WASHINGTON — The Trump administration moved Monday to end protected status for migrants who came to the US from Honduras and Nicaragua — offering a plane ticket and a $1,000-per-person “exit bonus” to anyone who self-deports immediately.
Temporary legal status for Hondurans and Nicaraguans to emigrate and receive work permits grew out of Washington’s humanitarian response to Hurricane Mitch, which struck both countries in the fall of 1998, killing almost 7,300 people.
“Temporary Protected Status was designed to be just that — temporary,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement, adding that Honduras and Nicaragua had “taken all the necessary steps” to recover from the massive storm.
“Temporary Protected Status was designed to be just that—temporary,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement. AP
Around 72,000 migrants from Honduras and 4,000 migrants from Nicaragua currently live in the US under the protected status.
Noem noted that