Abstract

PAEZ MEZA, Sandra Milena; PATINO IDARRAGA, Sandra Eliana  and  MALDONADO ESTEVEZ, Erika Alejandra. Borders as Disappearance Devices. A Look at Cross-Border Enforced Disappearances Between Colombia and Venezuela. Migr. Inter [online]. 2023, vol.14, rmiv1i12585.  Epub Aug 04, 2023. ISSN 2594-0279.  https://doi.org/10.33679/rmi.v1i1.2585.

This work aims to show how the border between Norte de Santander (Colombia) and the state of Táchira (Venezuela) has been consolidated in the last decade as a disappearance device from a practice that has been called cross-border enforced disappearance. The article develops a contextualization of the economic and violent dynamics that are registered in this territory, which have facilitated the consolidation of this crime. From the analysis of 43 files of reported cases of these disappearances, it is possible to establish their characterization, delimit the actors (victims and perpetrators), and define the intentions circumscribed to this practice. In this way, a dimension is identified that stands out from the conceptual categories of the original disappearance and that exacerbates the violation of the victims by hindering the conditions of the search for truth, justice, and reparation for their families.

Keywords : cross-border enforced disappearance; human rights; illegal economies; Colombia; Venezuela.

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