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This paper develops a comparative assessment of the state of asylum in Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and Uruguay. It argues that an accelerated weakening of refugee protection, exacerbated during the pandemic, has taken place across the region. Faced with growing mixed flows, the region’s refugee framework has either been used as an ad hoc regularization mechanism or not been broadly used. Also, pandemic mitigation measures have further weakened access to asylum, through militarization and border closures, and a platitude of deterrence practices. These regressive practices may result in the undermining, abandonment and/or replacement of the region’s widely praised refugee governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Venezuelans escaping from the crisis in their country count currently among the largest displaced populations in the world. Chile seems to offer them an oasis of political and economic stability. This ethnographic study explores the migrant trajectories of Venezuelan women. We disentangle their migration process, including destination imaginaries, the journey, and their life in Chile. We discuss how uncertainty is permanent in their trajectories and how the imagined oasis turns out to be just a mirage. The women end up waiting, perhaps perennially, to be able to return home. Meanwhile, they develop strategies to survive in an oasis without water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]