The president of the United States, Donald Trumphe attended on Tuesday the official opening of ‘Aligator Alcatraz’ (Alcatraz de Caimanes in English), a New jail for migrants located in a remote and ecologically sensitive area of southern Florida. The center, Built in record time on an old air trackhas generated protests of environmentalists and human rights defenders for their conditions and their locationyou can house up to 5,000 people waiting for deportation.
A prison in the middle of the Everglades
‘Aligator Alcatraz’ is located at about 70 kilometers west of Miamiin an old abandoned airfield, completely surrounded by swamps, mangroves and rivers in the Everglades National Park. The natural environment, inhabited by Caimanes, Pythons and Other wild specieshas been highlighted by the authorities as part of the security design: “There is nothing more than an entrance road, and the only exit is a repatriation flight“The White House Press Secretary said. isolation and the presence of dangerous fauna seek, According to the promotersdissuade escape attempts and send a message of firmness in immigration matters.
COST AND CAPACITY OF THE CENTER
Prison has meant An investment of 450 million dollars annuallycost that will be assumed by the state of Florida and reimbursed by the Federal Agency for Emergency Management (FEMA). He Complex consists of dozens of tents and temporary buildings, with the capacity to house up to 5,000 migrants waiting for deportation. The construction was completed in just two weeks, in response to the migratory hardening policy promoted by Trump and the governor of Florida, Ron Desantis.
Profile of inmates and criticism of the project
This exotic penitentiary center is destined for migrants arrested in border control operations Already people in deportation. The cI enter has been criticized by human rights organizations and environmental groups, that denounce the extreme conditions of the placethe Lack of environmental review previous and the risk for inmates, especially During the hurricanes season.
Leaders of the Miccosukee tribe and environmental defenders have filed demands to stop the openingclaiming irreparable damage to ecosystem and violations of fundamental rights.
A symbol of the new immigration policy
The inauguration of ‘Aligator Alcatraz’ reinforces the hard hand message of Trump’s government in migratory matters. For your defenders, The center represents an effective and deterrence; For their detractors, an extreme example of criminalization and dehumanization of migrants, in one of the most hostile and emblematic environments of the southern United States.
