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The Minister Counselor of the Venezuelan Embassy in Brazil, Tomás Silva, completed an agenda of meetings and encounters with local authorities and the Venezuelan diaspora in the state of Rio de Janeiro. During the week-long visit, Silva was accompanied by the embassy’s local representative, William Clavijo.
In order to thank the constant support of the Secretariat of Social Affairs and Human Rights of the Governor’s Office of Rio de Janeiro, Silva met with the head of this unit, Ms. Cristiane Lamarão, who explained the various actions that this secretariat carries out to assist the most vulnerable Venezuelan residents. Furthermore, a visit was also made to the municipality of Japerí to verify the living conditions of a group of 27 Warao Indians who were forced to abandon their ancestral lands in Venezuela due to the crisis generated by Nicolás Maduro’s dictatorship. Together with the authorities of the Japerí prefecture, Tomás Silva and William Clavijo spoke with the members of this indigenous community and were able to verify the support they have received from both the authorities and the community of that municipality. Finally, the two embassy representatives went to the Itanhangá platform, specifically to the communities of Morro do Banco and Gardenia Azul, where they met with 10 Venezuelan families. Basic food baskets, hygiene kits and clothing donations were handed out.
Another important aspect of the Minister Counselor’s visit to Rio de Janeiro was to position the legitimate embassy as the only entity with the power to issue valid certifications and documents for Venezuelans in Brazil. For months now, numerous complaints have been received from Venezuelans who are cheated by the consulates representing Maduro in Brazil, who charge U$50 to issue documents that are not valid in this country. In contrast, and in response to the numerous demands of Venezuelans, the legitimate embassy has dedicated itself in recent months to issuing various certifications – of birth certificates and driver’s licenses, among others – free of charge. In the last three months alone, some 600 certifications have been issued at no cost to Venezuelans. This means that we have taken from the regime US $ 30,000 and prevented our citizens from being swindled by those officials.
In order to improve the attention given to Venezuelans by local authorities, Tomás Silva and William Clavijo were received by the Superintendent of the Federal Police of Rio de Janeiro, who was given the models of all the certifications issued by the legitimate embassy and explained the most urgent needs that Venezuelans in that state have regarding these procedures. They were also attended by the directive of DETRAN RJ, the unit responsible for the homologation of Venezuelan drivers licenses in Brazil. In this meeting the license certification issued by the legitimate embassy in Portuguese was handed over to authorities, one of the procedures that generates more demand in Brazil given the job opportunities that can be derived from the license homologation.
Finally, a meeting with the Diaspora was held at the first Venezuelan food restaurant opened in Rio de Janeiro and as a closing of this intense visit, O Gringo where the kitchen is run by Angel, a young entrepreneur who decided to open his business in the Ladeira de Tabajaras community in this wonderful city. The minister praised the work of this Venezuelan micro-entrepreneur who is making Venezuelan gastronomy known among the Carioca community and whose story should serve as an inspiration for the more than 260,000 Venezuelans who today seek to forge a future in Brazil.
