leg at least they can go by metro for part of the journey, then they’ll be back on the roads walking. It's 2,600 kilometres to their destination Tijuana, the route they believe will be the least dangerous.  When they get to the US border, it could be the most frightening part of all”.

19:41

Migrants at train station, board train.

Music

20:01

Train departs. GFX Map. Mexico City to Tijuana. 2600 kms

Fade to black

20:26

Fade up from black. Razor wire along border fence. GFX:  Tijuana, 5.04 am

21:06

ERIC CAMPBELL:  Two weeks later we arrive at the border where the caravans are converging.

ANNOUNCEMENT: “CBP (Customs & Border Protection) is currently conducting an exercise. We will continue to process traffic shortly.  Thank you for your patience”.

21:10

Armed guards with shields at border, firing

GUARDS:  Move!... Move!...

21:28

ERIC CAMPBELL: [armed guards] A show of force for migrants hoping to reach the other side.

21:33

Long line of cars at border

ANNOUNCEMENT: “Thank you for your patience”.

21:46

Metal fence at border. San Diego skyline

ERIC CAMPBELL: Tijuana already has a wall of sorts, steel slats and metal fences are all that stand between Mexico and the beaches of San Diego. 

21:51

Tent camp

22:08

Campbell walks through camp/Helicopters fly overhead

The migrants wait in filthy camps as military helicopters hover above.

22:19

Tilt down from helicopter to Campbell to camera

“The main area where people are staying isn’t just near the border.  It’s right on the border.  They can actually see America through the cracks in the border wall… they just can’t get there”.

22:25

Tent camp

We’ve heard nothing from the people we met in Veracruz and Mexico City, but among the thousands of migrants here, we still hope to find them.

22:38

Campbell searching for Veracruz caravan members

22:51

We spend days looking for them without success.

22:57

Food distribution

23:11

Locals are growing resentful of the cost of feeding the migrants and suspicious of who’s amongst them.

23:17

Local man on street talks with Campbell

MAN ON STREET: “Tijuana is used to receive people from all over the country but not this way, you know?  Not a thousand people at one time. I don’t think any city is ready to receive that amount of people”.

23:31

Campbell on street. Body covered by sheet on road in background

ERIC CAMPBELL:  The tension in this border town is growing.

[on the street] “Oh shit… someone’s been killed”.

23:45

Body covered by sheet on road

Music

23:53

Wind farm

23:58

Campbell driving to Mexicali

ERIC CAMPBELL:  We luck out in Tijuana, but have heard our friends may be in another town.

24:01

Campbell driving, to camera

“Well, today we’re driving 200 kilometres to the border town of Mexicali.  A lot of people from the caravan have already relocated there because they just don’t see Tijuana as safe anymore”.

24:10

Campbell on street in Mexicali

The mood in this small town is more relaxed and we find the Salvadoran boys, Daniel and Victor.

25:25

Campbell greets Daniel and Victor

“Did you have a good trip?”

VICTOR: “Yes, but we were really cold and didn’t sleep much”.

24:36

Migrants rest on vacant block

ERIC CAMPBELL: They’re staying in a vacant block where almost everyone is ill and winter is making everything worse.

24:49

Daniel

DANIEL: “We have been hungry, we have been cold.  I have a fever, my throat hurts. The cold dominates you here”.

25:01

Campbell with Juan Carlos, Daniel and Victor

ERIC CAMPBELL: With no family here and out of money, the boys can’t go home.  They have no choice but to wait.

25:20

Campbell to camera walking down street

“OK, so we’re just trying to find Cindy, who was the young woman who was travelling on her own and had met Miriam with the two young girls.  Apparently, something very bad has happened to Miriam.  We’re not quite sure what but we’re going to try to find out”. Since we last saw

25:31

Reprise of Miriam holding photo of husband

Miriam in Mexico City, she’s become an unlikely hate figure.  In Tijuana, foreign media filmed her complaining about the food.

25:45

Miriam news report, complaining about food

MIRIAM CELAYA: “I know they’re under no obligation to give us food. But the food they are giving us is atrocious.  Look at what they’re giving us. Smashed beans, it’s like food for pigs”.

ERIC CAMPBELL: The clip went viral, prompting thousands of angry comments about ungrateful

25:54

Campbell greets Cindy at park

migrants and Miriam disappeared.

26:15

Soldiers laying razor wire

As US soldiers lay razor wire in front of us, Cindy tells us some extraordinary news.  We feared Miriam might be dead. Instead, she’s in Texas.

26:28

Cindy with Campbell

CINDY: “She’s on the other side, with her family”.

26:43

ERIC CAMPBELL: US authorities took the social media threats against her seriously and granted asylum.

26:46

CINDY: “Last night she sent me a text saying ‘I’m tired, but I’m now here with my girls’.”

26:54

Return to Tijuana

27:05

ERIC CAMPBELL: On our last day of filming we return to Tijuana to make one more attempt to find Tatyana and Ruben.

27:07

Campbell searches for Tatyana and Ruben. Talks with man on street

27:15

Campbell on street, to camera

Well we’ve finally found someone who thinks they know where they are, apparently just around the corner.  So fingers crossed. 

27:25

Ruben and Tatyana greet Campbell

Ah we have… we’ve found them.  Ruben!  Como estas, como estas”.

27:33

Interior of hostel. Tents set up

They’re staying inside a locked hostel that we’re not allowed to enter.  The girls seem well but Tatyana has had a hellish journey.  Halfway to the border, she was separated from the family while they were changing buses, sending Ruben into panic.

27:43

Ruben interview

RUBEN RAMIREZ: “There were so many people, I lost her.  I couldn’t find her until we both reached Sonora.  All the way from Guadalajara I was depressed because I couldn’t find her. I knew she would be in pain from walking too much with the baby.  She feels like she is going into labour”.

28:01

Campbell sits outside hostel with Tatyana and Ruben

ERIC CAMPBELL: Now so close to the border they’re scared to even approach it.  Some migrants have tried to scale the fence and been tear gassed and sent back home.

28:24

Tatyana interview

TATYANA RAMIREZ: “Right now things are not good, even for people already living on the other side.  The cousin of a girl in the caravan recently got deported.  They are deporting people”.

28:34

ERIC CAMPBELL:  Tatyana and Ruben face months in limbo.  Processing for asylum has been deliberately slowed.

28:44

Ruben interview

RUBEN RAMIREZ: “I’m going to wait.  At the moment we are scared of being deported. We are going to wait a couple of months and see if things calm down. Then we’ll seek asylum in the US”.

28:52

Wall running through beach

Music

29:08

ERIC CAMPBELL:  Donald Trump’s threatened state of emergency may not get him his wall. 

29:17

Campbell at wall

In any case, barriers like this haven’t stopped millions chasing the American dream.

29:23

Group singing on the beach at border

SONG LYRICS: “I crossed the border as an illegal.  Without the proper papers”.

ERIC CAMPBELL:  And more caravans are on their way.

29:30

SONG LYRICS: “My beloved Mexico, that I can never forget, but I can never return”.

29:41

Credits start over armed guards on beach

Reporter - Eric Campbell

Producer - Matt Davis

Camera - Matt Davis, Tomas Ybarra

Editor - Nikki Stevens

Executive Producer - Matthew Carney

© ABC 2019

29:54

Outpoint:

30:18