Nicaragua and Uzbekistan are separated by more than 13,000 kilometers; there are no direct flights, and they do not share the same language or culture. However, citizens from this Central Asian country, the most populated in the region with a relatively young population, with 35% of it being younger than 14, have managed to bridge the distance virtually, to give advice and help their migrant compatriots who want to reach the ‘American dream’ passing through the small Central American nation, which—under the dictatorship of Daniel Ortega—serves as the ideal springboard to reach the U.S.
Migrants arrive in Nicaragua by taking several flights, and from there, they travel overland from country to country to the Mexico-United States border, according to a trace conducted by LA PRENSA in Telegram groups created to provide recommendations to Uzbeks crossing through Nicaragua.
One of the groups was created in December 2023, and since then, it has been sharing how Uzbek migrants arrive in Managua as ‘tourists.’
Almost 500 Uzbek migrants in six months
So far this year, 464 Uzbek migrants have crossed into Honduras from Nicaragua, according to figures from the Honduran National Institute of Migration. However, in the Telegram groups reviewed by this newspaper, it is clear that Nicaragua is recommended as an ideal route for migrants who want to reach the United States.
A study published in December last year by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) of the United Nations (UN) indicates that in that year, a total of 34,966 Asian migrants irregularly entered Honduras using Nicaragua as a bridge. Of that total, 35 percent were Chinese, 15 percent were Uzbeks, and 12 percent were Indians.
The administrator of one of the groups accessed by LA PRENSA assured that the group ‘was created to help as much as possible those who want to go to America.”
In the group there are Uzbek migrants who have already achieved their goal of entering the United States. “Brothers, we are in Nicaragua and we are sending people from here. How are you? Are you getting used to the American air?” wrote the administrator.
Central Asian migrants aspiring to reach the United States must traverse long, dangerous, and expensive routes. According to what was tracked in the group, they have to plan a trip to Istanbul, Turkey; then to Madrid, Spain; and afterward to one of the Latin American countries such as Colombia, Panama, or Nicaragua.
In the latter, they enter without a visa. The next stage of the journey is by walking, in cars, or on boats.
Intur issues them a tourist card
The process begins once the Uzbeks have direct contact with the people offering the transfer to Nicaragua. Upon arrival at the Augusto C. Sandino International Airport in Managua, the Nicaraguan Institute of Tourism (Intur) issues the migrant a tourist card that costs 10 dollars.
The card bears the signature and seal with the name of the airport and the date of issuance.
On May 30 of this year, an administrator shared a photograph of at least six cards that Intur issued to Uzbeks. “Our clients have arrived in Managua,” reads the text shared with the photo, indicating that the group also engages in the business of transporting migrants.
In the group, the administrators share photographs and videos of places in Nicaragua that some of the Uzbeks visit, such as Puerto Salvador Allende, the streets of the capital, and even the Masaya Volcano, before continuing with their journey.
$40,000 for all-inclusive packages
On June 23 of last year, the Mexican National Institute of Migration (INM) assisted 14 migrants from Uzbekistan who were traveling crowded in a van that overturned while traveling on the Villa Comaltitlán-Ejido Hidalgo stretch of road in the state of Chiapas.
Of the total, 13 were men and one woman.
In June of this year, the Mexican media outlet La Razón reported that the INM revealed that among the groups involved in human trafficking to the United States in Mexico are Uzbeks, in addition to three Mexican cartels detected in Baja California.
David Pérez Tejada, INM delegate in Baja California, as reported by La Razón, stated that Uzbek ‘coyotes’ charge up to $40,000 for all-inclusive packages (VTP).
“There are already Uzbeks living in our country, who are infiltrated here, and these Uzbeks, whether smugglers or traffickers, are in contact with a criminal gang back in their country of origin. They have paid for charter flights directly from Uzbekistan to Nicaragua,” noted the Mexican official.
The open-door policy for migration aimed at reaching the United States by the regime in Nicaragua has allowed the arrival of dozens of charter flights carrying migrants, mostly Africans and Asians, who pay large sums of money to traffickers to transport them to Managua. From there, they continue their journey to Honduras.
This route, U.S. officials have stated, is under international scrutiny as it has become one of the main migratory paths on the continent, even briefly surpassing the notorious Darien Gap between Panama and Colombia.
Relations with Uzbekistan
On June 26 of this year, the regime’s spokesperson and First Lady, Rosario Murillo, announced in her usual daily address that Tatiana Daniela García Silvia had received the approval to serve as Nicaragua’s ambassador to the Republic of Uzbekistan.
“Our Comrade Tatiana Daniela García Silva will be our representative to that brotherly people and government of Uzbekistan”, mentioned Murillo.
The Nicaraguan dictatorship has issued a series of statements extending greetings to Shavkat Mirziyoyev, the current President of Uzbekistan, following the death of Islam Karimov in 2016. Karimov, who ruled Uzbekistan with an iron fist for 27 years, was identified by many as one of the last direct heirs of the remnants of the Soviet Union. He passed away at the age of 78.