Abandoned migrant child rescued in Darien jungle
- May 20, 2023
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A 5 year old migrant child allegedly abandoned in the Darien Gorge, was rescued by an Ecuadorian family who were also traversing the jungle and are “under the
A 5 year old migrant child allegedly abandoned in the Darien Gorge, was rescued by an Ecuadorian family who were also traversing the jungle and are “under the care and protection” of the Panamanian authorities, the Panamanian National Migration Service (SNM) said this Saturday.
The Migration Service indicated in the application that the minor “was found by an Ecuadorian familywho helped him and brought him to the Bajo Chiquito host community (migrants), an indigenous city located in the Panamanian province of Darien, on the border with Colombia.
The Panamanian authorities have already identified “the mother of a minor, who has three more children and she is pregnant,” official information is indicated, without specifying the nationality of the child and his family.
“The Ministry of Public Security, through SNM and the National Border Guard Service (Senafront), thanks the Ecuadorian family who helped and brought the minor to a safe place, who is safe and sound“, the authorities said.
They added that the public ministry (MP, prosecutor’s office) was following the case to determine responsibility, and reiterated that the Darien Pass “is a dangerous jungle.”
Director of Panama’s migration authority, Samira Gozaine, told EFE on Friday of brutal evidence of children being abandoned or dying in the jungle, where travelers are exposed to harsh wilderness conditions as well as the presence of criminals.
This Saturday, SNM indicated that of the 600,000 migrants who have crossed the jungle in recent years, 20% minors, some of them “saw their parents die” and “others are abandoned”.
MORE THAN 157,000 MIGRANTS RESETTED THE JUNGLE THIS YEAR
More than 157,000 illegal migrants have crossed the jungle on their way to North America this year, Panamanian Minister of Public Security Juan Manuel Pino said on Friday, who assured that after a change in US immigration policy that tightened asylum routes in this country, “a significant reduction” in this stream is not observed.
Thursday night only 1340 people entered the country through the Darien, Pino said the speed is leading Panama authorities to think the number of people crossing the jungle could double this year from the 2022 record of 248,284.
“We hope that what the United States is doing has some impact,” but so far “we haven’t had a significant drop in the number of those transiting through Panama,” he added.
America’s unprecedented migration crisis translates into more than 145,000 travelers arriving in Panama after crossing the border jungle with Colombia this year.
This cumulative figure for the first nearly five months of this year exceeds the 109,293 migrants who crossed the jungle between 2010 and 2019 and is almost five times the 33,819 migrants who crossed the jungle during the first five months of 2022.
EFE
Source: Aristegui Noticias
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