Page 12 - ARUBA TODAY

A12 WORLD NEWS
Monday 10 June 2019

Thousands pour into Colombia as Venezuela reopens border

By MANUEL RUEDA migrants. Following her visit,
LUZ DARY DEPABLOS Jolie gave a brief state-
Associated Press ment in which she praised
CÚCUTA, Colombia (AP) Colombia for receiving
— Thousands of people more than 1.3 million Ven-
crossed into Colombia on ezuelan migrants and refu-
Saturday to buy food and gees, and urged the lead-
medicine after Venezuelan ers of developed countries
President Nicolás Maduro to do more to help dis-
reopened a border be- placed people around the
tween the countries that world.
had been shut down for “Looking across the word it
the past four months. seems that those who have
Long lines of Venezuelans the least, are those that
stood at two international often give the most” Jolie
bridges near the city of Cú- said. “Instead of focusing
cuta waiting to have their on how to address the gap
documents checked by in diplomacy and security
Colombian officials, with and peace that is caus-
some carrying children on ing growing numbers of
their shoulders. Venezue- people to move, we hear
lan border guards dressed increasing talk of what indi-
in green uniforms helped Venezuelans showing their IDs line up to cross the Simon Bolivar international bridge into Cucuta, vidual governments are not
control the crowd. Colombia, Saturday, June 8, 2019. prepared to do.”
The South American na- Associated Press Jolie said that UNHCR is
tion’s socialist government sovereignty and prohibited The once-wealthy oil na- said Friday that 4 million struggling to fund services
ordered the borders with it from entering. tion is now facing severe Venezuelans, or almost 15% for Venezuelan migrants
Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, In May, the government re- shortages of basic goods of the population, have left and refugees. In Decem-
Brazil and Colombia closed opened borders with Aruba and hyperinflation that is the country. ber, the agency launched
in February as the opposi- and Brazil, but the Simon expected to surpass 10 mil- On Saturday, the UNHCR’s a $738 million plan to as-
tion tried to deliver food Bolivar International Bridge lion percent this year, ac- special envoy Angelina Jo- sist displaced Venezuelans
and medical supplies into and the Francisco de Pau- cording to a recent IMF es- lie was visiting another part across the hemisphere, but
the country. la Santander International timate. The chaos has been of the Colombia-Venezu- it has only been able to
Most of the aid was provid- Bridge with Colombia have further aggravated by U.S. ela border to learn more raise a fifth of that money
ed by the United States, a remained closed up until sanctions on Venezuelan about the conditions faced so far.
key ally of opposition lead- now. oil exports and has forced by migrants and refugees Earlier on Saturday, Jolie
er Juan Guaidó who de- With the reopening, a flood an estimated 5,000 people and raise awareness about met with Colombia Presi-
clared himself to be Ven- of people seized on the op- to leave the country each their needs. The Hollywood dent Ivan Duque, who has
ezuela’s rightful president portunity to enter into the day, according to the Unit- actress met with aid work- pledged to keep his coun-
in January. But Maduro neighboring country and ed Nation’s High Commis- ers and Venezuelans and try’s border with Venezuela
dismissed the aid as an in- secure items that are all but sioner for Refugees. toured a tent village built open despite the large in-
fringement on Venezuela’s unattainable in Venezuela. The U.N. refugee agency by UNHCR for vulnerable flux of migrants.q

Mexico: Country has ‘dignity intact’ after US tariff deal

By CHRISTOPHER SHERMAN officials reached an ac- protagonists in the largest
Associated Press cord late Friday that calls demographic exchange in
TIJUANA, Mexico (AP) — on Mexico to crackdown the world.”
Mexican President Andrés on migrants in exchange Tijuana residents at the rally
Manuel López Obrador for Trump backing off his said they supported the
said he was reluctantly threat, officials here con- terms of the agreement.
prepared to slap retalia- verted the rally into a cel- But residents just a block
tory tariffs on U.S. goods if ebration. Speaking about away expressed concern
negotiators in Washington the migrants, Ebrard said, the deal could mean more
had failed to strike a deal, “while they are in Mexico, asylum seekers having to
addressing a boisterous we are going to be in soli- wait in Tijuana and other
celebratory rally Saturday darity with them.” Mexican border cities for
in the border city of Tijuana. A series of speakers at the the resolution of their cases
The president’s comments Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador receives government-organized in the U.S. That process can
came shortly after his for- the applause of the crowd during a rally in Tijuana, Mexico, gathering spoke of the im- take months or even years.
eign minister and chief ne- Saturday, June 8, 2019. portance of the U.S.-Mex- Critics of the deal in Mexi-
gotiator, Marcelo Ebrard, Associated Press ico relationship and ap- co say that other than a
told the rally the coun- retaliation but had been walk from the border, was plauded Mexico’s negoti- vague reiteration of a joint
try had emerged from prepared to impose tariffs originally scheduled as an ating team. The rally had commitment to promote
the high-stakes talks that on U.S. goods. “As chief act of solidarity in the face the feeling of a campaign development, security and
avoided U.S. tariffs on Mexi- representative of the Mexi- of President Donald Trump’s event with lots of parapher- growth in Central America,
co’s exports with its “dignity can State I cannot permit threat to impose a 5% tariff nalia from López Obrador’s the agreement focuses
intact.” that anyone attacks our on Mexico’s exports if it did ruling Morena party. almost exclusively on en-
López Obrador said that economy or accept an un- not stem the flow of Central Lopez Obrador spoke of forcement and says little
as an admirer of Gandhi, just asymmetry unworthy of American migrants crossing the long and intertwined about the root causes driv-
Martin Luther King and Nel- our government.” its territory toward the U.S. histories of the two coun- ing the surge in migrants
son Mandela he opposes The rally in Tijuana, a short But after Mexican and U.S. tries, noting that they “are seen in recent months. q