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cover of episode What's behind the Chinese migrant surge at the Darien Gap?

What's behind the Chinese migrant surge at the Darien Gap?

2024/11/25
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Chinese Whispers
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People
A
Amy Hawkins
C
Cindy Yu
M
Meredith Oyen
Topics
Cindy Yu: 本期节目讨论了近年来中国移民经由达里恩峡谷涌入美国南部边境，成为增长最快的移民群体之一的现象。讨论了中国移民选择这条路线的原因，以及这种移民方式与中国以往移民方式的不同之处。 Meredith Oyen: 2022年末和2023年初，中国移民经由达里恩峡谷前往美国的现象显著增加，部分原因是中国公民可以免签进入厄瓜多尔。中国经由美国南部边境进入美国的移民数量激增，尽管与其他移民群体相比仍然较小，但增幅显著。许多中国移民是中产阶级，他们离开中国的动机是经济因素（疫情对经济的影响，特别是对小企业主的影响）和政治因素（中国日益严峻的政治环境）。寻求政治庇护的中国移民在美国获得批准的成功率更高，这与美中关系和对中国政府的看法有关。美国政治庇护系统存在大量积压案件，这使得即使申请被驳回，遣返也十分困难。如果特朗普当选，美国对寻求政治庇护的政策将更加严格，这将进一步减少中国移民的数量。 Amy Hawkins: 厄瓜多尔取消了对中国公民的免签政策，导致这条前往美国的移民路线变得更加困难，但中国移民仍会寻找其他途径。巴尔干地区也存在类似的中国移民现象，尽管规模较小，但增长速度惊人。欧洲路线上的偷渡费用很高，通常为数千欧元或美元。选择这条危险路线的中国移民，相比其他移民群体而言相对富裕，但比其他中国移民要贫穷。在波斯尼亚遇到的中国移民中，政治原因是他们离开中国的动机之一，而非仅仅是经济原因。一些中国移民能够提供被捕的证据，但其他人则没有。与美国不同，在英国，中国寻求政治庇护者获得批准的几率较低，这与对中国的认知有关。随着美国对中国移民政策的收紧，更多中国移民可能会选择前往欧洲。

Deep Dive

Chapters
The Darien Gap, a treacherous jungle route, has seen a dramatic increase in Chinese migrants in recent years. This previously uncommon migration route is now attracting thousands of Chinese seeking better lives in America and Europe, representing a significant shift in global migration patterns.
  • Significant increase in Chinese migrants using the Darien Gap route.
  • Ecuador's visa-free policy played a role in the surge.
  • Similar phenomenon observed in Eastern Europe, specifically the Bosnia-Croatia border.

Shownotes Transcript

The Darien Gap is a 60 mile stretch of jungle that hundreds of thousands of migrants from all over South America trek through in order to reach the US-Mexico border. From there, they enter America in search of better lives.

These are usually migrants from Venezuela, or Colombia or Panama. But in recent years, a new group of people have appeared at the border, having paid people smugglers and hacked through the jungle. They often bring young children, clutch on to smartphones with which they check their routes, and watch social media videos that set out, step by step, the journey they are embarking on.

These are the Chinese, which in the last two years have been the fastest growing group of migrants being encountered at America’s southern border – over 37,000 last year, up from under 4,000 the year before. This year, there have already been over 21,000.

What brings them, and how unusual is this method of emigration when it comes to people from China?

On this podcast are Professor Meredith Oyen, an expert on US-China migration, and Amy Hawkins, senior China correspondent at the Guardian, who has come across a similar phenomenon on Europe’s borders.