Venezuelans lead growing number of migrants crossing Panama’s dangerous Darien

By Elida Moreno
PANAMA CITY (Reuters) – The variety of migrants crossing the treacherous Darien Hole linking Colombia and Panama greater than doubled within the first quarter of 2022 in contrast with the year-earlier interval, led by Venezuelans, Panamanian officers mentioned on Tuesday.
Within the first three months of the 12 months, 13,425 folks crossed the area in contrast with 5,622 folks in the identical interval of 2021, Panama’s Nationwide Migration Service (SNM) mentioned.
The Darien Hole encompasses a harmful jungle the place migrants trekking on foot for days usually endure theft, violence and sexual abuse whereas en path to the USA.
Greater than 31% of the migrants by means of March this 12 months got here from Venezuela, overtaking Haitians, who in earlier years represented the nationality most certainly to take the Darien route.
The variety of Venezuelans nearly doubled from all of 2021, SNM mentioned, as Venezuela grapples with an ongoing financial disaster.
After Venezuelans and Haitians, Senegalese and Cubans represented the best numbers of migrants.
For the complete 12 months of 2020, because the pandemic halted journey, the variety of folks reaching the Darien fell to eight,000. Final 12 months, the quantity surged to a historic excessive of 133,000.
(Reporting by Elida Moreno; Writing by Valentine Hilaire; Enhancing by Christopher Cushing)