From surviving without papers, to adapting to a life in Colombia as a Venezuelan refugee

Matilde Carrillo and Zoheny Lugo left Venezuela in 2017. After trying in Cartagena, they finally found their “city of opportunities” in Bogotá. They are part of the Millions of Venezuelans who have been regularized in Colombiathe country that grants the most official asylum to citizens from the Caribbean nation.

“I knew absolutely no one, I had never left Venezuela. I have two children, I left my country due to my youngest son’s malnutrition problem, ”says Matilde while she talks on the sofa in her house in Bogotá with the Voice of America.

“You didn’t have to buy, you went to the supermarket, but you couldn’t find anything, so it was no use having a job,” Zoheny narrated.

Colombia opened its arms to them, thanks, in part, to the fact that the two contacted various NGOs and the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) helped them in their integration process in the Colombian capital.

Moving to the other side of the border was inevitable for Matilde and Zoheny, in Colombia they receive medical attention for themselves and their families.

“I arrived and I had nothing to do, because despite being a professional in Venezuela I couldn’t apostille the titles, they had no one, the ignorance was total,” says Lugo, while recounting that his first job in Colombia was as an assistant in a carpentry.

“In my life I had never picked up a tool for this job, I had never picked up a hammer, much less a drill, nothing like that,” Zoheny Lugo explains to the VOA.

Despite everything, these two women managed to access the Temporary Protection Statute for Migrants, which the Colombian government promoted to regularize undocumented migrants who are in the coffee territory, with which they are allowed to stay in the country on a regular basis. for 10 years.

Analía Kim, spokesperson for the UNHCR Regional Office for the Americas, explained to the voice of america that Colombia has welcomed 2.5 million refugees under conditions of international protection, mostly from Venezuela.

“Colombia is experiencing a unique moment to advance in the implementation of the 2016 peace agreement and to be able to provide a response and lasting solutions not only to internally displaced persons, but also to all persons who arrive in the country in search of protection and better opportunities. of life,” Kim said.

After Turkey and Iran, Colombia is the third country with the highest number of refugees received, with 2,455,000 people received, most of them from Venezuela, with 5,451,000 Venezuelans who have left that nation, according to a report delivered by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).

“UNHCR’s global report revealed that by the end of 2022 the number of people displaced by human rights violations reached 108 million people, which meant an increase of 21% compared to the previous year,” he commented.

Colombia is the Latin American country that hosts the most migrants from Venezuela. In principle, normalizing her life in Colombia was not easy for Matilde, who in an irregular state could barely access informal jobs.

“The Matilde who left Venezuela is not the same one who arrived in Cartagena and is not the same one who is in Bogotá today, I say that I had three stages: in Venezuela she was someone who never knew what the need was; When I arrived in Cartagena it was all uncertainty because she was someone who had nothing; and the Matilde who is here in Bogotá is a motivated person who learns something new every day.

In the Colombian capital, Matilde and Zoheny obtained regular asylum and an employment contract with an NGO with which they work as social workers, providing support to more migrants who have had difficulties adjusting in the country.

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