According to a report from the Colombia, Panama and Costa Rica government, more than 14,000 people, mainly Venezuelans, who want to reach the United States, have turned to the South since the start of the immigration crackdown by Donald Trump.
This phenomenon, known as the “reverse flow” migration, consists primarily of Venezuelans who have fled the country’s long-running economic, social and political crisis, only encountered Immigration in the United States Policy is no longer open to asylum seekers.
Dangerous Darién and Panama on the Colombian border More than 500,000 people crossed. It slowed down in 2024, but almost completely stopped early this year.
The report was released on Friday with the support of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, who said Northern immigration has fallen by 97% this year.
In Costa Rica, Panama and Colombia The report said that the ombudsmen in these countries are almost all Venezuelans (97%), with about half saying they plan to return to Venezuela. Almost everyone said they were returning because they could never legally arrive in the United States again.
Since 2017, there have been approximately 8 million people Escape from the crisis in Venezuela. Over the years, people have traveled to other South American countries, including Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, Chile, etc. This changed in 2021, when thousands of people headed to the United States, bravely braved the Darién gap along the way.
Government smartphone apps have become the primary way for asylum seekers to enter the United States under the Biden administration. When Trump ended the app on his first day of office, thousands of people were trapped in Mexico.
About a quarter of the people interviewed planned to go to neighboring Colombia, the center of large-scale migration in Venezuela. Others said they didn’t know where to go.
Colombia and other South American countries spent years seeking aid to deal with the immigration crisis in Venezuela, and then many began to migrate to the United States. Today, the political and economic turmoil in Venezuela continues.
Those who trek to the Darién gap on the way north were even more vulnerable when they returned. They came back with less money and little job prospects. The report said migrants were placed in areas where criminal groups were increasingly preying on.
“Most of these people are already victims of human rights violations,” Colombia’s UN Human Rights Representative Scott Campbell said in a statement. “We urge authorities to help people with this kind of reverse immigration to prevent them from being exploited or trapped in trafficking networks operated by illegal armed groups.”
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This shift marks a radical reversal of one of the world’s largest mass migrations.
People take buses south through Mexico and other Central American countries until they reach the center Panama. From there, they paid $260 (£193) and $280 to take an unstable boat for those who took people to Colombia.
They take two different routes. Most people jumped up the hill through islands north of the Caribbean and landed in the small town of Nicocle, Colombia, and many began their journey through Darien.
Others drove south along the sea, along the jungle of Panama and Colombia, across the Pacific Ocean, and got off in remote towns or in the Colombian city of Buenaventura. Colombia’s Ombudsman’s Office estimates that about 450 people have taken this dangerous route, and the United Nations has recorded those deceived and stranded, facing ship accidents, arriving and being beaten and vulnerable from the journey.
The region is one of the most violent regions in Colombia, and the lack of state existence is filled by warring armed groups.
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A wellness enthusiast and certified nutrition advisor, Meera covers everything from healthy living tips to medical breakthroughs. Her articles aim to inform and inspire readers to live better every day.
