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Colombia reinforced this Wednesday the police and military presence in the illegal crossings of the border with Venezuela due to the “alarming situation” that exists in Norte de Santander before the increase in the number of Venezuelans who have entered the country in recent days, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
General Ramiro Castrillón, commander of Region Number 5 of the Police and officer in charge of the area, said that an operation of about 200 men will adjust the controls in “places where many of the Venezuelans travel pendularly” in order to “prevent people from continuing to pass irregularly ”to Colombia.
In that sense, the Secretary of Government of Norte de Santander, Juan Felipe Corzo, said that what the authorities are looking for is to guarantee that the trails “are effectively controlled and we can reduce this problem that has been occurring in recent days “.
The Secretary of Borders and International Cooperation of Norte de Santander, Víctor Bautista, affirmed that what happens at the borders, especially on the trails near the Simón Bolívar international bridge, is complex. As an example of this, he gave what happens in Pamplona, about 70 kilometers from Cúcuta, where there is an agglomeration of migrants who have entered Colombia irregularly “with humanitarian needs for which the department is not yet prepared because the border is still closed ”.
That is why he asked the authorities of the Venezuelan state of Táchira to inform the public that “there is no authorized crossing of Venezuelan migrants to Colombia “ and warns about “the inconvenience of moving to the border given current humanitarian and health issues.”
The riots of Venezuelans leaving Colombia continue
The reduction to a few hundred the number of Venezuelans who can pass daily through the Simón Bolívar bridge, where thousands previously circulated, it had already been causing an accumulation of migrants on the Colombian side. In addition, the reactivation of road transport increased the flow of Venezuelans trying to return to their country and are left stranded in Cúcuta waiting to be allowed to cross the border.
According to the authorities of Norte de Santander, the migrants who arrive in Cúcuta are cared for in a camp installed on the Tienditas international bridge by the regional government and international organizations, as well as by missionaries of the Scalabrinian order, who are overwhelmed by the increased flow of people.
Migration Colombia indicates that, as of July 30, there were 1.7 million Venezuelans in the country, of which 195,079 are based in Norte de Santander. On September 30, The immigration authority extended the closure of all land borders until November 1, maritime and river systems of the country to contain the expansion of the coronavirus pandemic.
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