PANAMA CITY (Reuters) -Panama will issue temporary permits for some migrants recently sent from the U.S. allowing them to stay in the Central American nation for up to 90 days if they do not wish to return to their home countries for security reasons, an official said on Friday.
The measure may apply to 112 of the 299 migrants recently sent by the U.S. to Panama who are from other nations, and were transferred to a migrant center in the jungle area of the Darien Gap, Security Minister Frank Abrego told journalists.
These migrants, including nationals from Iran and China, will receive a 30-day humanitarian permit, which has to possibility of a 90-day extension, in order to begin legal processes for resettlement or voluntary return.
They will also be interviewed by authorities and placed under the protection of Panama’s National Office for Refugee Assistance (ONPAR).
The group of migrants had been moved to the Darien, a dangerous jungle region near the Colombian border and key transit route for many migrants crossing from South America on foot, in mid February, raising concerns from lawyers.
They had earlier been in a hotel in Panama City, where local media reported they were not allowed to leave.
Panama has an arrangement with the United States under which it accepts to receive third-country migrants deported from the U.S., and is then responsible for their repatriation of resettlement.
This is part of the U.S. administration’s policy of ramping up migrant deportations.
(Reporting by Elida Moreno; Writing by Natalia Siniawski; Editing by Kylie Madry and Sarah Morland)
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