Urbanities,
Vol. 3
·
No 2
·
November 2013
© 2013
Urbanities
5
a victim of a weak or ‘phantom State’ (Feldmann 2013: 32). On the other hand, the strength of
the Brazilian economy, with its growing demand for labour required for large construction
projects, certainly contributes to develop among the Haitians an imagery of Brazil as the new
‘Eldorado’ which they are seeking.
However, certain obstacles must be overcome for Haitians to enter Brazil, including
holding an entry visa, which must be obtained in the country of origin. People without the
necessary documents would be stopped at Brazilian airports. Since most were living in the
Dominican Republic they sought alternative entrance routes to the Brazilian borders. It was also
believed that the request for refugee status would be an indisputable justification for remaining in
the country. Since Brazil is signatory to conventions about refugees and is known for its tradition
of giving them shelter, this request could not be denied.
The route initially envisaged by ‘coyotes’
2
went through Central and South America
countries that do not require a visa to a Brazilian border in the states of Amazonas or Acre, where
it would be easier to enter. Among the countries included in this route, the Dominican Republic,
Panama, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia are most frequently mentioned. For those who go to
Amazonas, the passages in Ecuador are the cities of Quito and Guayquil. From there they go to
Tumbes in Peru, then to Lima, from where they travel to Iquitos in the Peruvian Amazon. From
there they travel by boat to Santa Rosa, where they cross the Solimões river to enter Tabatinga
(AM). Those who enter through Acre have two options. The first one is to continue from Lima to
Cuzco in the Andes and then go through Puerto Maldonado and continue in vans run by coyotes
to reach Iñapari, where they cross the bridge to reach Assis Brasil and then go to Brasiléia by
taxi. Those who go via Bolivia, after travelling through Puerto Maldonado in Peru, take a detour
through the jungle to enter Boliva near Cobija, the capital of Pando, from where they reach
Brasiléia by crossing the bridge that connects the two countries.
Brasiléia is a compulsory stop, because the Federal Police has its office in the neighboring
city of Epitaciolandia. The Haitians must attend that office and request the refugee protocol. In
early 2013, the delay in issuing this document generated an unprecedented social problem,
because of the large concentration of Haitians in Brasiléia, about 1,200. The municipal
government decided to use a large abandoned football arena where hundreds of Haitians had to
stay, many with only a cardboard sheet to sleep on. There were no bathrooms, nor running water
for drinking or bathing. Given the seriousness of the situation, the Catholic Church organization
known as the Pastoral Care for Migrants from Porto Velho visited Brasileia and produced a
report denouncing the violation of refugees’ basic rights. The report attracted attention in the
national press, leading the state government to declare a state of social emergency in Brasiléia
and request help from the federal government, which sent a task force to provide various services.
2
This is the name given to those who charge to make the border crossings from Haiti to Brazil. Kearney
(1991) recalls that in the indigenous region of Mexico and the United States the term
El Coyote
refers to a
trickster
marked by ambiguity and contradiction, and who is also considered a cultural hero.
