"In the Panamanian port village of Miramar, the migrants wait in abandoned houses and makeshift tents, the air heavy with unease. Few know how they will pay for the passage on a crowded boat to their next destination, 10 hours south. All are weary and despondent. I was hoping for a better future, but it was all for nothing, said Gabriela, a 26-year-old Venezuelan mother. I don't know what I will do."
"Gabriela is one of thousands who, after months travelling north to the United States across the perilous Darien Gap, through gang-controlled territories and treacherous terrain are now retracing their steps. More than 14,000 migrants, mainly Venezuelans, have turned south since Donald Trump closed the borders and began his immigration crackdown, according to a report published last week. The phenomenon, known as the reverse flow, represents an abrupt reversal in one of the biggest population displacements in modern history."
Migrants in Miramar live in abandoned houses and makeshift tents, calling their situation purgatory and feeling heavy unease, weariness and despondency. Many cannot afford the crowded boat passage ten hours south and lack clear options. More than 14,000 migrants, mainly Venezuelans, have turned back since US border closures and an immigration crackdown. Gabriela, a 26-year-old former government employee, fled after disputed elections, paid about $20,000 with other family members to smugglers, reached Mexico, had a US visa appointment canceled on 20 January and is now in Miramar with her 11-year-old daughter trying to raise $500. Migrants mostly travel by bus through Mexico and Central America to Panama, then take overcrowded boats to Colombia, and many are now separated and stranded.
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]