The reception of the first groups of Venezuelans interiorized in Belo Horizonte

Abstract

The displacement of venezuelans across the continent has deepened, and Brazil, which historically receives few requests for refuge, has seen this number grow exponentially from 2018. One response that the Brazilian Government has given to this flow is the process of interiorization, that is, in the voluntary displacement of venezuelans living in the state of Roraima, to other states in Brazil. Thus, this article seeks to answer the following question: how was the reception of the first groups of venezuelans interiorized in Belo Horizonte, in 2019? For this, the research used a vast theoretical framework (ZUZARTE E MOULIN, 2018; MILESI, 2003; HADDAD, 2008; FACUNDO, 2014; HAMID, 2012; PENNINX, 2015; STRANG ET AL, 2019), as well as a field research based on qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews carried out with public authorities and non-governmental actors (three public authorities at federal, state, and municipal levels; United Nations representative and representatives of local reception networks). The research results point to an emergency federal reception, but the non-continuity of these policies at the local level, promoting a kind of abandonment of these people after the interiorization period. Institutional spaces are scarce and there are no adequate public policies aimed at migrant and refugee populations.