UN agency helping Ecuador deal with upsurge in Colombian refugees

The United Nations refugee agency said today it is assisting the government of Ecuador deal with an upsurge of Colombians seeking asylum since fighting intensified in their home country, particularly in the border areas.

Over 5,100 Colombians asked for shelter in Ecuador during the first four months of this year, more than four times the number of new asylum seekers for the same period last year, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said.

These increasing numbers of asylum seekers have led to a significant backlog in processing immigration requests, UNHCR stated, adding that it is providing training and equipment to Ecuadorian officials and helping to fund additional staff to cope with the applications. The UN agency’s workers are also monitoring border crossings, identifying new arrivals and assessing their needs.

“The upsurge coincides with a deterioration of the conflict in Colombia, particularly in the border areas,” UNHCR spokesman Ron Redmond said. “The Colombian department of Nariño, which borders on Ecuador, has seen a marked increase in fighting since January with intensified clashes both among the various irregular armed groups in Colombia as well as between these groups and government forces.”

The fighting has also caused an increase in internal displacement in Nariño itself, with people fleeing from rural areas to urban centers, according to spokesman. The situation is reportedly worsening as well in Putumayo, also bordering on Ecuador, and in Caqueta, the department next to Putumayo further inland in Colombia, Mr. Redmond added.

Since the beginning of 2000, over 16,000 Colombians have sought asylum in Ecuador. During the same period, 4,225 asylum seekers have been granted refugee status by the Ecuadorian government.