German Colonization in Latin America.

Venezuela

The German diaspora in Latin America began around the year 1530 when the King of Spain Charles V gave part of Venezuela to the families of German bankers, the Welsers, and likewise to the Fuggers in South America. The Welsers would form colonies in Maracaibo, although they did not last among the Spanish colonies.

Brazil

It was only in the middle of the 19th century after the Second World War that the German settlements managed to be included in the Latin American society. German colonialism already existed in Brazil, taking advantage of the conflict with Uruguay in 1820 to settle in the territories of southern Brazil and with much more firmness in the last quarter of the 19th century, in spite of maintaining a history of difficulty in their adaptation during the time of the war, they excelled especially in agricultural activities.

Chile

In Chile, Argentina and Uruguay, a similar phenomenon existed, although Chile received a considerable number of German migrants since the First World War, being one of the most successful settlements of Germans.

Paraguay

In Paraguay they only appeared after the war of the triple alliance, although with failed settlements as the one originated by the sister of the well-known philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, which founded Nueva Germania, although in 1938 its population declined to only 130 Germans. Hohenau in south-eastern Paraguay was the nucleus of colonization and much of its population remained of predominantly German ancestry.

Below represented on the map the concentration of german people in the world today.

Source: Allice Hunter, wikimedia

Main reasons for the departure of Germans from Europe 2021.

Millions of Germans have left Europe in the last two hundred years, although the vast majority went to Canada and the USA; the next region of major German migration has been Latin America. The reasons were mainly economic, with wealthy German families and other German-speaking families migrating after World War I and World War II and making significant settlements. Currently, the same phenomenon is looming but under the shadow of new “threats” to the German family and society such as the following:

Increase of refugees in Germany.

Currently the reasons for emigration of German citizens have changed, especially since the migration wave of refugees arriving to Germany of almost 1.24 million and with more than 200,000 asylum seekers, becoming the largest recipient of refugees in Europe, creating a social and cultural crisis which has been one of the main reasons for the departure of the teutons.

Increasing Discrimination and Intolerance.

As stated by Human Rights watch in its report – Germany events in 2020-, discrimination and intolerance have resulted in an increase in crimes, many of them anti-Semitic, which have provoked constant unrest, uncertainty and insecurity among citizens.

Covid_19 restrictions and measures.

The impact of Covid-19 on the overcrowded housing of refugees and asylum seekers has only exacerbated the precarious living conditions of marginalized populations, the loss of jobs and overexploitation of labor have been the triggers for further convulsions of extremist groups against the anti-Covid-19 measures and the worsening labor situation of certain sectors.

The continuous Covid-19 restrictions and the compulsory vaccination for essential activities have played an important role in the decision of German citizens to leave in search of a less demanding environment with respect to vaccination positions or at least to allow free choice and development of alternative solutions as reflected in the BBC London documentary.

Panama: A new destination for Germans.

The main emigration destinations for Teutons in America are the United States and Canada, followed by Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Argentina and lately Paraguay.  In the region of Caazapá, Paraguay; the community “El Paraiso Verde”, has received more than 3000 people in recent years in an urban development project that is criticized for its ideological currents, as The Guardian points out in its article on Covid deniers.

In Central America, Panama stands out with more than 12,000 German visitors in 2021 according the Panama immigration movement statistics of 2021, with 453 residence permits granted in comparison with the 170 permits granted in 2020, demonstrating a genuine increase of interest of the Teutons to settle in tropical lands.

Panama fosters multiculturalism and respect for ideological currents, with entire communities of expatriates located in every corner of the country, a clear example is the city of Boquete in the province of Chiriqui and also the Panama City itself.  Chiriqui province stands out for being the agricultural production center of Panama, supplying the whole country with the main vegetables and meat products.

Unlike its South American neighbors, Panama enjoys reduced seismic activity and, compared to other Central American and Caribbean countries, there are no hurricanes, only tropical depressions during the rainy season.

The management of COVID_19 has been as in other countries of lockdowns and restrictions, which fortunately have been progressively lifted. It should be noted that the vulnerable population has always been motivated to vaccinate, but there has always been a free choice of the people on this regard.

The Panama Canal has always been the driving force of the economy and also one of the reasons why the country’s neutrality posture is relevant in geopolitical issues, as well as its importance in the world economy, in terms of investments and imports.

In search of family safety and access to natural enviroments, thousands of german families have benefit of the Panama immigration programs known as Friendly Nations visa,  pensioner visa, and investment visa for permanent residence and later citizenship.