ReliefWeb

Key Updates

• According to the latest update of the Regional Inter-Agency Coordination Platform for Venezuelan Refugees and Migrants (R4V), as of May 2022, 6,133,473 Venezuelans have left the country. Of these, 5,083,998 (83%) are located in Latin American and Caribbean countries. Meanwhile, according to key actors at borders, returns intentions among Venezuelans are increasing, but this has not yet translated into an increase in return movements.

• In May, a Venezuelan died at the Colchane border crossing between Bolivia and Chile. He is the 26th victim reported this year in the mountainous area. 11 Haitian women died after a shipwreck close to Puerto Rico. In June, more than 50 migrants were found dead inside a trailer in San Antonio, Texas. At least 5 of 62 people were minors.

• The ”encounters” at the southern border of the United States between people on the move and national authorities continue to increase. From January to May 2022, 1,017,951 “encounters” were reported, an increase of 42% compared to the same period in 2021. As of May, 239,416 “encounters” were reported at the southern border, the highest figure in the last 3 years. 5,078 “encounters” with Venezuelans at the southern border of the United States were reported, an increase of 23.64% compared to April 2022 (4,107 “encounters”).

• In April 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected the request of the current U.S. administration to repeal the policy of the Migrant Protection Protocol (MPP), better known as the "Remain in Mexico” program.
Under this policy, people who seek asylum at the U.S. border or after being apprehended while crossing irregularly are returned to Mexico while their cases are being processed. As of May 2022, 2,244 people were subject to the MPP, and 65% (1,460 people) were returned to Mexico.

• Shipwrecks and associated deaths by sea continue to increase in the region. Between October 2021 and June 2022, 2,464 boats were intercepted by the United States Coast Guard (USCG). In May 2022,
UNHCR warned of the need to protect people that migrate by sea.

• On June 10, 21 countries in the region, including the United States and Canada, signed the Los Angeles Declaration on Migration and Protection. The document proposes "changing the way people migrate" based on the implementation of a “humane and hemispheric management of migration,” as well as the “promotion of coordinated humanitarian assistance.”