Colombia is the nation with the largest number of Venezuelan migrants, a country of obligatory passage for those seeking to cross the Darien Gap and, also, according to figures from the United States Customs and Border Protection Office (CBP), the fourth country sender of undocumented immigrants to that country so far in 2023.
In this sense, the migratory measures implemented The United States has recently raised various questions about how the immigration centers that Washington plans to open both in Guatemala and Colombia will work, what family reunification consists of, and what their benefits are.
The voice of america He spoke about it with the Colombian ambassador to the US, Luis Gilberto Murillo, who, in addition to clarifying the main doubts on the subject, discussed the agreements with that country after the recent visit of President Gustavo Petro to Washington, where his counterpart, Joe Biden, received him at the White House.
VOA: When will the immigration centers that Colombia and Guatemala are going to have begin to function, and where will they operate?
Murillo: The important thing in this is that the presidents, above all, obviously President Petro and President Biden made the agreement to be able to advance in the implementation of the immigration framework established in the Declaration of Los Angeles, and this implies that channels must be created to facilitate the migration; that it be a regular migration, that it be safe, that it be orderly, that it be legal, and this because we do not want -and it is the purpose- that the families risk the journey that is being made through the Darién, that trail of death and fall into the hands of these criminal human trafficking networks.
And, in that sense, there are several very new aspects. The first thing these migrant processing centers are created. Likewise, the response to the integration of the migrants who are in Colombia… And the other thing, in these centers, is that they create many points so that people can obtain information and have an expedited process. In addition to that, the very important new family reunification program that will benefit Colombia and three other countries in the region.
VOA: You have said that by opening these centers, migrants will be able to do many of these consultations virtually. What will this plan be like?
Murillo: There is an application that will be provided by the United States government, which users will be able to use, those who make this type of request. The goal is that most of these procedures are done virtually and, when these filters are passed, those eligible, as I said, can already have in-depth and face-to-face interviews.
VOA: If a Haitian migrant goes through the entire process, but does not meet the requirements to be able to make that migratory transit on a regular basis, can he be deported?
Murillo: These are details that are being reviewed and obviously all these scenarios are being looked at by the technicians. But to give you an example, if there is a Haitian migrant who arrives, he is processed at this center, but he is not eligible, he will have some options. He will have the option to return, that is being discussed. You may have a reassignment relationship to another country or you may have the option of integration, to start an integration process also in the country of transit, in this case, Colombia… The purpose of the Colombian government is that this mobility is done in a safe, let it be human mobility but in decent conditions…
So, we’re looking at those scenarios, but that requires resources. So what about this population that probably doesn’t have the accessibility? So, we do need the support of international cooperation and the support of the United States to increase resources that guarantee that these people can be in a dignified manner and reintegrate into our society.
VOA: The authorities of Necoclí, a transit municipality for the Darien GapThey say that they are concerned that with the cancellation of Title 42, a detention of migrants will be presented again. Would the centers serve to avoid this?
Exactly. Because they have the opportunity to carry out these procedures virtually, they do not have to move around, they do not have to go to the border area and also once the filters are passed, they can have the face-to-face interview in the places that are determined, which is not necessarily going to be there, these details are being discussed.
But I think that a very important message to send to the community is that they take into account that lifting the title 42 It does not imply the opening of the borders, nor does it imply the transfer of a visa, nor does it imply the flexibility of the regularization processes; nor are the new family reunification measures, because the criteria for that are going to be established and we insist that they not submit to the risk of going through those paths of death. Now, something that must be pointed out in the announcement that has been made and the agreements that have been made with the United States, is the allocation of significant resources and support to the border populations.
Watch the full interview at Youtube.
[Con la colaboración de Karen Sánchez, periodista de la VOA]
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