From January to September 2021, 91,300 migrants including 56,600 Haitians, crossed the Colombian jungle of "Darien Gap" one of the most dangerous regions of Latin America, an area of ​​marshes and hostile forests of approximately 8,000 km2 where 3 groups of rebels clash, an essential passage to cross Panama and continue their journey north in the hope of reaching Mexico, the United States and Canada.

A crossing during which migrants are sometimes robbed, assaulted or raped along the way and where dozens have died for various reasons (aggression, health, poisonous animals, rebels etc...) Panama declared that at least 50 migrants was killed crossing the jungle in 2021, but officials said that number is much lower than the actual number of migrants who died on the dangerous trek.

For the first 9 months of 2021, the number of migrants is 3 times higher than the previous record of 30,000 migrants for the whole of 2016 on the same route, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

In addition to 56,600 Haitians, IOM has also identified 12,800 Cubans, 1,500 Venezuelans and hundreds more from Bangladesh, Senegal, Ghana, Uzbekistan, India and Nepal.

What worries IOM is the increase in the number of children accompanying adults through this dangerous jungle. In 2017, they represented 2% of total migrants, while in 2021 they already represent 20%.

See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-34878-haiti-flash-more-than-1000-haitians-could-be-repatriated-every-day.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-34874-haiti-mexico-voluntary-return-to-haiti-of-70-haitians.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-34770-haiti-flash-thousands-of-haitian-migrants-detained-in-the-usa-in-a-makeshift-camp.html

SL/ HaitiLibre