The border between Colombia and Venezuela will open for the first time this Saturday, September 4

The Colombian and Venezuelan authorities confirmed, this Friday, September 3, the opening of a temporary humanitarian corridor to allow the passage of students from the neighboring country who are carrying out their university work in Norte de Santander. It would open at 6 a.m. this Saturday, so 371 of these youngsters, institutions of Cúcuta and Villa del Rosario, can present the Saber tests.

According to initial information, this corridor will run over the Simón Bolívar International Bridge and serve as a pilot test for decide whether or not to open a permanent corridor so that approximately 4,500 students can complete their school year according to the attendance model that the Ministries of Health and Education have been offering since July of this year.

In the words of Cúcuta Education Secretary Jessica Ramírez, “there are around 4,500 students who would therefore begin to move gradually through the humanitarian corridor. A very good disposition was felt, we met and one of the results was to immediately create an education commission “, which would tend to continue the implementation of actions benefiting young people from both countries.

Also participate in the meeting, which always takes place at the customs of San Antonio del Táchira, at the Venezuelan entrance of the aforementioned bridge Fredy Bernal, who is the representative of Nicolás Maduro, and the border secretary of Norte de Santander, Víctor Bautista. The latter stressed that the country already has a series of logistics data ready to facilitate the whole process.

“We would provide the list of the logistics operation, that is to say the buses available to the government of Norte de Santander and Cúcuta., and we would propose that this school corridor can be activated from today in 8 “the official said, quoted by local newspaper La Opinion.

However, and while everything seems to be going smoothly, there seem to be disagreements between what the Venezuelan national government is hearing and what the Táchira government is proposing. understand that the former seek to identify students who would cross the border by legal methods, while the latter seek complete openness without additional bureaucratic procedures.

“The regional government’s proposal is to complete the opening of the border and remove the containers, ID will not solve the problem, “said Arturo Molina, education director of Táchira, insisting that” enough to keep the border closed, to deny cross-border workers the possibility of making a living from formal trade and continue to generate a whole process of mafias ”.

This appeal would apply not only to the educational situation of residents of the Colombian-Venezuelan border, but also to other issues that are discussed at the meeting.like the free flow of all kinds of people between the two countries and even the passage of heavy goods vehicles.

Ultimately, besides government spokespersons, other actors such as Carlos Luna, President of the Inter-Union Committee of Cúcuta, representatives of the Departmental Institute of Health, the regional chief of Dian, Migration Colomba, the tax and customs police and even Invima. From Venezuela, the same media added, regional deputies, ministerial representatives and military and health authorities arrived.

It should be recalled that another of the objectives of the meeting, confirmed yesterday, is to fight against crimes such as extortion and smuggling of which they are victims. the citizens of this country trying to cross Colombia in search of a better future. These, remember, cross illegal trails that can be risky.

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