From Despair to Hope: Venezuelan Pastor Rekindles Hope for His Troubled Homeland
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Jesús Campo, a pastor, decided to take action to help the Venezuelan refugees facing starvation in Brazil. He founded a shantytown in Pacaraima, called Vila Esperança or the Village of Hope, with the materials of scrap metal, mud and wood.
In the past decade, over 7 million Venezuelans had to leave their homeland due to the economic crisis. Initially, the country was under US "maximum pressure" with sanctions and threats to remove the authoritarian leader, **Nicolás Maduro**. However, Maduro survived. **President Biden** shifted the US stance, sending US envoys to Caracas and allowing US oil company *Chevron* to resume operations in the country.
In addition, the recent election victories of *Gustavo Petro* in Colombia and *Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva* in Brazil also helped Maduro's situation, with Petro restoring diplomatic ties with Venezuela in August and Lula planning to do the same after taking office in January.
Currently, there are negotiations taking place in Mexico between Maduro's allies and the opposition, alongside a US$3 billion humanitarian assistance fund proposed by the UN. Another positive sign is the economic recovery in Venezuela, with Maduro relaxing price controls and dollarising its economy in 2019.
Despite this, Venezuela still faces numerous humanitarian challenges. People are still fleeing the country, especially to the US, and hundreds reach the Brazilian border city of Pacaraima each day. Many of them still do not believe the country is bouncing back from its crisis.
Anthony Llovera, a former paramedic, is one of them. He quit his job in Caracas hospital due to the insufficient salary and is now looking for a job in Brazil. He does not think Maduro will offer any meaningful political concessions that would secure free and fair presidential elections in 2024.
Regina Latinez, one of Vila Esperança's 176 residents, has a similar opinion. She is a former teacher and mother of a teenage daughter, who was forced to quit her job in Venezuela due to hunger. Currently, they live off government benefits and NGO donations in Brazil and are not planning to go back.
International Crisis Group analyst Phil Gunson agrees that Venezuela is at a fork in the road. While there have been superficial signs of recovery, nearly 300 political prisoners are still in jail, and negotiations between Venezuela and the opposition in Mexico may not guarantee any progress towards democracy.
On the other hand, Pastor Jesús Campo is more optimistic. He believes divine forces brought Venezuela back from the brink by getting Donald Trump out of office. Despite all the pain and instability he has seen, he still sees a bright future for the country.
Overall, Venezuelans living in exile still remain uncertain about their homeland's future. Although the situation is improving, much depends on what Maduro decides to do and whether a gradual transition back to democracy can be secured. Until then, many of them will remain in Brazil, hoping for a better tomorrow.