Darien Gap: Deportation Flights for Venezuelans Announced by U.S. Haven't Deterred Migrants

The resumption of deportation flights for Venezuelan migrants who unlawfully crossed the border into the U.S. has not deterred many from embarking on their journey up north and through the Darien Gap, a treacherous strip of jungle between Colombia and Panama that has grown to be widely transited for this purpose.

The claim was made by the Deputy Director of Panama's National Migration Service, Maria Isabel Saravia, whose stats show that up to this week over 420,000 people crossed the Darien, an unprecedented figure. More than 270,000 of them were Venezuelans, the figures showed.

"Even though the country of destination, the U.S., has announced deportation measures, and we have to be as transparent as possible when it comes to this, it hasn't reduced the amount of people going through the jungle" Saravia told EFE news agency.

On October 5, the Biden administration announced the resumption of the flights for Venezuelans without legal basis to remain in the country.

The decision came after the government granted legal status to almost half a million Venezuelan migrants. In September, the Homeland Security Department will grant Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to about 472,000 Venezuelans who arrived before July 31, 2023. The measure permits migrants from Venezuela to live and work in the U.S. legally for 18 months.

Migrants from Venezuela are among the groups with the highest number of people trying to reach the U.S. According to CBS, out of the over 200,000 people who crossed the border unlawfully in September, about a quarter of them were Venezuelans, a record.

The decision to accept deportation flights could be seen as a gesture from the Maduro government, as the Biden administration struggles to deal with the border crisis. Potential evidence of this came on Tuesday, as Bloomberg reported that the U.S. and Venezuela are getting closer to an agreement that would see the former lift some sanctions in exchange for steps towards freer and fairer elections in the latter.

One key move from the Maduro government would have to be removing a ban on all opposition candidates who want to run for office. Maria Corina Machado, who'd be the opposition's frontrunner, is currently prevented from taking part in the electoral process. In exchange, the Biden administration could lift some sanctions related to oil and banking. This could allow the Venezuelan government to recover at least $3 billion held in accounts in Europe, according to the people cited by Bloomberg.

A preliminary step towards this goal would be an agreement between the Venezuelan government an opposition leaders, who are scheduled to hold their primaries on October 22. The outlet also reported that Maduro has agreed not to interfere with the voting, to invite international observers to oversee the general elections (even though a date for them has not been set) and to release dozens of political prisoners.