The intensity of the entry of Venezuelans across Brazil's northern border in 2018 brought the issue to the center of the debate on immigration. Amid demonstrations of violence and solidarity among the population, many organizations mobilized to understand and meet the demands generated by the phenomenon. The Migration Observatory of São Paulo, from the Population Studies Center "Elza Berquó" (Nepo), from Unicamp, led the dialogue between the different groups involved, generating the book Venezuelan migrations, which will be launched next Friday (8), at the Immigration Museum, in São Paulo. (See full schedule)
Under the coordination of Rosana Baeninger, from Institute of Philosophy and Human Sciences (IFCH) and Nepo, and João Carlos Jarochinski Silva, from the Federal University of Roraima (UFRR) and with the collaboration in the organization of several interinstitutional partners, including the Public Ministry of Labor, the publication seeks to record the historic moment, from the plurality of points of view of the actors involved. “It is not a one-off production, but the construction of a network of partnerships and dialogues. It shows the fundamental role of academia in articulating actors, to understand this general context”, stated Baeninger.“The experience accumulated in research on the topic of migration at Unicamp made it possible to bring together these different actors, respecting all perspectives and making them available to knowledge and public policies. This increases our responsibility, capacity for dialogue and power to subsidize these issues more closely”, he added.
In the 55 articles that make up the book, we have access to testimonies from immigrants; official perspectives from the main United Nations bodies dedicated to the topic, such as the Population Fund (UNFPA), the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR); contributions from the Armed Forces, the Public Ministry of Labor and the Federal Public Defender’s Office; in addition to professors and researchers from the country's main universities. The publication has the support of the São Paulo State Research Support Foundation (Fapesp), the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (Capes) and the Public Ministry of Work. The e-book is available for free download.
Projects migratory
The first point that must be taken into consideration, according to Rosana Baeninger, is the context in which these migrations take place. Venezuelan flows to Brazil are not an isolated phenomenon. According to her, they are part of an international geopolitical context of closing the borders of the United States and Europe. “The more the Northern countries close their borders, the more only the Southern countries remain. Brazil becomes the possible country. It’s not necessarily what’s desired,” she explained. This process is known as “south-south migration”.
For her, immigration has to be seen as a whole, not in isolated population movements. “Brazil, as a transit country for many of these populations, will continue to receive south-south migrations in the coming years. Migration policies must be attentive, because the processes are global, but the demands will be local. The only way to combat xenophobia, discrimination and prejudice is by treating immigrants with the same access to rights as nationals and this can only happen through social policies,” she explained.
The researcher highlighted, however, that Brazil is not the main destination for these immigrants. While the number of Venezuelan immigrants in Brazil is around 80 thousand, in Colombia there are already more than 1 million and in Chile and Peru, it has already exceeded 500 thousand.
Migratory flows
Contrary to popular belief, Venezuelan migration did not begin in 2017. According to Rosana Baeninger, between 2014 and 2015, transactional companies began to leave the country and, with them, a considerable portion of senior executives. “P&G, located in Louveira, brought 90 high-ranking families from the company. It is emblematic, from a theoretical point of view. The first to leave are those linked to transnational capital, with very high professional qualifications,” she explained.
A new flow was identified by the researcher between 2016 and 2017, this time, formed by an educated middle class. “They are those who participate in structural and economic changes, but still have resources. Paul Singer already showed this in internal migrations. This portion of the population leaves due to changing factors,” she pointed out.
The last flow, this one widely heralded, from 2017 and 2018, is made up of a population with lower purchasing power and less education. “They are those who can no longer stay there. His departure is linked to factors of stagnation. With the economy stagnant, they can no longer afford to stay. As Singer pointed out, these are the last ones to come out. Only then does Venezuelan migration gain visibility, when precisely "the migration of poverty" arrives, said Baeninger.
Closely linked to the purchasing power of immigrants, the gateway to the country varied in each of these flows. If the former necessarily arrived through airports, the vast majority of the latter, without the resources for air tickets, had to resort to the land border, which they often cross on foot.
Documentation
Regardless of the port of entry, Brazilian law guarantees immigrants documentation, which includes a work card and the same rights as the country's citizens, except participation in electoral processes. As Baeninger explained, upon arrival, immigrants can request refuge or temporary residence. In the first case, the applicant receives a protocol and, to be granted refuge, political or religious persecution or serious violation of human rights must be proven; This process takes at least two years to be evaluated by the National Council for Refugees (CONARE). On the other hand, the temporary residence visa, present in the new Migration Law, in force since November 2017, requires documentation from the country of origin and payment of a fee, or proof of lack of resources. “We have around 2 to 3 thousand Venezuelan immigrants who enter requesting temporary residence and a huge proportion, around 53 thousand, seeking asylum. Most of these immigrants do not have the resources to pay for a temporary residence visa,” he explained.
Despite the complexity of the situation and bureaucratic imperfections, the Migration Law represented important advances for the entry and stay of immigrants in Brazil. As the researcher explained, the absence of documentation immensely worsens the immigrant's vulnerable situation. “As undocumented people, prejudice against immigrants increases and they become trapped in networks of exploitation, where human rights do not apply,” she pointed out. Among other things, documentation allows immigrants to move within the country, enabling them to search for job opportunities.
Documentation thus becomes an ally in the fight against contemporary forms of slave labor, although it does not fully solve the problem. “These are very vulnerable populations and they do not realize that they are trapped in a network, working exhaustively, with health problems, in unhealthy places. There are cases of immigrant salaried workers, with a work permit and subjected to working conditions analogous to slavery. “In a recent event, the Public Ministry of Labor mentioned the rescue of 12 Venezuelans in Roraima from slave labor”, reported Baeninger.
Internalization
Among migration governance measures, Baeninger highlights the Politics of internalization. Through agreements between the Ministry of Social Development and city halls, immigrants can be directed from Roraima to other parts of the country. To participate, city halls must guarantee shelter and employment for immigrants. The Ministry of Social Development, in turn, contributes by transferring resources to municipalities. “The presence of the State and other actors, such as the Academy, the Public Ministry of Labor and the Public Defender's Office of the Union, is a way of surrounding and protecting so that there is no violation of human rights”, he explained.
Launch
The book launch Venezuelan migrations will take place during the Migration Observatory Seminar Program, with the participation of most of those responsible for the publication.
The event's opening panel, at 9 am, will be made up of the rector of Unicamp, Marcelo Knobel; by the person responsible for the National Coordination for the Eradication of Slave Labor of the Public Ministry of Labor, Catarina Von Zuben; by the Director of the Migration Department of the Ministry of Justice, André Furquim; by the coordinator of the State Committee for Refugees of the São Paulo State Department of Justice, Aparecida Izilda Alves; by the Municipal Secretary of Sports and Leisure of São Paulo City Hall, Carlos Bezerra Junior; by the municipal secretary of Human Rights of the Municipality of São Paulo, Berenice Giannella and by the director of the Immigration Museum, Alessandra Almeida.
Afterwards, the conference “Operação Acolhida” will be given by Colonel Georges Feres Kanaan, who coordinates the Army's actions on the border and is one of those responsible for the chapter in the book “The actions of the Brazilian army in humanitarian aid to Venezuelan immigrants”. There will also be a round table on International Migration and Human Rights, with the participation of different actors present in the governance of Venezuelan migration in Brazil.
The event also marks the opening of the photographic exhibition The Journey, which accompanies the book “Migrações Venezuelanas”, in which Chico Max recorded the passage of immigrants across the border in Roraima, and illustrates the publication. The book will also be released The Venezuelan exodus between exile and immigration, a publication that has authors from the International Migration Observatory (OBMigra) and the Antonio Ruiz Montoya University, Peru and the Observatorio Iberoamericano sobre Movilidad Humana, Migraciones y Desarrollo (OBIMID). The calendar Together we impact will also be released on that occasion. (See full schedule)