LocationsWhat message would Bajo Chiquito like to give to the world
Bajo Chiquito: Between Rivers of History and Migration Paths
November 27, 2024
After a brief silence, someone stood up and said: "Bajo Chiquito is more than migration. When people hear 'Bajo Chiquito,' they might think it's just any place. We are Emberá, and I want people to know that we have a culture."
Another person rose and said: "Migration is recent, but we've been here a long time. We were forgotten people. Now, with migration, we're on the map, but we've been here for a long time; we have a history."
These were some of the responses to this question that we posed during a feedback meeting where we presented the results of creating a timeline from the historical memory of the community members in Bajo Chiquito
Community leader in a session creating a timeline through the memories of people in Bajo Chiquito, Emberá-Wounaan Territory.
Living Memory: The Echo of Emberá-Wounaan History
In the indigenous communities of Panama, the role of oral history and memory holds enormous power. It is part of their identity and serves as a driving force in facing the historical and structural challenges they encounter today.
The migration crisis in the Darién region, home to the Guna, Wounaan, and Emberá peoples, can find pathways toward solutions by adopting a systemic perspective. This approach integrates indigenous knowledge, the rich biodiversity of the area, and strengthened governance to support local development, facilitating resilience for these communities and the migrants passing through.
Rivers of Time: Memories and Transformation in Bajo Chiquito
Understanding these potential paths requires building trust, as we mentioned in a previous blog post, but it also involves constructing from the historical journey of these lands and the collective wisdom within these communities. In the case of Bajo Chiquito, there is a rich historical foundation that is essential to understand, alongside the community members.
Women of Bajo Chiquito participating in a community mapping and timeline creation session through the memory of the Bajo Chiquito community, Emberá-Wounaan Territory.
This is why we designed the community timelines as a flowing river, with different moments and changes over time. Bajo Chiquito is a "handmade" community, built from collective efforts and actions. It has endured significant climatic events that impacted community life and celebrated collective achievements that are a source of pride and identity.
Validated version of the timeline after three sessions in the community.
These stories are summarized through the key events most prominently mentioned by the community:
Cornerstones in the History of Bajo Chiquito
In 1975, Bajo Chiquito was founded by ten families, primarily from the Bacorizo and Chango families. The community was "handmade" by Emberá men and women who recall building the first school out of white cane, resembling traditional Emberá homes. The community also fondly remembers Carlos Quintana, the first teacher at the Bajo Chiquito Schoo
Workshop on participatory mapping and timeline creation in the Bajo Chiquito community.
In the 1980s, the major event in Bajo Chiquito was the creation of the Emberá-Wounaan Territory. This milestone instilled pride due to the recognition of the Emberá and Wounaan peoples residing in the Darién region. However, during these years, logging and cattle expansion also accelerated significant environmental degradation, not only in Bajo Chiquito but throughout the region.
In the following decade (1990s), another major event was the construction of the community health post (1995). This development is contrasted with the memory of the first armed groups
from the Colombian guerrilla and the tensions with drug trafficking. The 2000s brought many changes. A logging company opened a land route to Bajo Chiquito from the La Peñita community, the school’s construction material was upgraded from cane to cement, and a school cafeteria was built in 2004.
Panoramic view of the Bajo Chiquito community in the Emberá-Wounaan Territory
On November 16, 2004, a major flood caused severe material losses and agricultural damage for the community. This event repeated on December 10 with an even larger flood, isolating the entire eastern region of the country as Lake Bayano in Chepo and Yaviza in Darién flooded.
In the 2000s, Emberá people from Colombia began seeking refuge in Bajo Chiquito. However, the community did not perceive this movement as migration but as human mobility, a long-standing feature of the region where the administrative boundaries between Panama and Colombia differ from historical and cultural borders.
For instance, most of the founders of Bajo Chiquito are Emberá born in Colombia. This is true not only of the Emberá and Wounaan populations but also of the Guna and Afro-descendant communities in this region.
Border Service Base (SENAFRONT) in the Bajo Chiquito community, Emberá-Wounaan Territory.
Bajo Chiquito: Between Solidarity and Changing Boundaries
During the 2010s, the community recalls the establishment of the first SENAFRONT base and the arrival of more displaced Emberá Colombians, but also the first groups of migrants: "40, 50, 60... people from Somalia, India, Nepal, Congo, Eritrea" arrived. At that time, migrants stayed for a week or more in the community, and the residents arranged transportation to the port of Lajas Blancas. However, there were no shelters at that time.
By 2015, these flows intensified with the arrival of over 24,000 Cubans. The Panamanian government, through Operation Shield, sought to stop the migration flow. The new measure prevented further travel, creating significant tension in the community, as migrants wanted to move on but were unable to. Months later, a more controlled flow dynamic emerged.
View of the main road and basketball court in the Bajo Chiquito community.
The people of Bajo Chiquito, led by women, supported migrants, especially women, girls, and children during these tense moments. "Bajo Chiquito has supported and endured in silence. We have helped with what little we have," commented a woman at one of the community meetings to generate the timeline.
It wasn’t until 2016 that an agreement was reached between local territorial authorities and government institutions to address the migration crisis. The community felt more supported and less burdened. This agreement marked the beginning of a more organized and coordinated effort involving the communities, United Nations agencies, and humanitarian organizations. That year, the port of Peñita was established as a Temporary Migrant Reception Station (ETRM), providing a more structured system for migrant mobility.
Two years later (2018), the community authorities in Bajo Chiquito decided to suspend celebrations (dances and community festivals) for safety and security reasons regarding migrants. Today, they celebrate their traditions in neighboring communities or other spaces. This same year, approval was granted for the construction of the Quebrada Venado aqueduct as a water source for the community, though this has not yet come to fruition.
In 2018, there was a significant increase in migrant flows through Bajo Chiquito, with a more constant presence of various humanitarian organizations and United Nations agencies, which also improved access to certain services like healthcare, medications, and water.
Person in Bajo Chiquito setting up a tent for migrants staying in their yard.
Resilience in the Face of the COVID-19 Polycrisis and Migration
In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic began, and more than 400 migrants were stranded in Bajo Chiquito. The community supported them for over seven months with shelter and food, noting that there were no deaths from the pandemic among either the migrants or the community. Community members believe that this was largely due to traditional medicine and subsistence activities that provided food for everyone.
That year, many people from Bajo Chiquito who had moved to the city returned to their community. Community members recount that during the pandemic, the local population increased, and the following year many babies were born.
Services and economic activities like WiFi, cell phone charging, and money transfers are common in the communities of Bajo Chiquito and Canaán.
In Darién and the Emberá-Wounaan Territory, rivers mean everything, and during the pandemic, rivers became a vital source of food and sustenance. The famous guacuco fish, common in the waters of the Tuqueza River, even disappeared. It was the community’s main food source during those challenging years.
In 2021, there was a significant increase in the number of migrants passing through the jungle, mostly Haitians and Cubans. In Bajo Chiquito, local authorities requested support from the government and international agencies for the creation of shelters, which were welcomed, and that year, the construction of a temporary shelter began. The Public Ministry also began maintaining a constant presence in the community, and a formal module was constructed for SENAFRONT.
Views of the Bajo Chiquito community during the arrival of migrants.
The community helped by building houses for National Migration Service staff and also for Doctors Without Borders, who at that time had a presence in Panama. Since 2021, the number of migrants increased sharply to levels never before seen by the community.
Migrants lining up to take a boat to the port of Lajas Blancas, where the Temporary Migrant Reception Station (ETRM) is located.
In 2022 alone, more than 250,000 migrants arrived, with 150,000 of them being Venezuelans. In 2023, additional latrines, water stations, and water tanks were built. With support from international agencies, the first Rural Aqueduct Administration Board (JAAR) was established in Bajo Chiquito as a local organization responsible for managing and distributing water for the community. This year, the construction of a covered multipurpose court was completed, and discussions resumed for the construction of the Quebrada Venado aqueduct. In 2023, the estimated number of people who crossed the border between Panama and Colombia surpassed one million, with a large portion of these transits passing through the community of Bajo Chiquito.
People from Bajo Chiquito listening to and reading the community timeline narrative.
Horizons to Build: Challenges and Hope in Bajo Chiquito
From the construction of its first homes, school, health post, and the collective struggle for the establishment of the Emberá-Wounaan Territory, to the environmental degradation, biodiversity loss, and soil erosion caused by logging, to navigating tensions with armed groups and drug trafficking that persist, and the severe floods that destroyed crops and caused food shortages, Bajo Chiquito has a history of resilience, solidarity, and collective action for better days. This spirit is also reflected in its response to the flow of hundreds of thousands of people who have passed through this land, rich with its own history and culture.
Indeed, cultures are not static, and the cultural changes brought about by interaction and new migration dynamics have created conflicts and challenges that exceed the response capacity not only of Bajo Chiquito but also of the country. However, beyond responding to the migration crisis, investing in local development for these communities is also essential to strengthen their resilience and create better conditions for their population and the future of this region.
If you want to learn more about the lessons from this active listening process in the communities of Canaán and Bajo Chiquito, we invite you to read our blog on current dynamics of social cohesion in the community, or this public policy brief that summarizes key learnings and recommendations.
Person taking waste to an improvised landfill in the Bajo Chiquito community.
Panoramic view of one of the ports of Bajo Chiquito.
This process has been carried out within the framework of the initiative "Peaceful Coexistence and Social Cohesion for the Local Development of Host Communities in Bajo Chiquito and Canaán in the Emberá-Wounaan Territory." This initiative is part of the Regional InfoSegura Project between the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), focused on formulating and implementing public policies on citizen security and justice in Central America and the Dominican Republic