Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello answering questions from the press after the arrival of a flight with Venezuelan migrants deported by the United States. Photo: Venezuelan Interior Ministry.
This Friday, May 2, Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello welcomed two flights of returning migrants. The first had 174 Venezuelan migrants coming from El Paso, Texas, United States, and the second one in the afternoon carried 183 Venezuelans also from the US, with a stopover in Honduras. The reception protocols and logistics of the operation pertain to the Return to the Homeland program launched by Nicolás Maduro’s administration in 2018.
The flight arrived at Simón Bolívar International Airport in Maiquetía, La Guaira state, where the minister reported that 3,646 Venezuelans have returned to Venezuela in recent weeks, as reported by Venezolana de Televisión (VTV).
Cabello stated that “there is a mafia led by far-right Venezuelan coyotes with the complicity of immigration officials from various countries in the region and the United States,” promoting the exodus of Venezuelans. He asserted that the Venezuelan government continues to demand the return of all Venezuelans kidnapped in the US and El Salvador.
Extraordinary effort
Minister Cabello emphasized that the return of migrants is possible thanks to “an extraordinary effort. It’s an effort of coordination, of teamwork, and it is because of the instructions given by the president of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, to bring back our fellow citizens.”
He also noted the history of abuses, persecution, and lies against Venezuelan migrants but emphasized that “we are lovingly welcoming Venezuelans and have asked that entire families be sent back home and that they not be separated.”
Cabello explained that 142 men and 18 women arrived on this flight of the Return to the Homeland program, including six mothers with their children and eight children, ensuring they will receive comprehensive care. He also announced that Flight 18 of the Return to the Homeland plan was expected to arrive that Friday afternoon.
Case of Maikelys Espinoza
The minister also referred to the case of the Venezuelan girl Maikelys Espinoza, kidnapped by the US government, and reaffirmed the state’s commitment to ensuring her return.
“It’s a fight for the family, for the most sacred thing a nation holds: its children. They [the US] have kidnapped and stolen a Venezuelan girl. It is said this procedure has been repeated, and more children are being separated from their parents. I hope they raise awareness about the children they have kidnapped in that country,” he said.
The Venezuelan official also condemned the Trump administration’s double standards, which claims to defend global human rights but fails to act. “One observes that this is the behavior of those who care nothing for human lives, much less the integrity of Venezuelan or global families,” he added.
Statement: Trump’s Mass Deportation of Migrants Must be Condemned
Abuse against migrants
Minister Cabello denounced US authorities for mistreating Venezuelans during the return trip. “These people are coming to mistreat us. A woman arrived with her daughter and said she was mistreated. I will speak to her. Even on the last flight, some complained about being beaten. We demand respect for all Venezuelans,” he stated.
Cabello said that US actions against migrants—labeling them external enemies—have been “rejected by the free peoples of the world. We have no choice but to lovingly welcome these Venezuelans,” he added, reiterating that “whoever is deported, abused, or persecuted by the US government, we welcome them, background check them, and reunite them with their families” if they have a clean criminal record.
Meanwhile, migrant Eder Romero, interviewed by VTV, denounced mistreatment by US authorities: “We suffer abuse. There are deported children, minors, elderly people, and people imprisoned for no reason,” he said, describing being locked in cells and mistreated.
Second flight
As reported by Minister Cabello in the afternoon hours of Friday, another flight bringing migrants landed at the Simón Bolívar International Airport in Maiquetia, La Guaira state.
Cabello also supervised the reception protocols and reported that 157 men and 26 women arrived on the Conviasa flight, noting that no children were on the flight.
“We understand that this is imperialism’s arrogant response to the resounding demands of hundreds of thousands of people in Caracas, asking for Maikelys’s return,” Cabello said about the baby girl separated from her mother in a repatriation flight last week, just moments before boarding the plane that brought her back to Venezuela.
“In their arrogance, the response is this: ‘I am not sending any children. I continue to separate families because I am imperialism itself,'” he added with disgust.
Minister Cabello emphasized that, since 2018, more than one million Venezuelans have returned to the country. He updated the number of migrants that have returned to Venezuela in recent weeks, now totaling 3,829 people in 18 flights. These migrants have come from the United States, sometimes via Mexico or Honduras.
(Últimas Noticias) by Odry Farnetano with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SF
