With over seven million migrants, it is the second wave in the world after that of the Syrians. An exodus that has lasted for years due to the country’s economic collapse. And which sees the Church of Roraima at the forefront of offering dignity and integration
Although migrations are a topical issue at every latitude, in Latin America there is a humanitarian crisis on which the spotlights of the world are not turned on: the one that pushes Venezuelans to leave their country en masse. Thousands of people flee not because of persecution or war, but because of the socio-economic collapse of the nation, which has been going on for years now.
In terms of size, that of Venezuela is the second wave of migration in the world after that of Syria: according to some data published in November 2022, the crisis has already forced 7.13 million citizens to seek refuge in other Latin American countries. The socio-political situation, inflation at record levels (official data speak of an annual rate of 157%), the deterioration of economic conditions, food shortages, public insecurity, lack of health care, the violation of human rights: they are all reasons that push people to leave their own country. And since 2014, more than 388,000 have already crossed the border with Brazil.
Angelo, a Venezuelan lawyer, fled with his wife in 2018 in search of better living conditions, temporarily leaving behind a son. «Nobody wants to leave their own country – he says, family, home, possessions, friendships. Part of my life has remained there. We graduated, we worked, we started saving. But the money we earn today is no longer enough to go shopping».
From his hometown he bought a bus ticket that took them to Santa Elena de Uairen, on the border with Brazil. Not all Venezuelans can afford a bus trip like Angelo: some travel hundreds of kilometers on foot, and then cross the border arriving in Pacaraima, in the state of Roraima, the gateway for Venezuelans to Brazil.
For my doctoral thesis, I visited this locality, studying the theme of the welcome these desperate people find. In Pacaraima I found refugee camps managed with professionalism and humanity thanks to the Welcome Operation, a major humanitarian cooperation initiative, led and coordinated by the federal government of Brazil with the support of UNHCR, other United Nations agencies and over 100 religious bodies and NGOs. It was born in 2016 as an initiative of the University Pastoral of the Roraima. The Jesuit Father Ronilson Braga, then diocesan assistant, recalls: “In the face of the arrival of the Venezuelans, we carried out an analysis of what was happening: knowing the reality in order to discern and then act”.
L’Welcome Operation today unfolds around three guidelines: the first is the presence at the border. An initial screening takes place at the Pacaraima border during which every Venezuelan receives the refugee’s identity card, medical care and the necessary vaccinations. The second phase is reception in reception facilities in Pacaraima or Boa Vista (still in Roraima), with the supply of meals, personal hygiene products, basic Portuguese courses, training and free time entertainment, as well as assistance basic health. The last phase is redistribution, i.e. the logistical and operational management of the transfer of migrants and refugees from Roraima to other cities in Brazil, aiming at better opportunities for their socio-economic integration in the country. The trip is free and is usually carried out by the Brazilian army or transport companies. According to the most recent data, since April 2018 there have been 82,822 beneficiaries of this program, distributed among 872 different municipalities in Brazil.
This system of reception, identification and integration of refugees in Brazil can be considered a point of reference worldwide. The decision to provide documents to everyone encourages Venezuelans to work legally and prevents situations of irregularity or forms of slavery. And the same companies and employers are encouraged to go beyond a pietistic attitude, to discover that among the immigrants there are people who are academically and professionally prepared, with a good level of schooling. This helps integration into society.
Maria Suely Pereira Correa – Brazilian but born in Venezuela and graduated in Engineering – is now the coordinator of the Pastoral University of Roraima. You underline how important it is to look at the migratory phenomenon as an opportunity: «We want people to grasp its richness: an exchange of cultures in all their dimensions, from languages to gastronomy. But there are people who persist in seeing it only as a problem. Yet even an academic study entitled “The economy of Roraima and the Venezuelan flow” has ascertained the economic benefits brought to the region: from the analysis of official data, the growth of retail trade and exports has been verified, with an increase of 25% of the collection of the tax on the movement of goods and services (the equivalent of Italian VAT, ndr) between the end of 2018 and the first half of 2019.
The reception of refugees in Brazil is not only the work of the large NGOs: about 1,200 Venezuelans have passed through the house of Maria José, a 56-year-old woman from Maranhão, in the last five years. “There University Pastoral it has found a home for more than 7,000 people – he says -. They arrive with a small supermarket bag in which there is almost nothing. Many times they only have one piece of clothing, some come barefoot. The courtyard of my house was “the stage” for so many pains, so many colours, so many parties, so many sadnesses».
Even in this reception operation, difficulties are not lacking. In March 2022, the Brazilian Ministry of Justice issued an order banning entry across the border into Pacaraima to combat the spread of the coronavirus. This has led to the suspension of asylum applications for Venezuelans and the threat of expulsion for those who had not already been regularized in Brazilian territory. With the borders closed, many Venezuelans have begun to travel clandestine routes, increasing the risks: “The women who arrived with trails (the entrances organized by the traffickers through the paths, ndr), were raped. Some arrived wounded, sick, in a deplorable state,” says Sister Ana Maria da Silva, a religious of the congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Chambéry, originally from Rio Grande do Sul. She has been living in Pacaraima for 4 years, dedicating herself to welcoming refugees. Sister Ana Maria founded the Casa São José to welcome vulnerable women and children who were at risk of being deported or exploited. This facility is a transit point for emergency situations and can accommodate up to 150 people, for a maximum stay of 30 days while they wait to be relocated to other places in Brazil. Since its opening, the Home has assisted approximately 2,500 women and 8,000 children.
There are still many uncertainties about the future of Venezuela: every day about 500 people arrive at the Pacaraima border, seeking asylum in Brazil. The state, the Brazilian Church in its various forms, together with other Christian denominations, religious entities and NGOs continue to work together to meet the most urgent needs of these people. It is thanks to this commitment that Brazil is repeating the gesture of Christ the Redeemer, with “open arms”. To integrate the brothers of Venezuela into their own society, thanks to the collaboration between the authorities, the Church and civil society.