Month: May 2025

Essequibo Update

Richard Barnes

For background on the tensions between Venezuela and Guyana, see Essequibo. 

In a nutshell, over a century ago, in 1899, Venezuela requested the United States arbitrate a dispute between Venezuela and England. Both countries agreed to abide by the outcome. As it turned out, volumes of documentation were available and the dispute was settled.

However, over half a century later, in 1962, under the administration of her celebrated first democratically elected president, Venezuela repudiated the agreement and began announcing her 19th Century claim in official maps and documents.

But it was under Chavismo that the dispute’s temperature shot up.

In February of this year, six Guyanese soldiers were fired upon from the Venezuelan side of the Cuyuní River, the river which for about 60 miles marks the current, internationally recognized border. Guyana filed formal protests which were promptly ignored.

This past Thursday, May 17, Guyanese soldiers were fired upon at least three times from the Venezuelan side by armed men dressed in civilian clothes. This has caused Guyana to “intensify” its military presence along the Cuyuní.

More ominously is the backdrop to all this: the Maduro regime has announced legislative “elections” for the area claimed by Venezuela. Those elections are scheduled to take place next Sunday, May 25. Guyana has forcefully denounced this brazen provocation, although how elections can take place in a foreign country on behalf of another country is a mystery to most. Nevertheless, we have learned not to  underestimate the uses of power when it comes to Socialism.

After Thursday’s incident, Maduro’s vice-president, Delcy Rodriguez, who is also the “Minister of Hydrocarbons”, further escalated the provocations by reaffirming the “transcendental” regional elections wherein a governor and legislators for the region will be named and went on to further rhapsodize on this “political opportunity … for the defense … of an energetic political sovereignty over the resources” of Venezuela. 

The area in question is about 62,000 square miles, close to twice the size of the Orinoco Mining Arc and well over half the size of Guyana. 

It would mean the expansion and strengthening of criminal enterprises such as the Aragua Train (Tren de Aragua) and others and their partnership with the Socialist regime in Venezuela. 

And it would mean even more pollution in these and other South American rivers. In fact, there is already terrible pollution in along the banks of the Cuyuní; but no one is very sure if this is due to illegal mining by Venezuelans or Guyanese or both. Guyanese officials have sounded the alarm for years that not energetically intercepting such operations, not only endangers waters, fish, and other sustenance, but also their territorial integrity. 

I believe those officials have been right all along and are now being proved so.

To say tensions are at explosive levels is to put it mildly.

The critical and urgent nature of the major trouble spots in Eastern Europe and Western Asia require our attention and understandably so, given our close to century-long involvements. A righteous nation extricates itself from such with diplomacy and honor and I hope we do so.

However, we must at the least recognize that South America is in our own neighborhood and our commonality with such is far stronger than with the other side of the oceans. We ought to exercise powerful diplomacy to at the least seek to reduce the stresses that have been allowed to surge in the recent generation or two.

I pray we do this well for what happens in our own neighborhood will impact us in the short and in the long run. Alas, it is already affecting us greatly.

View of the Cuyuní River in Guyana

Guyanese patrol boat on the Cuyuní. These patrols have intensified; however, Venezuela’s military buildup is massive

Grave pollution follows illegal mining on the Cuyuní. Guyanese officials plead for intervention to stop this activity as it not only pollutes the rivers but also increases the threat to Guyanese border integrity.

Most official maps now reflect the “Zona en Reclamación”. This area “reclaimed” by the Venezuelan authorities comprises well over half of Guyana and is almost twice the size of the Orinoco Mining Arc.

Fallout

Richard Barnes

By now the actions of the Maduro regime belie both their denials of a rescue as well as their assertions that the 5 political hostages in the Argentine embassy had been released pursuant to negotiations between Venezuela and the United States. 

By their deeds — which clearly speak louder than words — the regime reflects the actions of an angry, abusive, and rabid suitor whose advances have been rebuffed. They certainly are not congruent with the results of a “negotiated settlement” but rather those of a utterly outwitted, losing party.

Although the rescue was made known to the world on Tuesday, May 6, it appears to have taken place (or become known to the regime) at least a day earlier (or more). On Monday night, May 5, Rafael Antonio Torres, professor and also political secretary of one of the allied opposition parties, was seen being violently removed from his house and beaten before being forced into a government vehicle. His whereabouts are unknown.

Again, this particular arrest took place on Monday night, the 5th of May, before the world knew anything about the rescue; however, the government functionaries and enforcers obviously did.

But Tuesday, the 6th, marked the furious escalation by the Maduro crime syndicate. In Carabobo, his associates detained journalist Mario Chávez Cohen as well as his mother. Although she was released several hours later, he remains as one of the disappeared.

Also on the 6th, Magallí Meda, one of the 5 who was extracted from the embassy, denounced on X the breaking and entering of her mother’s home in Caracas. She wrote, “At this hour, agents of the regime are violating the doors of my mother’s house…. I condemn this new crime and ask for your support for the protection of my family….”

On Saturday, May 10, the home of Humberto Villalobos, one of the five, was also broken into by hooded, masked, booted, and heavily armed officials. 

These actions have been captured by security or other cameras and images and clips have been published throughout the country.

Coincidentally, on May 1, Human Rights Watch published a detailed report on political detentions and disappearances in Venezuela, noting that the majority of the documented abuses occurred after the fraudulent elections last July. The report also excruciatingly details the deaths of 9 young people, a few of whom had nothing to do with protesting the elections.

Truly we are witnessing the actions of a criminal enterprise. 

In addition to individuals and their families, entire groups or voluntary organizations have been threatened and acted upon. Spokesmen for The Committee For the Liberty of Our Political Prisoners, one of the associations formed to denounce what has befallen family members has denounced threats against them. However, they affirm their determination to continue to bring to light the loss or disappearances of their loved ones.

In sum, diverse areas of the country have been reporting the disappearances or detentions of political leaders or social activists, including family members in some cases. These include journalists, professors, medical doctors, in addition to unremitting pressure on organizations not deemed friendly to Maduro.

So, given all this activity, I now have to believe this indeed did catch the dictatorship off guard. Very off guard. Not only that, they must be thinking that if these well-guarded, high visibility persons were successfully extracted from what was perhaps the most heavily guarded site in Venezuela (apart from Maduro’s residence), then could there be a Noriega moment in someone’s future?

María Machado certainly is rejoicing along with many in the country, despite the increased repression: “The most surprised of all, and I can guarantee this, are [the regime]. This is an enormous victory, and it moves me deeply because I believe that every Venezuelan feels it like a personal victory.” She was visibly moved as she said this.

“[Operation Macaw] was distinguished by its precision and complexity; it was executed to perfection.” She would say no more in order to protect all involved. 

“There is a plan, a very complex and integral operation, to advance the weakening of what is left of support for this regime,” she said, referring to the international cooperation necessary for the success of Operation Macaw.

She went on to express her gratitude: “With a certainty, Venezuela will soon be free, and after hours of tireless effort, we can announce that, in the framework of a rescue operation coordinated with the governments of the United States and other democratic allies, our colleagues … are now safe and sound on United States soil,” she went on to say.

“We extend a special acknowledgement to the administration of President Donald Trump and his Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, as well as to the President of Argentina, Javier Milei, for their unbreakable support in these crucial hours. Their leadership has been a beacon of hope for our colleagues and for the entire Venezuelan nation who yearns for justice and dignity.”

Government enforcers entering the property of Magallí Meda’s mother (Tuesday, May 6, the day after the rescue)

Inside the house of Magallí Meda’s mother (Tuesday, May 6; the day after the rescue)

I have pasted only 4 photographs below. I do so to remind us that we are talking about real flesh and blood people like you and me. These are brave individuals who have not been accused of violence à la 2020 riots in the United States or the violent protests in more recent years. 

These folk oppose the dictatorial regime and have sought to do so by constitutional means. But we must always remember: those for whom the state is God, will not tolerate blasphemy against it. Therefore opposition to the state, or to the policies thereof, will pay a heavy price — up to their very lives.

Pray for Venezuela.

Attorney Merlina Carrero, among the many who have “disappeared” since the dramatic rescue.

Physiatrist Angel Lugo, among the disappeared.

Journalist, Mario Chávez Cohen, among the disappeared. His mother was also arrested and released hours later.

Rafael Antonio Torres, professor, was seen to be forcefully extracted from his home and “beaten violently” before being taken away. He is among the disappeared.

Note: For recent events I have found Infobae to be a reliable source and less tendentious than others. I do not vouch for them in general; however, for these recent days, they have been accurate.

About That Rescue

Richard Barnes

The Argentina embassy saga began months before the July, 2024 Venezuela elections. In a nutshell, the Venezuela state regime, headed by Nicolás Maduro, well aware of its deep unpopularity with the Venezuelan people, began arrests and disappearances, and issued arrest warrants against the key players of the united opposition who in turn sought asylum in the embassy. 

Arrests began with a frenzy, including Dignora Hernández, 56-year-old political secretary of an opposition party, violently taken from her home as she cried for help and roughly pushed by goons into a state vehicle. This was caught on video surreptitiously and went viral. She is still detained, 413 days later.

Six remaining opposition leaders sought asylum from Argentina, which was granted the same day as the aforementioned arrest, in March, 2024. From that embassy, surrounded by Venezuelan military and intelligence forces, which at times would cut off water and power and even food, these six were still able, not only to mobilize millions to vote in July, but also to get election monitors to access official vote tallies which demonstrated a landslide victory for the opposition.

Therefore, when the regime announced its “victory”, the evidence loudly belied it and various countries found themselves obligated to not recognize the regime or to “pretty please” ask them to publish the actual tallies. Such polite requests still await replies.

Massive multitudes protested after the farce of an election, but the state’s response was brutal. And effective. The opposition candidate, Edmundo González, fled to Spain, having been granted safe passage, loudly and with state-approved photos.

Parenthetically, it is important to remember that the opposition candidate was Corina Machado originally. However, the state declared her too popular inelegible and struck her off the ballot; she therefore convinced the 75-year-old González to run instead.

The months slipped by; the Venezuelan state broke diplomatic relations with Argentina whose personnel evacuated; Brazil “took charge” of the embassy, whatever that means; and the asylum seekers remained.

In December (2024), one of the six, Fernando Martínez, agreed to evacuate; eventually leaving the embassy in a Swiss diplomatic automobile. He died two months later.

Yesterday, after 412 days of captivity, the world learned that the remaining 5, along with Ms Machado’s infirm mother, had been “extracted” from Venezuela, ending the ordeal for them, but not for the stricken land.

As usual, the folks on the ground, in this case, local (Venezuela), independent sources, are perhaps more accurate, although we cannot be sure until more details are made available.

With that caveat, what we are hearing is that this was a USA operation, which took place while Maduro was in Moscow where he received a call at 3 AM, Moscow time. The message was, “Estados Unidos liberó a todos los que estaban en la embajada argentina. [The United States has freed all who were in the Argentina embassy].”

If that report is accurate, it certainly was not happy news for the strongman who is now no doubt intent on finding out who betrayed him. There will be scapegoats for sure and it won’t be pretty.

Few details are known, other than what a local said, “Fue de película [It was an action movie — rough translation].”

A word of caution, however. The apparatchiks are insisting that this was a negotiated release long in the works. Although I tend to discount such pronouncements, I am intrigued as to how such an operation could have taken place in the heart of Caracas, next to other embassies, including the Russian, and surrounded by Venezuelan security.

On the other hand, when Mr. González left the country for Spain, the state made it a great propaganda coup. Why not this “negotiated” action? 

Could it have been an “extraction” over time — one per week or day?

I hope I am wrong, but I believe this event caught the state by surprise, during the absence of the “duly elected president”, no less. If I am correct, then we will see retaliations which will make those which followed last July’s elections seem like child play.

So, again, I do hope I am wrong.

Meanwhile, Ms Machado, although very happy for the successful extraction, is still in hiding in Venezuela. 

And inflation is in triple digits.

Pray for Venezuela.

Edmundo González, photo published in local media upon his having been granted safe passage to Spain where he sought asylum in September, 2024. This event was widely published by the state.

The five hostages: Magalli Meda, Claudia Macero, Pedro Urruchurtu, Humberto Villalobos, and Omar González

The original six. Fernando Martínez, bottom row, center, evacuated the embassy in December and died two months later.

Bands of Robbers

Richard Barnes

“Without justice what are kingdoms but great bands of robbers? And what is a band of robbers but such a kingdom in miniature? It is a band of men under the rule of a leader, bound together by a pact of friendship, and their booty is divided among them by an agreed rule. Such a blot on society, if it grows, assumes for itself the proud name of kingdom.” — St. Augustine

Before the inauguration of the Caruachi Dam across the Caroní River in the first decade of this century, the river was traversed by ferry (chalana). As a child, I preferred taking that particular ferry to the ferries operating in what became Ciudad Guayana.

I suppose my preference was due to the seemingly wilder or less tamed nature of the area around Caruachi — no towns or cities in the vicinity and the fishing and wildlife were more surprising at times.

Regardless, the Caruachi dam (which I never witnessed) changed all that.

The last time I saw and used the ferry was in 1987. Several of us were in Venezuela on an audit assignment and took our free day to visit the area around the confluence of the Orinoco and Caroní Rivers.

The milieu was very different from that of my childhood: a number of the men who crossed with us looked rough, even ruffian-like. I attempted to strike up a conversation with two or three but it was hard going. One of them did pull his hand from his pocket and opened it for me to see a gold nugget. I asked permission to take a photo and he quickly declined, which I of course honored.

He went on to tell me about the mining in the Bolivar/Amazon areas, which is where he and a number of the other men on the ferry were coming from. He said the area was quite wild and somewhat lawless. 

I asked if any of them would mind if I took a photo. Three of them agreed but only if I did not use their names. 

That incident was a foreshadowing of what was to become of that untamed jungle and river area of at least 35,000 square miles, now known as the “Orinoco Mining Arc”, which encompasses large swathes of the state of Bolívar, where I was born, as well as of the vast states of Amazonas and Delta Amacuro. This area contains bauxite (used for aluminum), coltan (used in the production of electronic devices), diamonds, and, of course, especially gold.

However, in a lawless country as Venezuela has become, any “designated” area is actually limitless. So, unsurprisingly, this “arc” has invaded the Canaima National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Elsewhere in this blog I’ve noted Transparency International’s ranking of Venezuela as the most corrupt country in the America’s — yes, more corrupt than Cuba or Haiti, as incredible as that seems — with extensive ties to global criminal syndicates which exploit the mining area and the indigenous peoples who are unlucky enough to not have escaped before their enslavement.

(It is always a wonder to consider that those who hate Columbus and accuse him of murder, torture, and enslavement seem oblivious to how they project onto the great seaman what their own fellow travelers are actually doing now. It’s much easier to indict and delegitimize our founding than to see that the abandonment of our founding has led to the atrocities they so piously and hypocritically decry….)

According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), the arc is a giant hub for illegal mining, “where armed non-state actors and local gangs compete for control of key mining operations. The Maduro regime has used state enterprises and security forces to legitimize otherwise criminal mineral extraction, collaborating with criminal groups to mine, process, and transport minerals.”

In exchange for what? 

Well, the state-owned enterprises operating there serve to source the minerals extracted illicitly and, ¡Voilà! the minerals are then exported “officially”, thereby, legitimately. The bulk of these exports are to Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, according to CSIS. The state does not do this for free, of course. It carves its  handsome cut from every transaction.

However, that maneuver accounts for a fraction of Venezuela’s gold exports. The vast majority is shipped from the country as contraband and later “officialized” into the global market, with the State — both the top bureaucrats as well as the military leadership — receiving a major bite from the gargantuan profits. These profits are in addition to other fraudulent enterprises such as multiple military check points, each demanding bribes or multiple fuel depots supplying needed fuel to the illicit mines, also at large profits.

To give the reader an idea of the immense amounts of money involved, some top army generals are receiving gold in the equivalent of $800,000 per month in bribes. 

But wait! There’s more! Clandestine flights carrying gold are given safe passage, for another nice cut; the state has given ownership of individual mines to many of the country’s state governors and other political leaders to ensure their loyalty; ad nauseam. 

This post is already too long, so I’ll skip over the very real environmental devastation, including mercury poisoning in the rivers whereby fish taken to market as far away as Colombia are contaminated and causing serious harm to the health of regular folks.

We do not know how many laborers are involved in the illegal mining operations, but I’ve seen some estimates as high as 500,000. About half are children; most are from local indigenous villages and practically all are coerced. They work under threat of punishment by armed groups and gangs. Men and boys are subjected to atrocities by violent, pitiless mine owners who know they are “protected” against any and all actions they might take. 

We have eye witness reports of arms and hands being mutilated or amputated; forced prostitution; murders. Per CSIS, “Dozens of massacres have been reported in Bolivar state as well as reports of mass graves in the area.” In addition, the sex trafficking of young children is heartrending; venereal diseases have spiked; disappearances are common. 

And, yes, one of the most powerful crime syndicates ruling in the Orinoco Mining Arc is the Aragua Train, better known as Tren de Aragua. As a criminal enterprise, they not only ruthlessly run mines, they also establish pricing and rations for daily goods and groceries and woe be to him who disobeys or seeks to supply himself independently. Americans need to wake up to the reality that Tren de Aragua and the Venezuelan state are an allied enterprise. And neither of them messes around. 

St. Augustine in his The City of God wrote that a people that denies or refuses to be governed by God’s law (justice) will become ruled by “bands of robbers”. The history of the 20th Century with its totalitarian regimes, including Communist dictatorships resulting in 100,000,000 deaths by the state (see The Black Book of Communism) amply justifies Augustine’s affirmation. Not only do “bands of robbers” run rampant through the land, the state itself acts hand in glove with national and international crime syndicates all of whom share the common goal of personal empowerment and enrichment and grotesque pleasures at the cost of the lives and well being of their own peoples.

And before we get too smug, be gently reminded that we have legislators who have become very wealthy while in office. Few are they who, like many of our Founders, actually became poorer when they entered public service. As we ourselves have cast God’s precepts aside, we too are facing the increasing rule by bands of robbers. 

And it is not a pretty picture.

FYI: Claritas, a major mining area, is controlled by Tren de Aragua. Guasipati (not noted) and others are as well. The value of gold extraction in some mines, including Claritas, exceeds $1,000,000 per day.