Migratory passage through Colombia, controlled by gangs in the absence of the State, says NGO

The migration that passes through Colombia, from Ecuador to Panama through the Darién jungle, is controlled by organized crime before a State “absent” at the borders, show the main findings of a new report published by the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA).

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“From the informal crossings or trails on the border with Ecuador to every step of the way through the Darien jungle to Panama, they are controlled by criminal groups”the report reads ‘Migrants in Colombia: Between State absence and criminal control.

The groups that profit from migrants’ attempts to seek a better life in the United States are some that operate near Ecuador and especially the Clan del Golfo (or the Gaitanista Army of Colombia – EGC), for whom “The profits they extract from migrants are currently, along with cocaine and the illicit extraction of precious metals, the main source of income.”

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According to data from Panamanian authorities, so far this year More than 185,000 people crossed the Darién jungle on their way to North America, on all migrants from Venezuela, Ecuador, Colombia and China, while last year a record number of more than 520,000 crossed it

In the face of this humanitarian crisis, as migrants face countless. natural and climatological dangers in this dangerous and mountainous jungle and also to criminal groups, “The national government is not doing enough to manage migration flows, determine who passes through, or protect vulnerable people.”

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“At all levels of government, responsible agencies are poorly coordinated and rarely present. Checkpoints, patrols and arrests are infrequent, as are humanitarian services and access to protection (…) Throughout of the migratory route there is a state vacuum that is being filled by armed groups and criminal groups”, WOLA noted in the report.

Furthermore, this NGO also points out that the “trajectory” of the current government in the face of the migration crisis in Venezuela “it’s worrying” because right now “is more difficult” for Venezuelans “access services in Colombia” and the ways to regularize your immigration status “They are very scarce.”

In this context, the information that comes from the United States about legal migration routes is “confusing and unclear” and the resources that They arrive to help Colombia and other countries to address this crisis “they are scarce.”

“These poor options for managing migration lead WOLA to recommend some version of ‘safe passage’, including a humanitarian corridor, ending Colombia’s non-interventionist approach,” concludes the organization, which recommends creating a “safe passage” through the Andean country, which must increase its state presence.

EFE