Marcela was 36 years old and lived alone in Tunja with her two children. Of them she was mother and father at the same time.
Every day he went out to search for money to provide shelter, food and education. Not in vain does her brother describe her as a warrior and fighter woman. “Tirada pa’lante,” in his words.
“He was a person whose life was not easy for him. He had to fight like any other Colombian who wants to move forward,” he recalls.
She always had informal work and at the risk of losing his job he was measured to what he was, where he was and how he was. Their demands took a back seat, as the priority was the welfare of Mary Joseph and Kristhyan.
(Two out of five people are in poverty in Colombia)
Before the pandemic, this brown-haired, white-skinned, droopy-eyed tunic was engaged in stationery. However, the ravages of the virus forced the venue to close its doors and she was left adrift.
Then, in the face of day-to-day urgency, he devoted himself to selling wrappers and tamales. She then got a job as a waitress in a city cafe. But again, life did not put him on the easy path. His boss, who according to his relatives is a foreigner, verbally assaulted him constantly and every offensive word he received was added so that one day he would make the decision to resign. I couldn’t stand any more abuse.
At that time, his situation was critical and his survival was hanging by a thread. The fact of never being able to contribute a pension, receive premiums or have social insurance had it exhausted. The drop that spilled the cup came on July 26, 2021, when a man on a motorcycle approached him, pointed a gun at him and said: “Where’s your ex-husband?”.
It was as if he had seen a ghost. His face turned pale. Her legs and arms were shaking. He stammered a few words, “He’s out of the country,” he said. The subject warned her that if she did not tell him where she was, he would kill her. Within seconds, he was gone. From that moment on, Marcela felt afraid to go out, especially with her children, which slowed down her life plans.
This threat, which she herself reported a week later to the Tunja Police, coupled with the instability she had in Colombia, pushed her to make the decision to go to the United States in search of political asylum to reunite with Víctor Hugo Pinzón, Kristhyan’s father, who has lived there since January 17, 2019.
(US will reopen cases of asylum seekers returned to Mexico)