MIGRATION: Panama Colombia and Costa Rica ask US aid

The directors of Migration of Colombia, Costa Rica, and Panama have asked  the US to organize a meeting with international organizations that have to do with the problem of irregular migration, before the first week of December, after the second trilateral technical meeting of these migratory entities. The meeting will be managed by the United States, so that there is an adequate channeling of the funds that these international organizations can allocate in support of Panama,  which requires urgent help to continue dealing with the situation. the director of the National Migration Service (SNM), Samira Gozaine, reiterated the commitment between the three countries to work to discourage irregular migration, and the unprecedented northward flow.

“It was a productive meeting. Together we can find solutions to a problem that is not just our three countries; It is a multidimensional issue of great proportions, which needs to be addressed said Gozaine and insisted to her peers from Colombia and Costa Rica that the Darién jungle “is not a migratory route,” and that in this way it must be made known to prevent new migrants from trying to cross it to reach North America.

Meanwhile, the deputy assistant secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs of the United States Department of State, Emily Mendrala, indicated that the meeting will be arranged with organizations such as the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and others involved in the migration issue.

During the meeting held in virtual mode from the headquarters of the Panamanian Foreign Ministry, the director of Migration of Costa Rica, Marlen Luna Alfaro, seconded the Panamanian position and acknowledged that it is being “very difficult” to control the north-south migratory flow passing to our country.

“Like Panama, we believe that we must discourage the interest of people who want to migrate to North America, passing through Darién and arriving in Costa Rica,” explained Luna Alfaro, who spoke of “tightening Costa Rican immigration policies,” as a way to stop the flow of irregular migrants.