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The number of Venezuelans that have fled the country since Nicolás Maduro came into power in April 2013 is estimated to be 7 percent of the country’s total population. Their most popular destinations include Colombia, Perú, Ecuador, Panamá, and Chile.

Perú, formerly a significant exporter of migrants in Latin America, has now effectively become the new hub for thousands of Venezuelan migrants fleeing the colossal socio economic crisis. Who are the individuals that step into the unknown, oftentimes leaving their families and prized possessions behind? What are their fears, their ambitions, their goals? What are the current migratory, educational and integration procedures in place?  How are Peruvians welcoming migrants? What does this all mean for the Peruvian economy? This article paints a portrait of the 506,000 Venezuelans now residing throughout the country, assesses the implications of this immigration wave and features an interview with Alejandro, a 23-year old who migrated to Lima one year ago.

Perú is accustomed to seeing its citizens migrate, lured by the promise of a better life abroad. However, for the first time ever the country is faced with this dynamic reversed as it has become an immigrant destination for Venezuelans. For these immigrants Perú offers a substantially better alternative to the crisis and poverty of Maduro’s Venezuela.  Most of them reach Perú after a six day journey taking them through Colombia and passing through Ecuador. They can be seen scattered across the capital, Lima. From coffee, ice-cream, jelly and sandwich street-sellers to waiters and waitresses: their foremost motivation is to try to make a living and avoid hunger at all costs. The Peruvian response has been the introduction of the temporary residency permit, the PTP, activated in January 2017 following discussions with the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights. The document formalises the migrants’ status by enabling them to work and access health services for a year and is already in the hands of more than 36,000 Venezuelans.

A source of economic growth…

If in the 80s and 90s the country had lost human resources due to important emigration waves, today Perú is receiving valuable human capital from Venezuela and should make the most of it. Ideally, Venezuelans, like any other migrants, should be able to occupy jobs in accordance with their skills and education levels. In assessing the effect of immigration on productivity, the following figures give reason for optimism: 53 percent of Venezuelan migrants are aged between 18 and 29, and 65 percent of the latter have professional titles, master’s degrees and doctorates in various disciplines. As a result, Perú’s endowment in engineers, architects, economists, accountants, doctors and other professionals willing to provide for the country has rocketed. The most qualified migrants have the potential to contribute to the transfer of innovation and knowledge, which would have a positive effect on economic growth. The challenge for harnessing this potential is that less than a fifth of Venezuelans have been able to obtain recognition for their higher education degrees

…Hindered by informal networks…

According to legal experts, the initial obstacle lies in the fact that the Law on the Employment of Foreign Workers was conceived within the framework of the old Constitution of 1979. The latter includes a preference for hiring national citizens, preventing private firms from employing more than 20 percent of foreign workers. These elements, coupled with potential delays in bureaucratic procedures could be restricting a more effective assimilation of workers in formal enterprises: an assimilation that would not only benefit them but the Peruvian economy as a whole. All these factors appear to incentivise migrants to seek opportunities in the informal sector. Subsequently, they lose the opportunity to take advantage of their experience, studies, or talents in more productive sectors of the economy, and prevents the rapid absorption of foreigners in the labour market. There is no guide book for migrants. If there was, it would have to warn them about the inevitable presence of those who seek to exploit their vulnerability and their willingness to work for less, in less favourable conditions. The International Migration Office recorded that approximately 70 percent of Venezuelans residing in Perú are currently working in the informal economy, typically in the retail and service industries. Their study further showed that migrants are more likely to accept unfavourable working conditions than national residents, such as lower wages or inadequate social welfare access. As such, 34 percent of Venezuelans earn between US$200 and US$300 per month, whereas 67 percent of Peruvians earn more than US$300. Finally, their employment contracts have a maximum term of 3 years, which denies them a degree of job security. The migrants can only work formally once they have obtained the approval of these contracts by the authorities and the ‘migratory quality’ granted by Interpol and the National Superintendence of Migrations. Making an appointment for Interpol and Migrations can take more than a month.

…and discrimination…

In general terms, it has been widely recognised that Peruvians have welcomed Venezuelan migrants and expressed solidarity with them. But there are always a few exceptions. “The issue of xenophobia is there and has the potential to come out at any time, although so far the general response from the population has been exemplary. Discrimination against young Venezuelans seeking employment in the region is a “latent threat”, notes Guillermo Dema, International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) regional specialist in youth employment and labour migration. However, studies have found that on average, immigration has a very limited impact on native workers since it represents a very small portion of the total labour force. So even if in the shorter-term Venezuelans may compete with Peruvians for jobs, evidence has proved that it should not result in overall unemployment.

A better life

Let us then explore these themes through the eyes of Alejandro, a 23- year old Venezuelan which migrated to Lima about a year ago. I met Alejandro in August 2018. He was playing pool with a group of friends at a local bar in Miraflores. He seemed happy.

Tell me about your experience with obtaining your resident permit (PTP).

Alejandro: The PTP was one of the things I was most looking forward to. My experience with the PTP was a bit long, to be honest. I learnt about the whole process and what I was meant to do as soon as I arrived to Lima. I immediately started all the paperwork but with the warning that it would take a long time. It was a manhunt and could not leave my laptop as I kept refreshing the page where one could book an appointment with Migrations. All slots were fully booked during my first three months in Lima. One day, a friend helped me book a slot, and after many failed attempts, it worked. But it took a bit more than six months. It was quite frustrating, especially as in the meantime, I was receiving job offers I could not accept without a PTP. I arrived in March and my appointment took place in November. It was horrible… It seemed as if I was back in Venezuela standing in line for endless hours just so one could buy a loaf of bread. The only difference was that this time, I waited thirteen hours at the Interpol headquarters. As it was summer, most of my time was spent under a burning sun, and to make matters worse, as soon as the evening came through, the lights went off at the headquarters for more than two hours. That day, I was extremely furious and felt as if I was back in my country due to all the lateness and failures of the system. A bit before 9pm, as exhaustion began to take its toll, they told us that we had to come back the next day. We insisted on staying, and the lights came back on, as if by a miracle. At 10 pm, I managed to receive all my documents and went back home with them in hand. But it was truly horrible, I think this has been one of the worst things I have had to do in Lima.

Upon your arrival, how fast did you find the migration and labour processes in Perú?

Alejandro: The migratory process is very straightforward and light. Security checks are not encountered often and when they are, their examinations are not thorough. Upon arrival, one instantly feels the Latin warmth; which is a bittersweet feeling, but it is undoubtedly present. As I have said already, the most traumatic part of the process has been the PTP, especially the Interpol appointment which takes ages. Fortunately, I got lucky jobwise: I arrived on a Wednesday and found a job the very next day – where to this day I am still employed. Of course, I am aware not everyone has had this blessing, and this above all things is what I am most thankful for – having found a suitable and rewarding job. All the skills I have acquired in Venezuela have helped me enormously, and I think I would never have grown as fast as a person if I would not have lived the crisis.

Essentially, how welcoming have you found Peruvians to be?

Alejandro: The experience I have with Peruvians within my circle is incredible. They are extraordinary individuals and have welcomed me like one of them, like their family member. They have taught me their traditions, habits, cuisine, they taught me how to speak to them… my managers are of the nicest people I have ever met. They have given me advice, corrected me and told me off when needed, have celebrated my birthday (and I have celebrated theirs). Personally then, I can say I have not had any bad experiences with any Peruvians.

How are you viewing your stay in Perú? Have you considered the possibility of settling down here?

Alejandro: Even though my stay in Perú has been excellent, let the rough process of the PTP aside, I still feel that I am not ready to answer this question, as I still need to finish my studies in Venezuela and I would like to come back and do music in my country as well as helping it rebuild itself. I know for a fact I would come back to Perú if I do leave as I would not be able to cope without their amazing food, he laughs. In addition, Perú is an extremely prosperous country, and one which gives opportunities to all individuals. I want to make the most of it and would love to create a stronger link between Venezuela and Perú – from a musical, commercial and even gastronomical point of view, he laughs.

Who do you consider the real culprit of the crisis in Venezuela?

Alejandro: The answer to this question will be difficult to accept, but to a large extent, the fault lies in the hands of the Venezuelans themselves. Evidently, the government, since Chávez’s era, and do not get me started on Maduro’s ‘government’ –  has broken our country and our society in such a way that not only is Venezuela submerged in an economic crisis, but also in one of values and education. It is unbelievable. Public spending directed towards education has never been great; the infrastructure is deplorable. However, there exist few teachers that would endure crime and violence to teach a handful of kids in shanty towns in the Big Caracas. Drugs, weapons and violence have just been on an exponential rise since the crisis… it is just crazy. People have lost their values with the crisis. This topic is so broad and even if I would want to, I could not cover every aspect of it because the reality of my country is so cruel that I did not even get to learn about half of what is going on. But in general, we as Venezuelans, are also somehow responsible for everything that is happening today. I would like to clarify that I am not excusing the government – the government is as or even more responsible than we are.

What was your reaction when you found out about Juan Guaidó’s proclamation as the interim President of Venezuela?

Alejandro: Well I think the same as everyone else’s: happiness and hope. It seems like this time we are getting a step closer to our goals, and under the reins of a better leader. I just pray it does not only remain mere hope.

In your eyes, what do events such as the generalised blackout in Caracas symbolise?

Alejandro: In Venezuela, such blackouts are not abnormal, although it might have been the first time these things had occurred in Caracas. In the rest of the country they tend to happen for two to three days. This was bound to happen: the electric system, as well as the state as a whole does not work, but they had remained unnoticed, until now. It symbolises a lack of care, misery, broken people ripped away from their fundamental rights so as to ‘keep alive’ a project that has long failed. It symbolises pain and suffering, death, and even more death… as if all the violent casualties the country witnesses on a daily basis were not enough. People die for stealing a cell phone, a pair of shoes, a pair of glasses, drinking water… or as if it were not enough that people die from hunger or from infections resulting from them eating from the garbage. What is most unfortunate is that in the same way as the electric system is rotten, so is the communication system, all other services and institutions, and I dare say: our people, too.

Could you say with certainty that your Venezuelan compatriots who have also migrated have had a similar experience to yours, that is, positive overall?

Alejandro: Realistically, yes. Even though forced migration is never easy, I think most people have had a positive experience. I do know of several unfortunate and negative cases, but I can dare say that the vast majority have been positive. We must pay specific attention to the Venezuelans that fight day and night to better their situation, for prosperity, to help those that stayed at home, because they do not care what they have to do as long as they are recognised for their efforts. These include the engineer that became a waiter, the accountant that became a toilet cleaner, the doctor that had to sell ‘arepas’ on the streets, or the teacher that became a handyman.

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