President Jose Mulino declared on Thursday that Panama will deport more than 100 individuals from China, India, Ecuador, and Colombia as part of a larger campaign to reduce the number of migrants entering the country from Central America.
The deportation flights are a component of Panama’s cooperation with the United States to deter unauthorised immigration to the north, which has been increasing in recent years.
On September 3, Panama intends to transfer 70 individuals to India together with an undisclosed number of Chinese migrants, Mulino stated without offering further information. Flights carrying dozens of Ecuadorians and Colombians will also depart in the coming days, he said, noting that Ecuadorians represent the second-largest group of migrants in the region, after Venezuelans.Twenty-nine Colombians were already sent back on an earlier flight under the same program.
A growing number of US-bound migrants have been crossing into Panama from the Darién Gap, a treacherous rainforest region connecting South and Central America. The Biden administration has been trying to push migrants back from the US southern border by setting up processing centers in Latin America and encouraging neighboring nations to step up border enforcement measures. So far this year, more than 230,000 people have entered Panama through the Darién.
This marks a 30% increase in crossings compared to the same period from January to August 2023, Panama’s migration agency chief Roger Mojica said Tuesday.
Source: Here