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Migrants from all over the world arrive in Lajas Blancas following braving the dangerous Gap of Darién
The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) have warned of the notorious increase in Venezuelans who cross the Darien Gap region, a jungle area that separates Colombia from Panama, in their flight to Central America.
MADRID, 29 (EUROPA PRESS)
Both organizations have agreed on the “growing number” of Venezuelan citizens who resort to “dangerous crossings” through this area in search of “security and stability,” according to the IOM in a statement.
UNHCR and IOM have stressed that this increase occurs despite the socioeconomic impact, caused in part by the coronavirus pandemic, faced by Venezuelans in host countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.
According to the Panamanian authorities, in the first months of 2022 some 2,500 people have crossed the Darién Gap, a figure that almost reaches the total number registered last year, when the transit of 2,819 people was confirmed. In fact, the figure is today triple that registered in the same period last year.
The organizations have reiterated that the aforementioned jungle area is one of the “most dangerous routes in the world” for refugees and migrants, and where crossings can be delayed for up to ten days or more for the most vulnerable, who are exposed to natural hazards. as well as criminal groups.
After the difficult journey, the migrants arrive in remote indigenous communities, “hungry, dehydrated, exhausted and in need of medical attention.” This is why both organizations have valued the efforts of the Government of Panama and have reiterated their own commitment to help the authorities “guarantee access to help and protection for all those in need, including host communities.”
“Refugees and migrants of various nationalities have been crossing the Darien Gap for years. However, 2021 set a record (…) Some 133,000 people made the journey last year,” said the IOM, which acknowledges that the majority they are Haitian citizens from Chile and Brazil, followed by Cubans, Venezuelans and citizens from countries far from the area such as Angola, Bangladesh, Ghana, Uzbekistan and Senegal.
In response to the growing flow of migrants, both organizations are intensifying the response in Panama, providing temporary shelters, mattresses, blankets, solar lamps and hygiene kits, among others, and continue to coordinate with government institutions throughout the region to guarantee access. to asylum systems and other regularization programmes.
At this point, IOM and UNHCR have called for greater support and investment in host communities to strengthen services that benefit both refugees and migrants as well as the local population itself.
“There are more than six million refugees and migrants from Venezuela around the world. The vast majority, almost five million, reside in Latin America and the Caribbean,” the IOM concluded in its statement.
