COLOMBIA and Panama are failing to protect hundreds of thousands of migrants who cross the Darien Gap on their way to the United States, according to a damning new report from Human Rights Watch today.

HRW said that migrants taking this dangerous route have become increasingly vulnerable to robberies and sexual violence.

The watchdog called on both countries to appoint high-level officials to co-ordinate the response to the humanitarian crisis unfolding in the Darien Gap and said that the two governments must work jointly to improve security and ensure more assistance from international groups.