migration crisis on the border between Peru and Chile. A group of 200 undocumented Venezuelan and Haitian citizens blocked the track lane that allows the transfer of vehicles from Arica to Tacna, causing discomfort among travelers who were stranded for several hours.
The demonstration took place on the highway of Chilean and Peruvian territory, for which reason the police and members of the National Police They reached the conflict zone, where they were threatened if they took repressive actions.
A Venezuelan immigrant commented that he meets his compatriots for three to four days without being able to cross the border from Chile to Peruthrough which they plan to transit to reach their country of origin.
“We are starving and there are several people with kidney disease. Two underage children fainted today. Please, let us pass to return to our country”, commented the undocumented immigrant.
It should be noted that it is the third time this week that the stranded migrants They blocked the roads in protest because neither Chile nor Peru are allowed to enter, due to lack of documents. That is why they blocked the access of private vehicles and buses.
Likewise, on the Concordia line between Peru and Chile, around 70 migrants remained waiting for a solution to their immigration problem to be able to enter Peru.
Also, the National Police has intervened a group of twelve Vietnamese citizens who tried to enter illegally after being rejected at the border control Santa Rosa. They tried to evade control, entering the country through unauthorized spaces.
“They have returned to the Arica city because they did not have the corresponding visa,” commented law enforcement officers guarding the border in southern Peru.
Meanwhile, in the city of Tacna, a mobilization was developed by neighborhood councils asking for security and a solution to the immigration problem. The protesters came to the Municipality and to regional governmenteven up to Migration Offices to convey your discomfort.
Faced with this problem, the Minister of the Interior, Vicente Romeroannounced that it will request before the Minister council sending Army personnel to various border points to reinforce control. The answer is expected to materialize the following week.
The serious situation of abandonment and danger that the migrant population is exposed to in the southern region of Tacna, on the border with Chile, was warned by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
“We warn of the serious situation in Tacna, in the south of the country, where refugees and migrants They are stranded in many cases without food, water, accommodation or health care, facing greater protection risks, since February of this year,” they denounced in a joint statement.
International organizations also pointed out that cases of sexual abuse have been registered, which they affirm increases the risk of girls, women and the LGTBI+ community.
Faced with this situation of stranded people, UNHCR and IOM they reinforced assistance to those most in need in Tacna, to whom they distributed food, water and emergency equipment.
“UNHCR and IOM are providing guidance, distributing emergency kits and food, hydration, monitoring the border to identify vulnerable family groups, coordinating with partners on the ground to provide shelter for the most vulnerable people and health care,” the organizations said.
In addition, the institutions that are part of the United Nations They thanked the work of the Peruvian community, the help of the dioceses and the work of other local actors who provided their services to migrants in Tacna.
