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Migration authorities and the public force remain on alert for a possible collapse that may be registered on the border between Colombia and Venezuela. In the last weeks, hundreds of migrants have entered the country through 65 non-formal steps (trails) located along the 403 kilometers of the border line in La Guajira.
Precisely from Paraguachón, in the municipality of Maicao, Juan Francisco Espinosa Palacios, director of Migration Colombia, confirmed Thursday afternoon that the border with Venezuela will remain closed until the conditions for its reopening are met.
The official indicated this Thursday that Until October 31, it will remain closed to continue to the next phase of evaluation and guarantee the safety of people and the region.
“That means that in the next cycle, in November it will be considered whether it is the right time to open or wait a little longer. It is essential to understand that a border opening means greater pressure on the health system and an exposure of people ”.
Espinosa specified that opening the border represents a “Huge challenge” in health matters, while he asked those who travel along trails not to do so to avoid exposing themselves, his family and the Colombian Government.
“We ask those who use the trails to enter Colombia to refrain from doing so, that they do not expose themselves and that they do not expose the country and its people “, emphasized the director of Migration Colombia, after his visit to the municipality of Maicao.
During Espinosa’s visit to Paraguachón, he was accompanied by the Fronteras manager, Lucas Gómez. The inhabitants of the corregimiento asked the food security officials, connectivity for students and support for economic reactivation.
Parallel to the information, President Iván Duque assured that his government will have zero tolerance for criminal behaviors or violations of biosecurity measures carried out by the migrant population.
“Fraternity is one of the manifestations that we conscientiously do, but we will have zero tolerance for any criminal conduct by migrants in the national territory, or they will be deported immediately, “he said.
Given the constant flow of travelers and walkers through the border points, the national president assured: “We are going to strengthen more and more controls at the border points due to the Covid19, because the pandemic has not gone away and we cannot let the life and health of any citizen be put at risk “
The walkers
Migration sources informed this medium that during the quarantine decreed by Covid-19, from the department of Atlántico approximately 600 Venezuelans returned voluntarily, But they assured that in recent weeks that figure “could have increased” with respect to the number of migrants who have returned.
“The so-called walkers are passing through the trails and we know that more are coming.. We know that this within a month could radically change the current panorama ”, the source said.
According to Migración Colombia, Atlántico is the third territorial entity in the country that has received the most Venezuelan migrants.
As of July 30 of this year, the entity registered 1,731,017 Venezuelans in the country, of which 765,173 are on a regular basis; while it is estimated that 965,844 are irregularly in Colombia.
Meanwhile, Atlántico has a migrant population of 159,474Barranquilla being the one with the highest concentration of this population, with 94,705.
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