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Mayor Adams visited dangerous Darién Gap despite Colombian authorities

advising against it, causing security scramble

AP Photo/Ivan Valencia
New York City Mayor Eric Adams arrives in Necocli, northern Colombia, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2023. Adams has capped off a four-day trip to Latin America with a visit to
the city where thousands of migrants start the trek across the Darien jungle, as they head to the United States. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)

By Chris Sommerfeldt | csommerfeldt@nydailynews.com | New York Daily News

October 9, 2023 at 5:13 p.m.

Mayor Adams acknowledged Monday that he visited the “extremely dangerous” Darién Gap during
his Latin America trip last week even though Colombian authorities advised against him going there
due to security concerns.

“We had to convince the National Police to allow us to go in … They were clear that we should not go
inside,” the mayor told reporters in Manhattan about his Saturday visit to the gap, a 66-mile pathway
connecting the Colombia-Panama border that many South and Central American migrants cross on
their way to the U.S.

AP Photo/Ivan Valencia
Migrants board the boat to the Darién Gap, in Necocli, Colombia, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2023. New York City Mayor Eric Adams has
capped off a four-day trip to Latin America with a visit to the northern Colombian city where thousands of migrants start the trek
across the Darién jungle, as they head to the United States. (AP Photo/Ivan Valencia)

Because he decided to visit the gap anyway, Colombia’s National Police had to deploy dozens of
officers to join him for protection, Adams said.

“They would not allow me to go outside their protection. They had 50 National Police that were there,
they wanted to do 100, because that area is an extremely dangerous area,” he said. “Many people that
start out going through the gap don’t make it through.”

The gap, situated in a dense jungle, is dangerous for various reasons.

The U.S. State Department advises against visiting the area as it’s controlled by paramilitary forces,
gangs and drug traffickers, some of whom demand payment from migrants to help smuggle them
north. The jungle is also home to an array of dangerous animals, and at least 137 migrants died or
went missing there last year, according to the United Nations .

Adams, who insists on being an on-the-ground mayor, said he felt it was crucial for him to visit the gap,
though.

“We had to go there and see for ourselves as we flew over the gap and as we walked through the gap
to make sure that we have a proper definition of what the problem is,” he said. “And now we have to
come back with a formidable plan to address it.”

Adams has said he went on his four-day trip to Colombia, Ecuador and Mexico with a goal of learning
more about the root causes driving migration from South and Central America. He has also said he
traveled there to try to discourage Latin Americans from coming to New York City, which is already
sheltering and providing services for more than 62,000 migrants, putting intense strain on local social
safety nets.

AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa
New York City Mayor Eric Adams, left, and Ecuadorean Foreign Minister Gustavo Manrique give a joint news conference at the
end of a meeting on migration in Quito, Ecuador, Friday, Oct. 6, 2023. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

Immigration advocates have questioned the utility of Adams’ visit arguing that international relations
,

are better left to federal diplomats.

Murad Awawdeh, executive director of the New York Immigration Coalition, said Monday that Adams
should never have gone on the trip “while there is so much work that needs to get done in New York
City.

“Wasting time and resources trying to affect international policy and migration, things fully outside of
his purview and scope of control, is particularly ridiculous,” Awawdeh said. “Then, insisting on visiting
the Darién Gap, against the advice of his Colombian hosts and the U.S. government, is completely
irresponsible.”

2023 October 9

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