This cannot keep happening.
Trece ciudadanos mexicanos han muerto bajo custodia del Servicio de Control de Inmigración y Aduanas de Estados Unidos desde enero de 2026, y México ya no acepta en silencio las explicaciones ofrecidas. El canciller Juan Ramón de la Fuente elevó esta semana una denuncia formal ante la comunidad internacional, mientras la presidenta Claudia Sheinbaum exige investigaciones que Washington promete pero no concluye. Detrás de cada cifra —177.192 detenidos, 13.722 aún encarcelados, 13 muertos— late una pregunta que trasciende la política migratoria: ¿hasta dónde llega la responsabilidad de un Estado sobre la vida de sus ciudadanos cuando estos cruzan una frontera?
- La muerte de Royer Pérez, un joven de diecinueve años detenido en Florida y hallado muerto en circunstancias que las autoridades estadounidenses atribuyen al suicidio sin pruebas suficientes, ha convertido un patrón inquietante en una crisis diplomática abierta.
- México acusa que el hacinamiento, la falta de atención médica y las condiciones sanitarias deficientes en los centros de detención constituyen un sistema que pone en riesgo la vida de sus nacionales, no casos aislados.
- Las cartas diplomáticas enviadas por la Subsecretaría para América del Norte documentan estas denuncias, pero muchas permanecen sin respuesta, y las investigaciones prometidas por Washington no arrojan resultados concretos.
- El gobierno mexicano ha desplegado líneas de emergencia, campañas educativas sobre derechos ante agentes migratorios y evaluadores encubiertos en sus propias embajadas para medir la calidad de la asistencia consular.
- Con la Copa del Mundo 2026 en el horizonte y cientos de miles de mexicanos previstos a viajar a Estados Unidos, Sheinbaum refuerza la red consular pero concluye con una frase que es más plegaria que garantía: 'Esperemos que no haya detenciones.'
El canciller mexicano Juan Ramón de la Fuente tomó la palabra esta semana para denunciar algo que su gobierno ya no está dispuesto a ignorar: trece ciudadanos mexicanos han muerto bajo custodia del ICE desde el 20 de enero, y las explicaciones ofrecidas por las autoridades estadounidenses no resultan convincentes. Desde esa fecha, 177.192 mexicanos han sido detenidos por la policía migratoria de Estados Unidos; 13.722 permanecen encarcelados a la espera de resolución.
El caso más reciente es el de Royer Pérez, de diecinueve años, arrestado en Florida a principios de año. Washington atribuyó su muerte al suicidio, pero sin documentación que respaldara esa conclusión. La presidenta Claudia Sheinbaum rechazó la versión y ha planteado el asunto directamente a Donald Trump en llamadas telefónicas. La respuesta siempre es la misma: hay una investigación en curso. Sheinbaum ha sido clara: México seguirá presionando hasta obtener respuestas reales.
Lo que preocupa al gobierno mexicano no son incidentes aislados, sino un patrón. El subsecretario Roberto Velasco Álvarez señaló condiciones estructurales —hacinamiento, saneamiento deficiente, atención médica insuficiente— como factores que explican estas muertes. México ha enviado cartas diplomáticas detallando sus preocupaciones; muchas no han recibido respuesta.
Ante la inacción, México ha tomado medidas propias: una línea de emergencia para ciudadanos en el exterior, campañas que orientan a los migrantes sobre sus derechos frente a agentes de inmigración, y evaluadores encubiertos desplegados en sus propias embajadas para verificar que el personal consular esté respondiendo adecuadamente.
El telón de fondo agrava la urgencia: la Copa del Mundo 2026 llevará a cientos de miles de mexicanos a territorio estadounidense. Sheinbaum aseguró que las embajadas están siendo reforzadas y que México está preparado. Pero su última frase reveló los límites reales de esa preparación: 'Esperemos que no haya detenciones.' Una admisión de que, pese a toda la presión diplomática, el Estado mexicano no puede garantizar la seguridad de sus propios ciudadanos en suelo americano.
Mexico's foreign minister stepped to the microphone this week with a stark accusation: thirteen of his country's citizens have died in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Mexican government will no longer accept the explanations being offered.
Juan Ramón de la Fuente delivered the statement against a backdrop of numbers that underscore the scale of the enforcement machinery at work along the border. Since January 20th, Mexican authorities say, 177,192 of their citizens have been detained by U.S. immigration police. Of those, 13,722 remain locked up, their cases still pending. The thirteen deaths represent a breaking point—one that has prompted Mexico's leadership to escalate its complaints through diplomatic channels and demand answers the U.S. government has not yet provided.
The most recent death involved a nineteen-year-old named Royer Pérez, arrested in Florida at the start of the year. American authorities attributed his death to suicide, offering little documentation or evidence to support the conclusion. When Mexico's president, Claudia Sheinbaum, learned of this determination, she rejected it outright. She has raised the matter directly with Donald Trump in phone calls, she said, and each time the response from Washington has been the same: an investigation is underway. But Sheinbaum made clear that Mexico intends to keep pressing. "We want a thorough investigation," she stated last week. "This cannot keep happening."
The pattern troubles Mexico's government because it suggests something systemic. Roberto Velasco Álvarez, the subsecretary for North American affairs, outlined the conditions his country believes are driving these deaths: overcrowding in detention facilities, inadequate sanitation, insufficient medical care. Mexico has sent diplomatic letters documenting these concerns and demanding accountability. Many of those letters remain unanswered. The investigations into the deaths themselves continue without resolution.
Mexico has begun taking its own protective measures. The government has expanded phone services for citizens abroad, creating a hotline for complaints and reports of abuse. It has launched an educational campaign advising Mexicans not to open their doors to immigration agents, not to volunteer information about their status, and to carry contact information for trusted advisors in case of arrest. The government has even deployed undercover evaluators to its own embassies and consulates to test whether staff are providing adequate assistance to people seeking help.
All of this unfolds as Mexico prepares for the 2026 World Cup, when hundreds of thousands of its citizens are expected to travel to the United States to watch their national team compete. Sheinbaum acknowledged the risk. She said the embassies are being strengthened and that Mexico is ready. But her closing remark carried an edge of resignation: "Let's hope," she said, "that no detentions occur." The statement was less a prediction than a prayer—an admission that despite all the diplomatic pressure and all the protective measures being put in place, the machinery of enforcement will continue to operate, and Mexico's government cannot guarantee the safety of its own people on American soil.
Citas Notables
We want a thorough investigation. This cannot keep happening.— President Claudia Sheinbaum, on the death of Royer Pérez
We have raised the matter of human rights protections for Mexicans in the U.S. repeatedly with President Trump, and each time the response is that an investigation is underway.— President Claudia Sheinbaum
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why is Mexico escalating this now, after these deaths have been happening?
Because thirteen is the number that broke something. When you can name them, when you can say a nineteen-year-old in Florida, when you have 177,000 people detained in a single season—the scale becomes undeniable. You can't ignore it anymore.
But the U.S. says it's investigating. Isn't that what Mexico asked for?
On paper, yes. But the letters asking for investigation haven't been answered. The previous deaths haven't been resolved. And when they do respond, it's with conclusions like "suicide" that come with almost no supporting evidence. Mexico is saying: we need real answers, not bureaucratic cover.
What does Mexico actually want the U.S. to do differently?
Fix the conditions inside the facilities. Stop the overcrowding, improve medical care, ensure hygiene. And be transparent about what's happening to people in custody. Right now, a young man dies and the explanation is a single word with no proof.
The World Cup is coming. Is Mexico worried about that?
Deeply. Hundreds of thousands of Mexicans will be in the U.S. during the tournament. The government is trying to prepare them, to protect them, but there's an honesty in what Sheinbaum said: they can't guarantee safety. They can only hope nothing happens.
Can Mexico actually force the U.S. to change anything?
Not directly. They have diplomatic leverage—they can complain, they can demand investigations, they can make it uncomfortable. But the enforcement continues. The detention continues. Mexico's real power is in refusing to accept the explanations anymore.