On March 1, 2021, Colombian President Iván Duque signed the Temporary Statute for the Protection of Venezuelan Migrants (ETPMV), which grants Venezuelan migrants living in Colombia until January 31, 2021 the right to apply for the Temporary Protection Statute for up to ten years. This protection regularizes these people and gives them access to the formal economy, health care and public education. As of February 2022, 96% of the estimated 2.5 million Venezuelans residing in Colombia had requested such protection.
In addition to the importance of this action – Colombia can (and should) be commended for doing more for this displaced population than any other nation – it reflects an erroneous narrative based on the idea, both in academic and activist circles, that if we simply open up borders and regularize people’s status, migration justice will be achieved.
The problem is that borders are not walls or doors that can be opened or closed on a whim. Treating migrants fairly requires more than simply opening borders and relaxing admission requirements. This is clearly demonstrated by the fact that, even with the Temporary Protection Decree (ETPMV) in force, numerous Venezuelan migrants in Colombia continue to suffer various types of migratory injustices.
In the Colombian case, we must reimagine the nature of borders and what border policy should entail. Since the enactment and implementation of the ETPMV, Venezuelan migrants have continued to face injustices simply because of their nationality and migratory status. The Department of Legal Medicine reports that between January and May 2022, 367 Venezuelan migrants were murdered in Colombia. According to Amnesty International, gender-based violence against Venezuelan women refugees in Colombia increased by 71% between 2018 and 2021, and the Colombian National Administrative Department of Statistics, DANE, found that 24% of Venezuelan women suffered discrimination or unfair treatment due to their gender, migratory status and nationality.
The Xenophobia Barometer reported that anti-Venezuelan xenophobia cases increased in 2022. During the first five months of this year, the rate of reported incidents increased from 9% to 12%. Venezuelan migrants also continue to struggle to find work (although they are now legally permitted to do so), including 43% of those with a university degree. This is because many employers now require additional documentation.
Furthermore, even when they find work, Venezuelan migrants continue to receive lower wages, work in unfavorable conditions, and continue to be the subject of human trafficking, sex work, and other abuses by organized crime and other groups. According to the International Crisis Group, “in the construction industry… a Colombian employee can earn up to 70,000 Colombian pesos ($17.5) a day, while a Venezuelan earns around 30,000 pesos ($7.5), even who has a similar qualification”. And Colombia Reports notes that “an estimated 16 percent of Colombia’s homeless population is Venezuelan, and many of the migrants describe their living conditions as ‘miserable and inhumane’.”
This data is not an indication that the Temporary Protection Program is failing – it is not. These numbers simply show that it is not enough. The fact that migratory injustices continue to permeate the lives and experiences of so many Venezuelans in Colombia demonstrates at least two points. First, we need to stop seeing migration justice as synonymous with open borders, and second, we need to start reimagining the nature and importance of borders to start making better migration policies.
We have to stop seeing borders as walls, limits or gates that separate populations and territories that can be opened or closed at the whim of a government. Empirical realities in Colombia and around the world clearly show that this is not true and that migrants, asylum seekers and displaced persons will cross borders if necessary.
It is not simply that open or closed borders do not really affect migratory flows, but that this reality shows that we have the wrong focus when it comes to borders and border policies. We must stop focusing on what borders and border policies are and focus on what borders and border policies do, which is to promote or prevent justice. In other words, the question is not whether to keep borders open or closed, but how to use borders and border policy to promote justice.
The increased militarization of borders is not a problem for the simple fact of trying to keep borders closed. It is a problem (among other reasons) because it promotes violence and increases the dangers faced by migrants, asylum seekers and displaced persons when crossing, as they are forced to use unauthorized or precarious routes where they are exposed to disease, violence and death at the hands of criminals and gangs who steal, rape or exploit them for human trafficking and recruitment/servitude.
Many are calling for a greater presence of the state in the form of police to keep cities and migrants safe, along with an increase in social services such as medical clinics, schools and communication services. That is, many argue that the absence of the state in border regions (in addition to the military presence) abandons migrants and causes more injustice.
The question, therefore, is not whether borders should be opened or closed, but what they do and how we can change policies in border regions to promote justice. And following this path will not only help Venezuelans in Colombia, but it will also better guide nations across America on how to build border policies that really help migrants improve their living conditions.
With a wealth of experience honed over 4+ years in journalism, I bring a seasoned voice to the world of news. Currently, I work as a freelance writer and editor, always seeking new opportunities to tell compelling stories in the field of world news.
