Emigration from Colombia

Emigration from Colombia is determined by economic, social, and security issues linked mainly to the Colombian armed conflict. Emigration from Colombia is one of the largest in volume in Latin America. According to the 2005 Colombian census or DANE, about 3,331,107 Colombian citizens currently permanently reside outside of Colombia. [http://es.noticias.yahoo.com/efe/20070917/twl-colombia-advierte-que-la-migracion-h-e1e34ad_1.html] [ [http://www.dane.gov.co/index.php?option=com_content&task=category&sectionid=16&id=269&Itemid=750 DANE - Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadistica ] ] According the US Census Bureau's 2006 American Community Survey, around 801,363 persons claiming Colombian origins live in the US. [http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/DTTable?_bm=y&-context=dt&-ds_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_&-CONTEXT=dt&-mt_name=ACS_2006_EST_G2000_B03001&-mt_name=ACS_2006_EST_G2000_C03001&-mt_name=ACS_2006_EST_G2000_B04003&-mt_name=ACS_2006_EST_G2000_C04003&-tree_id=306&-redoLog=false&-_caller=geoselect&-geo_id=01000US&-geo_id=05000US36081&-geo_id=31000US35620&-geo_id=NBSP&-search_results=05000US36103&-format=&-_lang=en Detailed Tables - American FactFinder ] ]

Main destinations

The most popular destinations for Colombian emigrants are the USA (801,363), Panama, Venezuela (almost 2,000,000), Brazil (243,650), Spain (240,000) and the UK (160,000); and, to a lesser degree, Ecuador, Germany, Mexico, Italy, Chile, Canada, Dutch Antilles, Australia, France, Costa Rica, and Israel. Due to the current sociopolitical situation in Colombia, emigration affects Colombians of all social standings and geographic zones. The highest rates of emigration have been registered in the main urban centers of the interior zone of the country: Bogotá, Medellín, Cali, Bucaramanga, Pereira, Manizales, and Cúcuta.

Perhaps the most well-known concentration of Colombians abroad is the Jackson Heights section of Queens, one of the five boroughs of New York City. It is sometimes called "El Chapinerito" or "Little Chapinero" after a middle-class section of Bogotá with similar architecture and ambiance. More recently, the area of Jackson Heights associated with Colombians has become home to Mexican and Ecuadorian immigrants. Other Queens neighborhoods with a Colombian presence are Elmhurst, Corona, and Woodside. The 2006 American Community Survey put out by the US Census Bureau reports that 80,116 persons claiming Colombian origins live in Queens, while 244,164 are spread out in the entire New York metropolitan area. [ [http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/DTTable?_bm=y&-context=dt&-ds_name=ACS_2006_EST_G00_&-CONTEXT=dt&-mt_name=ACS_2006_EST_G2000_B03001&-tree_id=306&-redoLog=true&-_caller=geoselect&-geo_id=33000US408&-search_results=31000US35620&-format=&-_lang=en Detailed Tables - American FactFinder ] ]

Colombian restaurants and bakeries are important institutions for the Colombian diaspora. A unique Colombian restaurant outside of Colombia is "El Barco Latino", a barge on the River Thames near Waterloo Station in Central London. These eateries have popularized formerly regional dishes like the well-portioned Bandeja paisa among Colombians from all parts of the country.

ocial and economic impact

Over-represented among emigrants are intellectuals, scholars, artists, and qualified professionals and technicians: a phenomenon known as “brain drain," which has helped deepen the social and economic crisis in Colombia. The current state of the economy of Colombia is heavily influenced by the remittance economy of the emigrants, whose earnings abroad often support entire families at home in Colombia. According to "El Tiempo", a major broadsheet newspaper printed in Bogotá, the value of remittences from Colombians living abroad is ranked third as the main source of income in Colombia and has already surpassed the value of coffee exports.

tereotypes

Colombian immigrants are sometimes associated with narco-trafficking and other criminal elements. These stereotypes are considered unfair, crude, and hurtful by most Colombians. The Colombian government-funded Colombia is Passion advertisement campaign was an attempt to improve Colombia's image abroad, with mixed results. [ [http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,2004170,00.html Simon Jenkins: Passion alone won't rescue Colombia from its narco-economy stigma | Comment is free | The Guardian ] ]

Human trafficking

The Colombian government has developed prevention programs against illegal groups that offer emigration help to unsuspecting people, many of whom are eventually forced into slavery, forced prostitution and human trafficking in foreign countries.

ee also

*Colombian diaspora
*Internal migration in Colombia
*Immigration to Colombia

References

* [http://www.1country1language.com/forum - 1County1Language.com. Online social debate on the subject of immigration and language.]
* [http://www.pstalker.com/migration/index.htm Stalker's Guide to International Migration] - Comprehensive interactive website on migration
* [http://www.casahistoria.net/emigration.htm Casahistoria - European emigration since 1800] - links to 19th & 20th century global European emigration
* [http://www.migrationinformation.org/ Migration Information Source]
* [http://www.americas.org/item_21011 The History of Immigration] , by Jorge Majfud