Colombia clarifies regularization requirements ahead of thousands of Venezuelans arriving this weekend

The arrival of thousands of Venezuelans in Colombia by means of trails was recorded on video, after the announcement by President Iván Duque, on February 8, where he declared the regularization of thousands of Venezuelans who are in Colombia by the through the Temporary Protection Status of Venezuelans. The migrants.

The president noted that Venezuelan immigrants currently living in the country without permission will have the right to obtain residence permits for 10 years, while immigrants with temporary residence can extend their stay.

“The Venezuelan migration crisis goes beyond the migrant crisis that Syria has known. There are more than 6 million Venezuelans who left their country as a salvation for the dictatorship, but also for poverty ”, President Duque said.

It should be noted that currently the border with Venezuela in Cúcuta is closed, but migrants are looking for alternative routes such as to enter the country seeking regularization.

Afterwards, Lucas Gómez, director of Frontera, in dialogue with Blu Radio, clarified that only Venezuelans who arrived irregularly before January 31 of this year will be covered by this new measure.

“We made it clear that this was a measure to promote regular migration. People entering at this time would not benefit from this status. The message is to wait for the border to open and to cross regularly ”, the official pointed out in the media interview.

Regarding the implementation of the temporary protection status, it will be done in two phases. In the first place, the single register of Venezuelan migrants will be created through which information will be obtained for their identification and characterization, the whole process will be carried out virtually. In phase two, the temporary protection permit will be issued.

This regularization is a complementary mechanism to the international refugee protection regime that the Government has decided to implement to provide shelter to people fleeing their country of origin and who find themselves in a state of great vulnerability, given the migratory reality.

The Colombian government estimates that around 1.8 million Venezuelans currently reside in the country and 55% of them do not have the proper residency documents. Most of them have come since 2015 to escape the problems plaguing their country, such as soaring inflation, food shortages and an increasingly authoritarian government.

In light of Duque’s announcement, Pope Francis today thanked the Colombian government for the “courage” in creating a temporary protection status for Venezuelan migrants despite the country’s internal problems.

“I join the Bishops of Colombia in expressing my gratitude for the decision of the Colombian authorities to implement the temporary protection status of the Venezuelan migrants present in the country ”, declared the pontiff. after praying to the Angelus.

Francisco, leaning out of the window of the Apostolic Palace, said this initiative could promote “the reception, protection and integration” of migrants. In this sense, he appreciated the “courage” of the country’s authorities.

“That does not make it a very rich and very developed country, but a country with many problems of development, poverty, peace after nearly seventy years of guerrilla warfare. But with this problem, he had the courage to look at these immigrants and make this status “, appreciation.

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