Tortuous journey ends in limbo - 29th September 2021

Tapachula, a city in southern Mexico, sees thousands of refugees, many originally from Haiti, stranded as they wait for the permits required to enter the US.

Many have spent weeks traversing perilous mountain ranges and rainforests, risking life and limb trying to reach the US border, but now they find themselves stuck in Tapachula.

In 2010, Haiti suffered a devastating earthquake, which caused over 200,000 deaths, and left the country in a state of collapse. Thousands fled, many headed for Chile, at the invitation of the president.

Murat Tilus: "After the 2010 earthquake my house fell, my family died, there is nothing. Then I took the initiative with my wife to go to another country. The president of Chile opened the door for everyone to come to Chile, then I went to Chile to do something new."

Their lives in Chile changed in 2018, when the government toughened migrant regulations, leaving many with no alternative but to set out again in pursuit of a better life.

Encouraged by those already established in the US, thousands embarked on the hazardous journey north, but having traversed 10 countries, many are now trapped in Tapachula, awaiting the necessary paperwork.

The Darien Gap, an area of jungle between Colombia and Panama, was fraught with danger for the travelling refugees, who having managed to avoid armed criminal gangs, then risked their lives crossing the treacherous river, where many drowned.

Fleeing Haiti with his mum and sister, after a brother's murder,11-year-old Samuel recalls the nightmare.

Samuel Camille: "When we passed through the jungle and we arrived in Panama, not in the city but where the mountain of Panama was, there we crossed the river and people died there. The river was very strong."

77,559 migrant permits have been issued to date, with the help of the Mexican Commission for Refugee Assistance, but a huge backlog remains.

Legal entry to the US is the aim of most refugees, but some will try any means necessary and attempt illegal crossings. Many others are like Samuel, regretting ever having started their journey.