In a joint statement, the Venezuelan Bishops Conference highlights the crucial role of the people in defining the country’s future in the elections scheduled for 28 July.
Venezuela is preparing for presidential elections in 2024 and legislative elections in 2025, both occurring in a complex political climate. As the date for the upcoming vote on 28 July draws closer, the Venezuelan bishops wished to “share some reflections about this political act, the deepening of democracy and the people’s participation in the election”.
“The Venezuelan people have before them a new opportunity to make decisions through a conscientious and free vote that can result in far-reaching reform of democracy, civil society and quality of life. Full of hope, the Venezuelan people know that the future is in their hands,” the bishops explain in an apostolic exhortation sent to Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).
With the title “Walking together in hope”, the letter was published on 11 July, following the 122nd Ordinary Plenary Assembly of the Venezuelan Bishops’ Conference.
“Free, conscious and responsible participation in these elections is very important to begin to develop a future of hope and to build a country marked by progress, peace, justice and freedom. Only by defeating abstention and political apathy will we be able to move forward with the reconstruction of the country,” the bishops state.
Venezuela has been facing a deep economic crisis since the mid-2010s, made all the worse by a drop in oil prices, hyperinflation, lack of food and medicine, and a grave internal political crisis. This situation has led to one of the largest migratory movements in Latin America in the past decades. According to figures from the Observatory of the Venezuelan Diaspora published in August 2023, the total number of Venezuelan migrants rose to 8.5 million people, distributed among 90 countries all over the world, amounting to almost 30% of Venezuela’s total population.
Over the past months, several representatives of the Venezuelan Church in contact with ACN have highlighted the serious drama that migration has brought to the country. This tragedy has cost many lives, especially among those who attempt dangerous routes such as the Darién.
Church leaders have also stressed the impact that emigration is having on Venezuelan family structure. “Many children have been left in the care of relatives, because their parents left in search of better living conditions. Grandparents have gone back to being parents,” one of the sources said. “Furthermore, the rupture in family life has led to an alarming increase in early pregnancy rates and single-parent families, making the social crisis even more dire”.
According to information sent to ACN, poverty in Venezuela is particularly serious outside of the capital, Caracas, a city described as a bubble, that does not reflect the harsh reality in the rest of the country. In many regions, the scarcity of food is severe, electricity cuts are frequent, and inflation is rampant, with salaries amounting to barely four dollars per month. The prospects for young people are especially worrying, with 95% thinking of emigrating. “If there is no change at the government level, we worry that the current migratory wave will morph into an uncontrollable phenomenon. The situation has led to a generalised dilemma: ‘either you resign yourself or you leave’,” said one of the Church leaders during a meeting with ACN.
“The 28 July should be a celebration of democracy, not only in our territory, but in any land where our brother and sister migrants can exercise their right to vote, with the hope of being reunited with their loved ones in a country that opens its doors to development and happiness,” the bishops say in their message. “Nobody should excuse themselves or feel excluded from this democratic experience: we are all called to participate in a number of ways.”
The bishops conclude with an invitation to pray for peace and call for “the electoral process to take place in an atmosphere of respect”. ACN joins the bishops in their calls for prayer, while requesting that the international community not forget the suffering of the Venezuelan population or the crisis which has led to the mass exodus.
“Invoking the Holy Trinity – source of communion – and the maternal care of Mary of Coromoto – the Patron Saint of Venezuela – we ask that they protect the people of Venezuela in this period of important decisions. May they inspire our minds and our hearts to follow the straightest path over the following years of our country’s democratic life,” the bishops ask.
By Maria Lozano & Lucia Ballester.
