Caracas Chronicles

Photo: BOD retrieved

Sudeban imposed a measure of administrative intervention on the Banco Occidental de Descuento (BOD) for 120 days, to protect and safeguard their clients’ funds. According to their memo, they want to prevent the customers’ funds from being used for alleviating the problems of their offices in Panama and Curaçao. The period of the intervention can be extended. BOD president Víctor Vargas denied that the institution is being intervened and that it’s fully functional: “It’s only  an administrative measure to oversee the financial institution,” said Vargas. He added that they’re waiting for the Banco del Orinoco (Curaçao) deal to be finalized in 60 days. He also said that AllBank in Panama represents barely 4% of Grupo Financiero BOD’s assets, and that what happened in Curaçao and Panama won’t impact Venezuela.  

Don’t Get Dressed, You Aren’t Going

“I went to NY last year. I won’t go this year. This year I’ll stay with you, working in Venezuela. Safe and calm. Delcy will go with the Foreign minister, great voices that are heard by the entire world,” said Nicolás on his variety show, celebrating Youth PSUV’s 11th anniversary today. According to him, his representatives will deliver “over 13 million signatures” in the letter for UN secretary general Antonio Guterres, condemning the economic sanctions and the blockade imposed by the U.S. on his government. Nicolás said that he’ll stay in the country with “a surprise agenda” to defend the country from alleged attacks by Colombia and the U.S. He took advantage of Diosdado Cabello’s accusation of Guaidó taking a picture with leaders or a Colombian criminal gang called Los Rastrojos: “It’s been proven  the Venezuelan right has bonds with Colombian drug traffickers, there are pictures of the self-proclaimed with three drug traffickers, murderes and paracos on the border with Colombia,” he said.

Wait, what?!

Guaidó’s photos were taken on February 2019, and it doesn’t seem like a coincidence that they were leaked on the same day that Foreign ministers from TIAR countries are summoned. After Diosdado Cabello, Colombian senator Gustavo Petro también tweeted the photos and assured that President Iván Duque and Guaidó “were allied with drug traffickers for their event on the border. Journalist Alberto Ravell, head of Guaidó’s Communications Center, said that “these people were in a checkpoint, asked to take a picture and he did.” Ambassador Humberto Calderón Berti said that “Guaidó could have taken a picture with anyone, people don’t walk around demanding IDs and criminal records to people who ask for a picture.” 

Brief and Serious

– The president of the Venezuelan Medical Federation Douglas León Natera informed that 80 % of the health centers in the country have closed, and that the situation gets worse because of shortages and the state’s decision to deny the epidemiologic crisis. At least 30,000 doctors have left the country. 

 – Teachers and leaders of  workers unions of the education sector informed that schools won’t open on September 16th, even though that’s the date the school year was supposed to begin. That day, they’ll protest their wages and the terrible state of schools around the country. 

– Reuters says that government officials and opposition leaders have been debating for months in Caracas potential solutions for the economic crisis; at the same time as the now stuck Norwegian dialogue. l margen del estancado diálogo auspiciado por Noruega.

– Hugo Carvajal told a Spanish court that the United States was making up drug trafficking accusations for his extradition, doubting that he’d cooperate with Trump’s administration in his offense against Nicolás’s government. 

We the Migrants

The European Commission announced that they’ve given an extra 10 million euros to face the humanitarian and migratory crisis. Assistance will be focusing in registering and providing IDs for immigrants and refugees, finance measures to reduce tensions and risk of violence with the receiving communities, find solutions for women’s and children’s vulnerability, who are exposed to people trafficking for exploitation. 

Federica Mogherini had in Colombia a meeting with President Duque, where they covered the challenges of sheltering Venezuelan migrants and refugees. Ecuador will issue a “transit permit” so Venezuelans with visas for other countries can move in Ecuadorian territory, said Foreign minister José Valencia. Interior minister clarified: “We’re reevaluating, but for now, you can’t enter Ecuador without a visa.” Chilean Migration Department informed that Venezuelans’ entry had decreased by 80% after the tourism visa measure started being enforced. 

Carlos Morán said that the visa imposed by Peru on Venezuelan citizens dropped drastically after the visa imposed. 

Movements on the Board

• “In fact, my points of view about Venezuela and especially Cuba were a lot more drastic than Bolton’s,” said Donald Trump on Twitter, after Senator Marco Rubio’s tweet.
• The U.S. announced ambassador Michael G. Kozak as a deputy-secretary of state for the hemisphere. AP director Joshua Goodman said that Kozak “is the rare kind of diplomat that isn’t afraid to use force for what the United States considers noble goals.
• Jorge Arreaza, asked the UN Human Rights Council to reject any country that applies economic sanctions to another.

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After evaluating 1,730 trabajos, the jury of the Premio Gabo 2019 chose the top 40 Hispanic American stories, ten for each category. Venezuelan nominees are: Las voces del JM, published in La vida de nos ( Text category); Venezuela sin datos, in Efecto Cocuyo ( Coverage category); Intercortados, in Instituto Prensa y Sociedad, and Mujeres en la vitrina, migración en manos de la trata, by El Pitazo, RunRunes and Tal Cual ( Innovation category). that night, WOLA, a prominent human rights center, celebrates Efecto Cocuyo for their bravery against authoritarianism, congratulations to their entire team!