MEXICAN SENATE PRESIDENT CALLS FOR COMMISSION TO INVESTIGATE ICE ABUSE

This article by Alejandro Páez Varela and Álvaro Delgado Gómez appeared in the June 8, 2025 edition of Sin Embargo.

Mexico City. In light of the events in Los Angeles, California, where anti-immigrant raids have been carried out, causing thousands of people to take to the streets to protest against these measures, the President of the Senate of the Republic , Gerardo Fernández Noroña , expressed his solidarity with the migrant population and spoke about the possible integration of a special commission that would travel to the United States of America to address the issue of migration and the violation of the human rights of migrants that have been recorded.

In an interview with Los Periodistas, a program broadcast live on Sundays from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Canal Once, the legislator was questioned about the current situation in the Californian city, to which he condemned the actions of the U.S. government, while applauding the fact that migrants are raising their voices and fighting for their rights.

“They finally raised their voices, and they are finally defending their rights and facing military intervention. It’s not ICE, it’s not immigration,” said Noroña, who condemned “the arbitrary arrests, with brutality, without a warrant, with tanks, with tear gas, with high-powered weapons” carried out by Trump.

He also highlighted the importance of migrant labor in the US, mentioning that the women and men who move to the US in search of better opportunities have contributed “their labor and their taxes” for decades, which has greatly contributed to the country’s economy.

On the other hand, he pointed out that the US government has not acted to find a fundamental solution to the immigration problem.

In the same vein, he described the repression that took place over the weekend as “unjustifiable, despicable, and unjust” due to the deployment of federal forces to contain the protesters.

Regarding Trump’s actions, the Senate chairman commented that they shouldn’t be surprising, as it was something he threatened to do during his presidential campaign.

In turn, he applauded the way President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo has managed her relationship with Donald Trump, maintaining a firm stance of collaboration without subordination, and speaking out when necessary, as in this case, when she criticized the actions of the US and affirmed that migrants are not criminals.

In the program hosted by Álvaro Delgado and Alejandro Páez Varela, Gerardo Fernández Noroña was also questioned about what role the Mexican legislative branch should take in the face of the violence perpetrated by the United States against the migrant population, to which he raised the possibility of a legislative commission traveling to that country to address this issue.

In this regard, he added that the commission would travel with the goal of supporting migrants, supporting their demands, and “taking a chance” on their behalf.

The lawmaker added that it wouldn’t be the first time he’s traveled to U.S. territory to protest, recalling that in 2017, during Trump’s first term, he staged a demonstration in front of Trump Tower to oppose the construction of the border wall.

“It was very difficult. There it is, if you type ‘Noroña, Trump Tower’ [there appears] a note from the Washington Post […] as my grandmother used to say: ‘I’m not a big-assed bird,’ if you have to risk your physical safety, I’m there,” he indicated.