Nearly 70,000 Venezuelans have crossed the Darien Jungle so far this year
OAS commissioner for the migrant and refugee crisis David Smolansky has called the crossing 'hell on earth'.
An illegal immigrant at a shelter in Meteti (Panamá). (Cordon Press. Archive).
A total of 68,000 Venezuelans have crossed the Darien so far this year, according to David Smolansky, the Organization of American States (OAS) commissioner for the migrant and refugee crisis. "With the 23,000 Venezuelan migrants who have crossed the Darien in August, the total number of those who have crossed this jungle from January to August of this year is now 68,000." Smolansky described the Darien crossing as "hell on earth."
The Darien jungle
The Darien jungle is a territory located between Colombia and Panama, controlled by mafias that traffic migratory flows. People from different continents and countries try to reach the United States through this lawless place. Cubans, Haitians and, above all, Venezuelans stand out in number. According to multiple accounts, there are mass rapes, murders, extortions and humiliations of all kinds. There are many who lose their lives in this hell.
The majority of Venezuelans crossing the Darien route are destined for the United States. "They take the overland route, including the Darien crossing, which is extremely dangerous. They pass it with children. Unfortunately, they are not informed of the dangers to which they are exposed," said Patricia Andrade. In the crossing, migrants travel through eight countries for approximately a month and a half trying to reach the United States.
The world's largest migration crisis
A few weeks ago, David Smolansky, reported that Venezuela faces "the largest migrant and refugee crisis in the world (6.8 million), tying Ukraine and surpassing Syria (6.6 million)". The widespread crisis in Venezuela has caused 6,805,209 Venezuelans to emigrate; 84% live in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The figure was published by the Interagency Coordination Platform for Refugees and Migrants (R4V), according to information released in August. This data represents the sum of refugees, migrants and asylum seekers from Venezuela as reported by host governments and based on the statistical data processing of each Administration. However, many of the official sources do not take into account people without a regular migratory status, so the number of Venezuelan emigrants is clearly higher.
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