Many Colombians, like the Landázuri family (above), fled Colombia after being threatened. The Hangout focused on the route which thousands of Colombians take towards Antofagasta, in the north of Chile. Photo by Rodrigo Selles for CONNECTAS and Mercurio de Antofagasta. Global Voices, in collaboration with CONNECTAS, Agenda Propia, Útero.pe, Vice and El Mercurio de Antofagasta, has begun a series of talks using Google Hangouts about the migration of Latin American communities towards other countries in the region entitled “The Challenges of Intra-American Migration”. The first of these talks, focusing on the exodus of Colombian nationals to the Chilean city of Antofagasta, was held on March 13, 2015. These conversations included the statements of Colombian migrants in Chile, of experts on migration in the region and of journalists who closely follow the stories of those who move within the continent in search of better opportunities. The discussion was moderated by Global Voices collaborator Robert Valencia. Other participants were Javier El-Hage from the Human Rights Foundation, Catalina Rojas and Jimena Araoz from Ciudadano Global – Jesuit Migrant and Refugee Service, and Cristian Asencio from El Mercurio de Antofagasta newspaper. The complete Hangout (in Spanish) may be viewed in this YouTube video: This virtual talk was inspired by the report “El Nuevo Éxodo Latino“ (The New Latin Exodus), which examines migration movements within the Latin American region and seeks to distinguish them from others which have already been investigated. Part of the Hangout accounted for the bases common to all migration movements and for the specific characteristics of different groups’ integration in the region. “We are all immigrants in the world”, said El-Hage. “The possibility of emigrating was not previously regulated nor prohibited.” As an example of the numerous challenges of the migration experience, participants shared various contexts that showed how many have seen their routes modified by certain laws and their journeys marked by the violence which prevails in parts of the continent. Mexican journalist Priscila Hernández Flores presented part of this context in Mexico and Central America: A partir del hallazgo de la fosa con 72 migrantes en Tamaulipas [en] modificó la ruta migratoria y los migrantes centroamericanos especialmente eligieron una ruta más larga, pero más segura (dentro de lo que cabe). Otro de los temas que tenemos que tomar en cuenta es el inicio del programa Frontera Sur que ha recrudecido el control de movimiento migratorio en carreteras o en tramos y específicamente han impedido que se suban al tren [también conocido como La Bestia]. Antes mirábamos las imágenes de un tren atiborrado con personas arriba sobre sus vagones […] Ahora es muy difícil que un migrante pueda subir a partir de los operativos de migración. Esto ha hecho que la ruta se haga caminando, y lo que antes se hacía en tres horas en un automóvil o en esos trayectos en el tren ahora se hace caminando, lo que ha generado otros riesgos para los migrantes. Since the discovery of the graves of 72 migrants in Tamaulipas, the migratory route has changed and Central American migrants especially have chosen a longer, but (relatively) safer route. Another issue which must be taken into account is the commencement of the Southern Border programme which has intensified controls on migration movements on motorways or on routes and more specifically has prevented migrants from boarding the train [also known as La Bestia (The Beast)]. In the past we saw images of a packed train with people on top of its wagons […] Now it is very difficult for a migrant to board since these migration operations began. This has meant that the route is undertaken on foot, and what was previously covered in three hours in a car or on those train journeys is now done on foot, which creates other risks for the migrants. The Hangout also presented the stories of two Colombian immigrants in Antofagasta, who addressed the advantages and difficulties of changing country and starting again. One of them emphasised that beyond his problems finding work in Buenaventura, the city which he had left, the primary obstacle was violence. The stories also exposed the difficulties of entering Chile due to prejudice towards Colombians, who have seen their image harmed as a result of problems involving other migrants from Colombia: “for one, we all pay”. Central American migrants board the train known as “The Beast”, in Mexico. Photo by Peter Haden, published under Creative Commons licence.