A Red Cross spokesman said today that an estimated one million Venezuelans have crossed into Colombia “since the middle of 2017”, and suggested that the actual figure is likely higher since it only takes into account entries through formal channels.
The comment came from Emanuele Capobianco, the health director at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (FRC) in a telephone interview granted to the Agence France-Presse.
Capobianco said that the reason for the exodus into Colombia is related to Venezuela’s ongoing collapse, and that an estimate 37,000 Venezuelans escape the country via Colombia each day. Capobianco characterized the flow of Venezuelans into Colombia as “constant”, following a recent trip to the border.
According to Capobianco, the situation in Venezuela constitutes “a humanitarian crisis” that demands more attention than it is currently receiving.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Confronted in Miami
Minister of Foreign Affairs Jorge Arreaza was in Costa Rica today where he was confronted by a distraught Venezuelan woman who chastised him as he took pictures with children and milled about with his entourage.
Below, the video along with my translation:
Woman: There’s no food! There’s no medicine! Why are you here, and not there in Venezuela? [Unintelligible] and they’re dying of hunger! My mother has terminal cancer, and can’t find any medicine!
You’re a thief! You’re doing just fine here, but [things over there aren’t fine]! Venezuela is starving, and here you are. [Unintelligible]… and in Venezuela, children are dying of hunger! Arreaza, you’re a thief! Socialism destroyed Venezuela! You’re a criminal! Murderer!
Arreaza was in Costa Rica to attend the inauguration ceremony of President Carlos Alvarado.
Caracas Subway Runs Out of Ticket Paper
The Caracas subway authority announced today that it had run out of paper on which it prints its tickets, forcing the entity to allow users to ride for free until further notice.
A source with the transit authority told El Nacional:
We ran out of the material yesterday. That was the result of a chain of events. We saw this coming. If we were unable to maintain ourselves before, now we’re even more unable. Now we depend 100% on the state.
Running out of ticket paper might be the least of the Caracas subway’s problems. The service is plagued by daily service interruptions that range from damaged equipment to blackouts.
Classes Suspended For One Week Due to Election
The Ministry of Education announced today that it was cancelling all elementary and high school classes in the country from May 15 to May 21 due to the presidential election scheduled to take place on May 20. The ministry made the announcement through its Twitter account this evening.
The school cancellation is arguably a sign that the Maduro regime is preparing for the possibility of generalized social unrest during the election.
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