A U.S. congressman's shocking account last week of migrant abuse in Panama, including incidences of babies being washed downriver, is being echoed in a new report from Doctors Without Borders, which says staffers in the region are seeing a stunning number of sexual assaults of migrant women.
For migrants making the land trek up the spine of the Americas to the U.S., there's one spot that consistently proves the most dangerous the Darien Gap, a jungle wilderness that covers the boundary between Colombia and Panama. Having been to Texas to see what was arriving at the U.S. border, Rep. Tom Tiffany, Wisconsin Republican, figured he'd get a first-hand look at what was coming through the Darien Gap.
Panama: Site assessment of Migrant Receiving Stations (MRS), Round 1 - March, 2021
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SITUATIONAL CONTEXT
On January 8, 2021, the Government of Panama ordered the reopening of land borders for the entry and exit of nationals, residents and foreigners; however, the Government of Costa Rica, within its plan for the gradual reopening, stipulated the reopening of its land borders, for non-nationals, as of April 5, 2021.
Despite the closure of land borders between Panama and Costa Rica, the flow of migrants between the two borders has continued both regularly (with bilateral authorization between the two governments) and irregularly (with migrants voluntarily withdrawing from Operation Controlled Flow and crossing the PanamaCosta Rica border). On the other hand, the Panama-Colombia border presents a different scenario due to the terrain conditions in the Darien, the border area between the two countries, which has high levels of porosity.
R4V Situation Report: Central America & Mexico (March 2021)
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PANAMA
Draft Bill 578, which seeks to modify Law 3 of 2008 (the Immigration Law ) is currently up for debate in the National Assembly. This bill seeks to limit legal immigration and wouldrepeal the general migratory regularization processes (known as Crisol de Razas ) and restrict who is eligible for permanent residence.
Refugees and migrants continue todepend on humanitarian assistance provided by partner organizations: many have reported debt accumulation due to the impossibility to pay rent and services (water and electricity) for more than 6 months.
Despite the gradual reopening of some sectors of the economy, families requested financial support from R4V partners to cover food and rent expenses. Based on home visits conducted by R4V partners in March, many Venezuelan families are facing nutritional challenges, vulnerable to poor nutrition and low food security. Although arbitrary evictions were not reporte