Peru to declare a state of emergency as migrants leaving Chile trigger backlash

SANTIAGO, Chile — President José Jerí of Peru said his government on Friday would declare a state of emergency along the country’s southern border and deploy more armed forces to the area as a large number of Venezuelan migrants venture north from Chile, where anti-immigrant sentiment has surged during a fraught presidential campaign

SANTIAGO, Chile — President José Jerí of Peru said his government on Friday would declare a state of emergency along the country’s southern border and deploy more armed forces to the area as a large number of Venezuelan migrants venture north from Chile, where anti-immigrant sentiment has surged during a fraught presidential campaign.

Hundreds of thousands of migrants fleeing crises in their home countries or seeking better opportunities abroad long have traversed the continent and the Peruvian border to build new lives in Chile, one of Latin America’s most stable and prosperous nations.

But scores of people without legal status in Chile — mostly Venezuelans who abandoned their country’s economic ruin and authoritarian rule in recent years — are now also headed in the other direction as Chile prepares to harden its stance against immigration.

The favorite to win Chile’s presidential runoff on Dec. 14, ultraconservative lawyer José Antonio Kast, has built his campaign around popular fears over immigration from Venezuela and a rise in organized crime. He filmed a campaign video at Chile’s porous desert border with Peru last week, warning immigrants without formal status to get out of the country while they still can.

“You have 111 days to leave Chile voluntarily,” Kast said in the ad, referring to the number of days until a new administration takes over from current left-wing President Gabriel Boric. “If not, we will stop you, we will detain you, we will expel you. You will leave with only the clothes on your back.”