Are French citizens banned by their government from entering the Darien gap, or do they need authorization by the French gov to enter the Darien gap?

Question

I read some comments questioning whether the French government bans their citizens from entering the Darien gap (a region of the connection between the north and south American continents). Are French citizens banned by the French government from entering the Darien gap, or do they need some kind of authorization by the French government to enter the Darien gap?

Answer 1

To build up on Giacomo Catenazzi's answer, it's interesting to note that somewhere between 2015 and 2016, the wording on the official website changed from les voyages sont à proscrire ("trips are to be avoided at all costs") to les voyages sont proscrits (travelling is prohibited).

I don't know if it reflects a change in ministry doctrine and/or answers a legal concern. The old phrasing seems more logical and was not at odds with the other parts of the site as mentioned by Giacomo.

However, about the Darien region specifically, the official French ministry page says travelling is discouraged, not explicitly banned.

You get some hints of the legal consequences of the red rank in this article in Le Figaro:

• Repatriation costs no longer covered by the government if the traveller knowingly put themselves in a dangerous situation.
• (inferred from question 7/) Travel agencies and airlines operating from France stop their connections with the red zone. Whether they naturally do it of their own volition, obey to transport sector rules or are formally asked to by Foreign Affairs is not clear, but the legal risk towards their customers should they continue operating is probably too high anyway.

The French law is based on freedom of movement in accordance with international treaties, however there's obviously a series of exceptions that restrict the right to travel in some cases - pandemic, travelling to terrorist-controlled zones and back, etc.

Answer 2

It can be a can of worms, because we are talking about foreign affairs and diplomacy, so they may uses friendly terms, and so interpretation is difficult.

In any case, we have the FAQ 6: https://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/fr/conseils-aux-voyageurs/foire-aux-questions/#sommaire_6

Rouge : la zone est formellement déconseillée. Les voyages sont proscrits.

which translate: red: the zone is formally discouraged. Travels are banned, which seems using two contradictory terms.

So, let's check the two countries:

Panama: https://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/fr/conseils-aux-voyageurs/conseils-par-pays-destination/panama/#securite, so you see Darian is in red region.

Colombia: https://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/fr/conseils-aux-voyageurs/conseils-par-pays-destination/colombie/#securite also in red regions (and the red regions are much larger).

So travels are in some sort banned for French citizen. I have no idea on consequences: I do not think you can be imprisoned, or get a fine, but that may go on legal SE.