A humanitarian crisis is unfolding inside Bogotá’s International Airport with stranded African minors and a daily influx of migrants attempting to reach Central America for the US. Against a backdrop of health and sanitation concerns for the majority of African passengers sleeping on the floors of Bogotá’s El Dorado International Airport, the surge in the influx of African migrants has focused on the plight of two minors who were abandoned within the departures terminal after arriving on a Turkish Airlines flight from Istanbul. Almost all the migrants are waiting to fly to Central American destinations to reach the United States via the southern border.
During 48 hours, an 8-year-old girl and a 13-year-old boy were found lost and abandoned inside El Dorado, both in transit with flights bound for El Salvador. The girl, a national of Guinea, was initially discovered navigating the international section of the terminal over the weekend. Subsequently, on Monday afternoon, authorities identified a 13-year-old boy from the same African nation, left without company for more than ten days. The minors have no family connections and had traveled on separate flights with days between their arrivals.
Responding to the situation, Migración Colombia, the country’s agency in charge of migration, handed over the minors to the Colombian Institute of Family Welfare (ICBF), the entity responsible for child welfare. Officials clarified that the boy arrived at the airport on December 7, accompanied by two adults who continued their journey without him. In an interview to assess his situation, the boy mentioned that he “had a connecting ticket to continue to El Salvador,” according to a statement from Migración.
While the arrival date of the girl has not been specified, it appears she, too, had roamed the bustling airport – a major hub connecting South, Central, and North America – for several days. Fernando García, Director General of Migración Colombia, revealed in a video posted on social media that she arrived from Istanbul, Turkey, and was abandoned in the international area just two days after her arrival.
Transit possibilities were recently opened for nationals of numerous African nations during a visit to the continent by Colombia’s Vice-President Francia Márquez. This has contributed to El Dorado becoming a pivotal point for migrants aiming to reach the United States via Central America. The African migrants are demanding a meeting with Vice-President Márquez at the airport for her to resolve their transit to Central America.
An investigation by Caracol Radio inside the international halls of the airport claims that at least 40 African citizens are using the public washrooms to bathe and are running out of money to buy airport terminal food. On December 19, the radio journalists found individuals enduring lengthy stays and complicated situations as they await connections.
The migrant situation also raises concerns about human trafficking within El Dorado and how Colombia’s most important airport is being promoted in African countries as a transit point to enter the US illegally from Mexico. Approximately 200 Africans are arriving daily from Turkey, en route to El Salvador or Nicaragua. The transit period within the airport can stretch up to five days, exacerbating sanitation issues in the waiting lounges and near gates.
Turkish Airlines faces the challenge of repatriating stranded passengers should Central American countries tighten border controls against migrants from the Caribbean and Africa. Many of the migrants claim to authorities that they are a family group of four or five travelers to assert their journey’s legitimacy. Suspicions over the validity of a family nucleus are being confirmed after the two African children were abandoned inside El Dorado, with no funds, and wandering for days unnoticed by authorities.
