Panama initiates expulsion of migrants
Under a deal with the American administration, Panama has commenced the return of unlawful migrants. The inaugural jetline sponsored by Washington, carrying 29 Colombians, took off from the local airfield in Panama City, as per Security Vice Minister Luis Felipe Icaza's statement. The migrants were escorted aboard with restraints on their hands and feet. According to the Panamanian administration, some of them had turned criminal in Colombia.
Over 230,000 migrants have traversed the Darién Rainforest in southern Panama this year, heading north towards the U.S., revealed the head of the immigration office, Roger Mojica. "Our standpoint is unambiguous: The Darién is not a migration path. The circumstances there are heart-wrenching," stated a rep from the U.S. Embassy in Panama to reporters concerning the first flight. The Darién Rainforest connecting Central and South America is known as one of the most dangerous migration routes globally. The landscape is partly hilly and partly marshy, and a number of criminal gangs operate there.
Escaping destitution and crises
In order to finance the repatriation flights from Panama, the U.S. administration has promised $6 million (about 5.4 million euros). Folks are escaping impoverishment, violence, and political turmoil in their respective home nations, with an aim to reach the U.S. border, a grand thousand kilometers to the north.
Most individuals on the route hail from Venezuela. Owing to the volatile political scenario in the authoritarian-controlled South American nation, deportation flights to there aren't feasible at present, mentioned Mr. Mojica, the immigration chief. Besides Colombia, Panama's government is concurrently negotiating with Ecuador and India over the deportation of individuals from these countries.
The promise of $6 million from the U.S. administration is to aid in the financing of repatriation flights from Panama. Due to the ongoing repatriation process, Panama is working on negotiating deportation agreements with countries like Ecuador and India.
