Venezuelans, especially the youngest, continue to leave the country. They flee misery, unemployment and the lack of opportunities to progress. Most do so in precarious, dangerous and painful conditions. They join caravans that travel hundreds or thousands of kilometers on foot. They only have a handful of dollars in their pockets. What is necessary to survive or to pay a “coyote”. Until the end of 2021, the favorite destination was the countries in the south of the continent: Argentina, Chile and Peru. Neighboring Colombia has received more than 2 million compatriots since 2013.
The trend changed. The economic crisis caused in the region by covid-19 and by the recession that is accompanying Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, discouraged emigration to Latin American nations. Now, the most powerful pole of attraction is once again the United States. Venezuelans have joined Hondurans, Nicaraguans, Salvadorans, Haitians, and Cubans who place their hope in the north for a more dignified life.
According to the office of the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States for the Venezuelan migrant crisis -coordinated by David Smolansky, the mayor of El Hatillo who was forced to flee after the relentless persecution of Nicolás Maduro- from Venezuela they flee every day 1,700 people. An important part does so with the intention of crossing the Darién plug, the jungle that connects Colombia with Panama, in order to continue walking towards the United States.
According to the Migration Office of the Panamanian government, between January and June 2022, 28,079 Venezuelans crossed the Darién jungle, 10 times more than those who crossed it in all of 2021, when the figure was 2,819. As you know, that is an inhospitable territory. Extremely dangerous, not only because of the irregular and swampy terrain, the dense vegetation, the aggressiveness of its fauna and the flow of its rivers, but also because of the drug traffickers and people traffickers who circulate there, believing they are the owners of that unknown region. So far in 2022, at least 11 Venezuelans have died trying to cross the Darién. This is the number that has been confirmed. However, Panamanian authorities are convinced that the total is much higher. Numerous walkers have gone missing without their bodies turning up. Last week, 4 people died, including a minor.
Faced with this immense drama, the response of the government of Nicolás Maduro has been the same as always: denying the tragedy suffered by emigrants, blaming the media for distorting and inflating the data in order to damage the international image of the government and say that there are no reasons to leave Venezuela because the country “fixed itself”, only that a few petty and envious opponents do not admit it. That was the cynical tone of Diosdado Cabello’s press conference in which he commented on the death of the 4 emigrants in the Darién jungle.
The regime refuses to accept that the humblest Venezuelans continue to emigrate, that they do so in deplorable conditions, that their lives are continually in danger on these endless journeys, and that people have sufficient reason to want to escape, just like the Cubans, the Haitians or the Nicaraguans.
The data is categorical. The minimum wage represents less than a quarter of the cost of the basic basket and less than half of the food basket. Half of the population eats only twice a day. If you consider the portion size and nutritional quality of food, the food crisis is even deeper. Informality in employment is increasing due to low wages and the continuous increase in inflation. The quality of life is continually degraded by the collapse of all public services. From electricity to public transport, and from health and education to Internet connectivity, there is no service that eases the daily lives of the majority of citizens.
That is the pathetic reality of humble Venezuelans. In Caracas and the capital region, the overall picture is a little less deteriorated. But in the Llanos, Oriente, Andes and Zulia, reality is overwhelming. In these regions the centrifugal force is very powerful. People do not want to languish waiting for a small business to set up, or for the government to deign to provide them with water and electricity, or for the CLAP bag that the family eventually receives. That bankrupt Venezuelan with no destiny wants to escape from the indolence, inefficiency and corruption that have plunged him into misery.
The traffic of compatriots through the Darién jungle is an excellent example that Venezuela arranged for the plugged in who spend without measure and are surrounded by an army of escorts, but not for the poor Venezuelan who is part of the vast majority.
@trinomarquezc
