Deng Guangsen grimaces as he talks about his adventure from his home China to the U. S. -Mexico border, as he sits in a transit center after being dropped off by Border Patrol agents on Oct. 18 in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
A Chinese man receives a bowl of oatmeal from a volunteer as he waits with others for his asylum claim to be processed after crossing the border into Mexico on Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2023, near Jacumba, Calif. A primary influx of Chinese migration to the United States in a dangerous new direction through Panama’s Darien Gap jungle has become increasingly popular thanks to social media. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
An organization of people, many of them Chinese, walk along the wall after crossing the border with Mexico to seek asylum on October 24 near Jacumba, California (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
SAN DIEGO – The United States is seeing a sharp increase in the number of Chinese immigrants arriving through a dangerous new direction through the jungle of Panama’s Darien Gap, thanks in part to social media posts and videos offering step-by-step advice.
The Chinese were the fourth nationality, after Venezuelans, Ecuadorians and Haitians, to cross the Darien Gap in the first nine months of this year, according to Panamanian immigration authorities. Chinese immigrants employ this direction toward Ecuador and then head north toward the United States. -Mexico Border.
Chinese immigrants interviewed by The Associated Press said they were seeking to escape a repressive political climate and a bleak economic outlook.
Here are some conclusions from the Palestinian Authority report:
How many Chinese immigrants make it to the Darien Gap?
The monthly number of Chinese migrants crossing the Darien has risen from 913 in January to 2,588 in September. In the first nine months of this year, the Panamanian immigration government registered 15,567 Chinese nationals crossing the Darien. By comparison, 2,005 Chinese crossed the jungle in 2022, and only 376 in total between 2010 and 2021.
At the U. S. -Mexico border, the Border Patrol made 22,187 arrests of Chinese nationals for illegally crossing the border from Mexico from January to September, nearly thirteen times more than the same period in 2022. Arrests peaked at 4,010 in September, up 70% from August. . The vast majority were single adults.
The buildup comes as more and more people leave China. The United Nations predicts that China will lose 310,000 more people to emigration this year, up from 120,000 in 2012.
Why the Darien?
The address is viable for Chinese immigrants because they can enter Ecuador without a visa. From Quito, they joined Latin Americans to cross the once-impenetrable Darien and through several Central American countries before reaching the U. S. border. It has its own name in Chinese: walking on the line, or “zouxian. “
Short-form video platforms and messaging apps have popularized the route. They provide on-the-ground video clips and step-by-step guides, from China to the United States, and add tips on what to pack, where to locate guides, how to get to the jungle, what hotels to stay in, how much to bribe. Police in Other Countries and What to Do When Meeting with U. S. Immigration OfficialsIn the U. S. Translation apps allow immigrants to navigate Central America on their own, even if they don’t speak Spanish or English.
Why are there people?
Getting out of China?
Emigration from China began to increase particularly in 2018, when President Xi Jinping amended the charter to remove presidential term limits. The pandemic and China’s COVID-19 policies, which included strict border controls, have temporarily halted the exodus, but emigration has resumed. The Chinese economy is recovering and youth unemployment is high.
“This wave of emigration reflects desperation towards China,” said Cai Xia, editor-in-chief of the online commentary Yibao and a former professor at the Chinese Communist Party’s Central School in Beijing.
“They’ve lost hope in the long-term of the country,” said Cai, who now lives in the United States. “These include skilled and unskilled employees, white-collar workers, as well as small business owners and others from prosperous countries. Origins. outside of families.
This new wave even has a web meme, “runxue. ” The term, which means fugue study, began as a way to circumvent censorship, a Chinese character whose pronunciation is written like the English word “run” but meaning “to moisten. “”.
“The unemployment rate is very high. People can’t find work,” said Xi Yan, a Chinese woman who came to the United States with her daughter in April. “Small business owners can’t keep their businesses. “
Are immigrants coming to the U. S. ?
Those who are not yet able to obtain a visa to enter the U. S. illegally through the border to apply for asylum regularly meet with family and friends in big cities like Los Angeles and New York, where they locate paintings and settle in.
Many entered the U. S. in the San Diego area. In September, 98% of Chinese arrests at the U. S. border were made in this area. It’s also due to a larger presence of immigrants at the U. S. -Mexico border: Asians, South Americans and Africans. – that made September the second-highest month for illegal crossings and the U. S. government’s 2023 fiscal year for the U. S. government. The U. S. government is the second-largest on record.
Some immigrants entering the U. S. U. S. people in San Diego are waiting for agents to pick them up in a domain between two border walls or in remote mountains east of the city, covered in bushes and giant rocks. They are waiting there to present themselves to the U. S. government. Apply for asylum.