Vanessa Pérez. Photo: JB.
Vanessa Pérez describes organized earthquake relief efforts and denounces media distortions and US intentions to take advantage of Venezuela’s grief.
Hi, Vanessa. First, tell us who you are and how things are going there a few days after the earthquakes.
My name is Vanessa Pérez. I’m the spokesperson for the Cinco Fortalezas Commune and National Spokesperson for the Communard Union (Unión Comunera). On June 24, Venezuela experienced two earthquakes. That day was the anniversary of the Battle of Carabobo, a non-working day. We were at home resting when the earthquakes struck. Now we are living through a difficult, painful moment of human and material losses: many people have been affected and many structures have collapsed.
Our people moved quickly to help. Many residents took to the streets without formal rescue training, but they offered their support. Our officials, rescue workers, police, and National Guard members have not rested since June 24, working nonstop to provide assistance.
There was full mobilization of our people, our organization, and our security team, Shelters and medical care were set up immediately. From the first moment, the national and revolutionary government went into the streets to address this crisis, with our acting president Delcy Rodríguez attending to needs and seeking solutions.
At the same time, we have been in what feels like a constant war of misinformation and false narratives, along with a hate campaign intended to poison people with false information. We have seen claims spread widely through social media and WhatsApp groups saying that the government did not arrive or that machinery did not reach the area. There are also rumors alleging that the Venezuelan military turned away rescuers. This is a misrepresentation of efforts to ensure that rescue and relief operations were organized and coordinated and that emergency work was not hindered by unorganized onlookers or non-emergency traffic.
This misinformation campaign is hurtful and interferes with the public’s ability to see the work being carried out by our people in Venezuela.
In contrast, we recognize the support coming from different sectors. Even private companies have donated machinery and offered equipment and assistance, especially in La Guaira, the state hardest hit, the location of our National Airport, which was severely damaged. In fact, in every municipality of our country people have set up collection centers to gather supplies and food.
Effects of US coercive measures
The United States has opposed the Bolivarian Revolution since the beginning, but in 2015—at a time when the National Assembly was controlled by the opposition—the U.S. intensified its sanctions and coercive measures, depriving us of funds and essential supplies, including medicines. Members of the opposition supported and encouraged those measures. Then came COVID-19, which we weathered despite coercive restrictions and many hardships. Throughout all of this, our president Maduro remained a strong leader, and with the people we overcame obstacles. That is why we believe and trust that we will prevail.
This year has brought additional hardship. President Nicolás Maduro was kidnapped on January 3, in an invasion and bombing where the U.S. empire abducted him (along with Deputy Cilia Flores) and killed many who defended them. Now, six months after those events, nature continues to hit us hard. Still, we are holding our ground.
Could you describe the activities of the Cinco Fortalezas commune in the relief effort?
From the moment the earthquakes struck, we began a relief collection effort within the commune. Two years ago, our region, Cumanacoa, in the Northeast State of Sucre on the Caribbean, about 8 hours from the earthquake epicenter, had a natural disaster—two floods that inundated most of our town.
Remembering that experience, from the very beginning we set up collection centers in all the communities comprising our commune. At these centers, we are gathering donated food and supplies, consolidating them at the municipal level, and sending them to Caracas so they can be distributed where needs are greatest. Many volunteers also signed up to go to Caracas and help in the rescue efforts.
Say more about how Cinco Fortalezas and the other communes organized the relief efforts.
Word spread immediately. Each commune sprang into action and made itself available. To coordinate among all 26 communes in this municipality, we met via video call, developed an action plan, and put it into operation to establish a collection center that would operate continuously every day, with staff working around the clock to receive food and coordinate shipments of supplies donated by commune families and individuals.
What about contributions from the commune as a whole?
Right now we are organizing the purchase of products from the two commune-owned businesses we have: growing and harvesting sugarcane, and processing it into brown sugar, so the commune can make a direct contribution. While we organize that, our collection centers are constantly supplied by the families and community members who reside in the commune.
How do you get those supplies to the affected areas?
Supplies gathered from around each municipality are transported to the state-level collection center in each state, and then sent from there to the national collection center. This organization helps prevent chaos in deliveries, and helps ensure that resources reach the people directly affected and the teams actually carrying out rescue and relief work.
In the first days, many people rushed toward the affected areas, many on motorcycles, which clogged the streets and hindered rescue efforts. Some people began filming individuals in the middle of their grief, or taking selfies in front of destroyed buildings. That is not what we want. We want to handle this in an organized manner.
How has U.S. policy—including coercive measures and the seizure of Venezuelan funds—hindered rescue and relief efforts?
We estimate that $2.25 billion is needed to meet Venezuela’s essential needs. A large amount of oil has been shipped to the United States and we have no control over the resources leaving the country. Yet we see that the U.S. president is offering only a small portion of that as “humanitarian aid.” We consider this disrespectful and abusive given that the U.S. continues to keep a great percentage of Venezuela’s own funds and resources from us. It is a difficult situation, and it directly limits what we can do inside Venezuela today.
We have a huge need for resources to rebuild infrastructure and provide homes for people who have lost absolutely everything. So this mocking attitude, offering us crumbs out of our own stolen wealth, is especially painful.
And what would you like to say to the people of the U.S.?
I would like to say they should see what Donald Trump has done to devastate Venezuela. We in Venezuela feel powerless because we see him come to invade, sabotage, and plunder our nation. From our perspective, it is plunder because we do not see the benefits of what is taken from our country.
We view the visit by the U.S. rescue workers as support, just like all the other countries that are helping with rescue efforts, but we’re also keeping a very close eye on what moves they make with their personnel. We have seen a military presence of Marines in this country who arrive with weapons—military officials who may intend to take advantage of the circumstances we are currently facing.
We must be objective about this. One part is helping us; with the other part, we don’t know what motives they have behind the scenes. We don’t have much trust in the U.S.’s actions.
And the Venezuelan opposition—what has been its role in this disaster?
The opposition has participated heavily in the media war to smear the Bolivarian government. Yet they have also been affected by the catastrophe. As mentioned above, many here have been helping in the efforts. Since the quakes seven days ago we have not seen attacks from the Venezuelan opposition that resides inside the country. Their behavior seems more aligned with the reality of the disaster.
In contrast, people who are not in the country, like María Corina, are sending messages and giving orders from outside the country, spreading misinformation. We believe those communications from outside are causing much damage.
Would you like to add anything else?
I want to send a big hug and thank you for keeping attention on what is happening here, for standing with us, and for providing clear information about the true reality.
If there is one way people can truly help us, it would be to demand lifting of the sanctions and the blockade against Venezuela [see top for links]. That is the only way we could genuinely feel support from the US—anything else is not real help, just crumbs.
Despite everything we’re living through, Venezuela is still standing. There is leadership, many people on the left are in the streets united, and it’s wonderful to see a Venezuela that resists every day with confidence that we will rise above these circumstances. A Venezuela with faith in our capacity to overcome these obstacles and defeat that pedophile who has done so much damage to this country.
We the Venezuelan people are united and will never be defeated.
(Substack)
