Bogotá, (EFE).- Colombian authorities have raised the alarm over the emergence of new “reverse migration” routes, with migrants returning from Central America to Colombia via the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean after failing to reach the United States.
“We are seeing children arriving with adults who are neither their parents nor relatives, and many have no identification documents. This puts these minors, who are constitutionally entitled to special protection, at serious risk,” said Colombia’s Ombudswoman, Iris Marín, in a public statement Thursday.
These reverse flows have been detected in Capurganá on the Caribbean coast, Juradó and Bahía Solano along the Pacific coast, three towns in the remote and heavily forested Chocó department, which borders Panama.
According to the Ombudsman’s Office, migrants, many of whom arrive undocumented, are being moved by human smuggling networks in boats from these Pacific towns to the port city of Buenaventura, Colombia’s main port on the Pacific coast.
Armed groups and institutional challenges
Authorities warn that migrants returning through Chocó face significant risks due to the presence of illegal armed groups, including the Gulf Clan, Colombia’s largest criminal organization, and the National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrilla groups, both of which maintain territorial control in the region.
The humanitarian situation is further strained by language barriers and a lack of institutional capacity to provide adequate shelter or support.
“In Juradó, for example, between 20 and 40 migrants arrive daily, sleeping in hostels, on the streets, or in public parks,” the Ombudswoman said. “This municipality lacks the infrastructure to respond to this influx.”
She noted that institutional preparedness has largely focused on the Caribbean migration corridor, not the Pacific.
“This Pacific route was previously nonexistent, so all efforts and resources were concentrated on the Caribbean side,” Marín added.
Appeal for immediate humanitarian action
Marín urged the Colombian government to urgently implement coordinated humanitarian plans to address the emerging crisis.
“We must act promptly with humanitarian measures to confront what is happening,” she said.
The Ombudswoman also called on Panamanian authorities to strengthen oversight in areas such as Pinogana, Chepigana, and the indigenous regions of Emberá Wounaan and Guna Yala, all located in Panama’s Darién province, which borders Colombia.
“Panama’s role in the territory is crucial to improving migration controls and ensuring that children, adolescents, adults, and the elderly have their rights protected,” she concluded.
Earlier this month, Panama shut down its main migrant reception center on the northern edge of the Darién Gap, following a sharp decline in northbound irregular migration due to new US immigration restrictions. EFE
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