Yes ok Colombia has made “commendable” efforts for hosting the hundreds of thousands of migrants arriving from Venezuelathe lack of resources to deal with the problem and a series of other shortcomings in the execution of its policies would be contributing to the emergency that is currently being recorded in the so-called Darien Gap and? could worsen in the coming months as a result of the post-electoral crisis in the neighboring country.
According to the criteria of
This is evident from a new report presented this Wednesday in Bogotá by the American organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) in which it evaluates the migration policies of six countries –Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Panama and Peru—and identifies the main challenges faced by migrants and asylum seekers in regularizing their status. migratory statusobtain recognition as refugees and access socioeconomic integration.
The report, titled ‘The Darien Gap: The jungle where Latin America’s flawed migration policies converge’is the third one published by HRW on the delicate situation in this border area between Colombia and Panama and the result of six field visits between April 2022 and September of this year where they interviewed to more than 300 people, including migrants, asylum seekers, officials from both governments, humanitarian workers and experts from across the region.
It also coincides with the arrival in the country of Tirana Hassanexecutive director of HRW, who traveled to the border to learn about the case firsthand. Hassan also has meetings planned with Colombian President Gustavo Petro and other government officials.
“On the docks of Turbo and Necoclí, we met families facing impossible choices: endure repression and fear of arrest in Venezuela, or risk violence, exploitation and sexual assault in the deadly Darien Gap. As Venezuela’s human rights crisis worsens, people feel this perilous journey is their only option. This is not just a migration issue: it is a human rights catastrophe. Regional governments must act now to protect the most vulnerable,” Tirana Hassan told this newspaper exclusively.
Overall, the new report concludes that limited access to refuge and subsequent integration of migrants in countries in the region is pushing many to the dangerous crossing through the Gap, where they suffer numerous abuses, including sexual violence.
It is crucial that they respect and promote human rights at the local level, ensure that people fleeing have real opportunities to find protection and rebuild their lives, and urgently work on a coordinated regional response to ensure the protection of people fleeing human rights crises in the region.
According to the report, in the last year and a half more than 700,000 migrants and asylum seekers have crossed the zone in search of better opportunities. A number that could grow exponentially given the political and humanitarian crisis facing Venezuela and Haiti.
According to the report, which cites recent surveys, more than 1.5 million Venezuelans have indicated that they plan to leave the country before the end of the year.
In Haiti, despite the recent establishment of a transitional government, the situation remains critical, while in Ecuador, another country from which thousands are fleeing, insecurity is rampant and there are record rates of homicide and extortion.
“The crises in Venezuela and Haiti are worsening… and governments in the region cannot stand idly by as the situation worsens… It is crucial that they respect and promote human rights at the local level, ensure that people fleeing have real opportunities to find protection and rebuild their lives, and urgently work on a coordinated regional response to ensure the protection of people fleeing human rights crises in the region,” Hassan said.
What the report says about Colombia
In the specific case of Colombia, the report highlights the legislation that allowed Venezuelan migrants to be regularized through a temporary protection statute that benefited more than two million people.
However, the report says, other foreigners and Venezuelans who have entered irregularly after January 2021 or regularly after May 2023 “have no other options to regularize their stay than ordinary visas, which are expensive.”
Additionally, HRW states, Access to asylum is difficult because the system is overwhelmed and asylum seekers are not authorized to work.
Although the country played a leading role in developing policies and institutions to welcome and integrate migrants and refugees, “the lack of resources for the municipalities that respond to migration and the dismantling of the Border Management Office, which coordinated migration policy, have undermined integration efforts,” the organization says.
In the specific case of Colombia, the report highlights the legislation that allowed Venezuelan migrants to be regularized through a temporary protection statute that benefited more than two million people.
Migrants, the report continues, They face numerous difficulties in accessing employment and validating professional qualifications and diplomas, as well as worrying levels of discrimination.
For the US organization, Colombia also “lacks a clear strategy to protect migrants and asylum seekers who cross the Darien, where the Gulf Clan profits from them. The Colombian government’s efforts to investigate and prosecute the Gulf Clan in the region have yielded minimal results.”
In a previous report, the organization had already documented how the Clan has taken over the migration business, regulating routes and extorting residents who engage in human trafficking. In total, they claim, the group has amassed a fortune of up to 65 million dollars during the year 2023 and as a result of this it has strengthened itself in the area.
According to HRW, the government also lacks reliable data on the number of migrants crossing and their needs, making it difficult to effectively provide food, water and healthcare. At the same time, local mayors lack sufficient capacity, including experience, staff and resources, to manage the high number of migrants passing through the area.
Testimonies of migrants
The report includes some testimonies, including that of Gabriela Pizzaro (pseudonym), a Venezuelan who arrived in Apartadó in mid-June of this year with a group of eleven people.s. Although they sleep on the streets, Pizarro told HRW that they are better off than in Venezuela, where they did not even have food to eat.
Initially, she says, they planned to cross the Darien, but then realized they could not afford the trip. And although she said she was willing to stay in Colombia, that option was not viable either, since all the jobs she applied for required legal status for which she did not meet the requirements.
“I would stay, but without the permit, maybe the best thing for us is to gather the money (for the trip through Darien) and leave,” the woman told the American organization.
HRW also mentions, citing data from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), that up to 67 percent of the Venezuelans who crossed the jungle had previously lived in other South American countries from which they would have had to leave due to lack of opportunities.
If HRW’s assessment of Colombia in its report is harsh, that of Panama is worse. According to HRW, most abuses against migrants are being committed in this country.
And he harshly criticizes the new agreement signed with the United States to expel foreigners who do not have a legal basis to remain in Panama.
“This agreement is likely to further worsen access to refuge in the region. Given that Panama’s refugee system is inadequate and under-resourced, large-scale expulsions of asylum seekers could violate Panama’s legal obligation to respect the principle of non-refoulement (i.e. not to send people to countries where they are at risk of abuse),” the organization said.
The agreement would also be a strategy by the United States to “avoid its responsibilities by attempting to outsource its immigration controls to a country with a demonstrably lower capacity to carry out a complete and fair evaluation of asylum applications.”
The conclusions of the HRW report on migration
In conclusion, and in a nod to what has been done in countries such as Colombia and Brazil, the organization states that governments in the region should follow the example of the valuable measures that have been implemented there, “such as the prima facie recognition of Venezuelans as refugees and the humanitarian visas granted in the past to Haitians (in the case of Brasilia) as well as the efforts of Bogotá to grant temporary protection status to Venezuelans.”
It also recommends that a temporary protection regime be implemented in the region that grants all Venezuelans and Haitians a legal status for a fixed period of time with an appropriate duration and renewable, including those who do not qualify for refugee status under national legislation and reversing measures that have raised the requirements for asylum and are driving dangerous migration through the Darien.
Likewise, create a regional mechanism that is equitable to determine the States responsible for examining asylum applications and protecting refugees, taking into account, to the extent possible, individual factors such as social or family ties and individual preferences of applicants.
This mechanism should include measures to overcome the barriers that lead migrants and asylum seekers to leave host countries, including legal sponsorship, access to housing and the rapid obtaining of work permits while asylum applications are pending review.
At the same time, these costs should be distributed fairly and States should be given incentives to share the responsibility.
SERGIO GOMEZ MASERI
Correspondent for EL TIEMPO
Washington
#migration #policies #countries #region #including #Colombia #aggravating #crisis #Darien #Gap