By Edelmiro Franco V. | 2024-12-04

TURBO, Colombia -- During a humanitarian mission, Colombian officials made a heartbreaking discovery: two young girls clinging to their mother's corpse, a stark reminder of the perilous journey through the Darien jungle.

For three days, they sat frozen in terror before their mother's body, trapped in the heart of the Darien Gap -- a dangerous stretch of jungle marking the border between Colombia and Panama.

The two girls, who had journeyed from Africa with their mother, were rescued, but authorities were unable to determine their country of origin. Unable to speak Spanish or English, the children could communicate only through gestures.

"We discovered the girls alone in the jungle, clinging to their mother's lifeless body," recounted Amador Caycedo, the former Colombian consul in Puerto Obaldia, a remote hamlet in Guna Yala, an Indigenous region of Panama.

"They were frozen in fear, unable to leave her side," he told Entorno.

During his four years as consul in the dense jungle region of Darien (2020–2024), Caycedo witnessed and documented countless harrowing stories from migrants braving the passage on foot.

Puerto Obaldia, a tiny town nestled deep in the Darien jungle with fewer than 1,000 inhabitants, lies along one of the key migration routes.

Accessible only by air (with flights three times a week), boat or a grueling jungle journey, Puerto Obaldia was the doomed African woman's next intended destination.

'Deeply heartbreaking'

Caycedo recalled another sighting that disturbed him greatly afterward.

"It was harrowing because I saw migrants pass by with a baby," he recalled. "They entered the jungle, and two days later, a landslide claimed the lives of 16 of them."

This tragedy after that sighting had a profound impact on Caycedo. The migrants had camped on a riverbank, unaware of the impending danger.

"It rained heavily that night, and the ... current swept them away," he said.

He also witnessed the heartbreaking case of a Venezuelan migrant who succumbed to a snakebite, dying in less than 24 hours.

Caycedo recalled seeing countless pregnant women trudging through the jungle with their belongings on an arduous nine-day journey to a location known as Bajo Titi.

"You see children of all ages struggling to keep up with the adults, even when exhaustion overtakes them," the former consul shared.

Since 2020, an estimated 250,000 children have braved the Darien jungle en route to the United States, according to the United Nations (UN).

"It is the worst experience a child can endure," a UN expert told AFP in a report published on November 20.

"The Darien is the worst possible ordeal for a migrant child and their family in their search for a better future," agreed Luis Pedernera, member and former chairman of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, in Panama in an interview with AFP.

Migrant populations arriving in Colombia typically enter through Ipiales, near the Ecuador border, or through La Guajira and Norte de Santander, which border Venezuela.

They aim to reach the municipalities of Turbo and Necoclí, situated along Colombia's border with Panama. From there, they embark through the Darien jungle, where danger and wild animals rule.

The would-be migrants come mostly from Venezuela, Haiti, Cuba, China, Somalia and other African countries, according to immigration authorities in Colombia and Panama.

Most migrants begin the journey carrying their belongings, but along the way, they abandon everything -- some even discard shoes in frustration when they become stuck in the swamp.

"On this migration route, even life itself is at stake," said Caycedo.

Countless bodies are left behind. "The animals feed on them... it's horrific," the former consul said.

Deportation

A report by AFP on November 21 reveals that 294,000 migrants have passed through the region on their way to the United States this year, a 39% decrease from the same period last year, according to the Panamanian government.

Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino confirmed the drop, stating, "There has been a 39% decrease in the flow of migrants" through the Darien.

Official figures show that 482,000 migrants crossed the jungle during the same period in 2023.

The Panamanian government, with the support of the United States, has implemented measures to curb migration through the Darien Gap.

On August 20, the Panamanian government, with US support, launched a deportation plan for migrants who entered Panama irregularly through the border with Colombia, crossing the Darien jungle.

As part of this plan, Colombian, Ecuadorian and Indian nationals have been deported on several flights, following a memorandum of understanding signed by Panama and the United States on July 1.

Additionally, Mulino announced on November 28 that migrants entering Panama through the Darien jungle on their way to the United States would face fines ranging from $1,000 to $5,000.

The amount will depend on the "severity of the infraction," he said at a news conference.