More than 5,400 Haitians entered Bolivia irregularly since January

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – More than 5,400 Haitian nationals have entered Bolivia irregularly since January until last week to reach other destinations such as Brazil, Chile, Peru, or the United States Bolivian immigration authorities reported Monday.

It is estimated that some 5,418 people of that nationality entered Bolivian territory “irregularly” between January 1 and August 12, said the general director of Migration, Katherine Calderón, and the vice-minister of Citizen Security, Roberto Ríos, at a press conference in La Paz.

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“These people have been intervened in Bolivian territory having entered irregularly, not complying with the established sanitary measures and also the migratory regulations in force”, explained Calderón.

In addition, 19 people have been apprehended and charged for the alleged “human trafficking” crime, mostly drivers of vehicles in which Haitian nationals were traveling irregularly in Bolivian territory.

The more than 5,000 Haitians “are no longer in the country, most of them have left”, explained the Vice-Minister.

When these cases are detected in operations of the Migration Directorate, the first thing that is done is to deliver to these people “a notice of migratory exit so that in the determined term” they can be taken to the border by which they entered, indicated Ríos.

According to Calderón, Haitian migrations began in 2010, with Brazil and Chile as the main destinations of this population, so Bolivia became the “avenue for these citizens to move to their target country”.

These migrations have been seen again due to the economic crisis generated by the covid-19 pandemic “to reach the United States”, said the official.

Given this, Bolivia will initiate actions to make contact with Brazil, Peru, and Chile “to provide a homogeneous and integral solution” to the problem of this population, also taking into account that some countries still have their borders closed due to the pandemic, Calderón added.

Vice-Minister Ríos announced that technical tables would be set up with other Bolivian institutions in the coming days to address the issue comprehensively.

The Foreign Ministry will be contacted for contacts with other countries, while meetings will be sought with the Ministry of Health to verify compliance with sanitary measures.

The Ministries of Defense and Government will also be summoned to reinforce border control and security through the Armed Forces, and the Bolivian Police, said the Vice-Minister.

According to the authority, it cannot be established “that there are networks of traffickers in the country since Haitian migration has other nuances,” and the purpose of these citizens “is not to stay” in Bolivia.

The authorities will also meet with lodging and transportation companies to explain that “they could be incurring” crimes related to human trafficking by hosting or transporting migrants who entered the country irregularly.