Venezuela turns Brazil into new refugee capital

Over the past decade, nearly 100 million persons were forcefully displaced from their homes, as a result of persecution, famine, conflict, violence, human rights violations, or events disturbing public order across the world. And while Brazil is perceived as a peaceful territory, it is now at the center of mass migration, as the crisis in Venezuela escalates, according to the newest report on forced displacement by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

From 2010 to 2019, the Americas saw a fourfold increase in the number of people displaced across borders, primarily due to the exodus from Venezuela. With 4.5 million displaced Venezuelans — 3.6 million of them outside the country —, the country now has the second-largest number of displaced people in the world, only behind Syria.

Venezuelans’ search for refuge in neighboring countries turned the Americas into the largest recipient of asylum applications worldwide in 2019 and Brazil into the sixth-largest destination for asylum seekers, with 82,500 new claims registered in 2019.

Brazil is not alone, 85 percent of refugees are hosted in developing countries, but the country’s response to the refugee crisis has been praised by Federico Martinez, a UNHCR representative in Brazil. In a webinar hosted by the commission this week, he congratulated Brazil for becoming “a reference to shelter...