Plagued by almost 50 years of civil war, 200.000 Internally Displaced People (IDP) have been forced to flee from their regions, in Colombia, seeking asylum in Venezuela. The dynamics of this forced migration are unique, as the whole process has been growing slowly and silently, through five decades. If compared to other countries under siege -where huge masses are suddenly displaced by conflicts- the phenomenon was almost unnoticed for its slow nature.
Individual or family...
more »Plagued by almost 50 years of civil war, 200.000 Internally Displaced People (IDP) have been forced to flee from their regions, in Colombia, seeking asylum in Venezuela. The dynamics of this forced migration are unique, as the whole process has been growing slowly and silently, through five decades. If compared to other countries under siege -where huge masses are suddenly displaced by conflicts- the phenomenon was almost unnoticed for its slow nature.
Individual or family threat and the demonstrative murder of family members are the most common reasons that push people to move away from their lands, formally applying for the status of "IDP". But there's a more recent aberrant phenomenon, which is direct consequence of the violence and corruption ruling in the country, called the "killing of False Positives"- people that are murdered by the Colombian Army, for no other reason than money. The Government is paying a reward every time a soldier kills a "rebel", so the Army is targeting almost anyone.
Another alarming issue that force several families to leave their villages is the concrete possibility of seeing their children enrolled as fighters on the base of false promises of prosperity. Kids are systematically forced to join the rebel militias, and most of them will never return home.
Thousands of families flee on the way to Venezuela from the regular Colombian Army, the Rebel Militia and the right wing Paramilitaries that infest the country, trying to look for a peaceful start elsewhere. But they discover it's just an illusion; as a mater of fact, Paramilitaries and guerrilla move through borders easily and silently, keeping the pressure and perpetrating horror on the population.
Through decades the phenomenon has grown in staggering proportions, and despite the huge amount of victims the International Community seems to be powerless to respond. Thousands of people try to survive without security and a legal status, under constant blackmail and threat.
« less
