Panama reportedly bars ‘in-transit’ Cubans, at Costa Rica’s request

The Panamanian government has barred Cubans traveling from Ecuador to the United States from crossing into its territory from Colombia, according to the Costa Rican newspaper La Nación.

Costa Rican Foreign Minister Manuel González Sanz (photo at top) told the newspaper on Friday (Nov. 27) that about 850 Cubans are waiting on the Colombian side of the border to enter Panama and continue on their way north into Costa Rica. That path is now closed to them.

The plan to halt the flow of Cuban migrants was agreed upon bilaterally last Tuesday during the meeting in San Salvador of the SICA+4 Group, which dealt with the ongoing migration crisis in Central America. [For background in Progreso Weekly, click here.]

“These are actions that we requested from Colombia and Panama, so that they may also assume their role,” González said. “It’s not fair that they let [the Cubans] pass and put the whole burden on us.”

This week, about 3,000 Cubans waiting to cross from Costa Rica to Nicaragua were stopped at the border by Nicaraguan police and told they couldn’t enter Nicaraguan territory. Costa Rica has been providing them with food and shelter, but obviously that is not a permanent solution to the problem.

Panama’s action complements Ecuador’s decision to demand a visa from Cubans arriving in that South American country, effective Dec. 1.

The Ecuadorean Embassy in Havana has promised to expedite the processing of those visas, as the short notice of the visa requirement has created hardship for many Cubans who had already purchased air tickets to Quito.

As of Saturday noon (Nov 28), neither the Panamanian foreign ministry nor its Cuban counterpart had confirmed González Sanz’s disclosure.

[UPDATE: Via Twitter, Ecuadorean Foreign Minister Ricardo Patiño Aroca said Saturday (Nov. 28) that Cubans who bought their plane tickets before Nov. 26 will be guaranteed entry visas.]