Human rights groups are becoming increasingly concerned about the impact the Trump administration’s immigration efforts are having on migrants in nearby nations, including Panama and Costa Rica.
Since taking office, the Trump Administration has attempted to accelerate deportation efforts and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have conducted raids in several U.S. cities, including New York and Chicago. As the administration’s immigration efforts have ramped up, many migrants have been placed on flights out of the U.S. and others who have been shut of the U.S. before have sought refuge in Central America, including 2,200 who made their way to Panama in the last month. However, officials in Central American countries such as Panama and Costa Rica have reportedly confiscated migrants’ passports and cellphones and denied them access to legal services.
“We’re a reflection of current United States immigration policy,” Harold Villegas-Román, a professor at Costa Rica University, told the Associated Press. “There is no focus on human rights, there is only focus on control and security. Everything is very murky, and not transparent.”
With the Trump administration moving forward with its immigration efforts, the problems facing migrants and countries throughout Central America are unlikely to dissipate. Moving forward, human rights groups are worried countries like Panama and Costa Rica may become a “black hole” for migrants who feel unsafe returning to their native countries, but are denied entry to the U.S.
“Panama cannot end up becoming a black hole for deported migrants,” Juan Pappier, deputy director of Human Rights Watch in the Americas, said. “Migrants have the right to communicate with their families, to seek lawyers and Panama must guarantee transparency about the situation in which they find themselves.”
Despite the issues facing Panama and its neighbors, foreign officials remain adamant about their ability to provide support for migrants in the short-term.
“None of them wants to stay in Panama. They want to go to the U.S.,” Carlos Ruiz-Hernandez, Panama’s deputy foreign minister, told the Associated Press. “We cannot give them green cards, but we can get them back home and for a short period of time provide them with medical and psychological support as well as housing.”
