VENEZUELA: 365 days of humanitarian action
In the town of El Callao, in eastern Venezuela, the majority of people who work in mining live and work in outdoor settlements, making them very susceptible to malaria. Between June and July 2019, the ICRC provided 50,000 mosquito nets to residents and redoubled its efforts to prevent, diagnose and treat malaria in partnership with the Bolivar state health authorities. In addition, training on how to properly diagnose malaria was held for 16 new microscopists, and medical supplies to treat over 45,000 affected people were donated. Jorge from the El Callao community shows us how he and his peers use these mosquito nets for disease prevention.
The power cuts that affected large areas of the country during 2019 had a direct impact on the lives of all Venezuelans, and particularly on public health services. In response to this emergency, the ICRC donated and installed electricity backup equipment in nine hospitals in Caracas, La Guaira, Miranda and Aragua. These generators will provide the power supply needed for those hospitals to continue to provide the essential services that serve thousands of people daily, regardless of power cuts. Throughout the year, Marieli and our colleagues who work in water and sanitation ensured that the donated generators were received, installed and used correctly.
When Abraham arrived at the doctor's office during one of the public health interventions we ran near his home in Petare, he had been suffering from a bad cough for weeks. Fortunately, he was treated on time by a specialist and received all the necessary medications to treat his condition and facilitate his recovery free of charge. In vulnerable communities in Caracas, Táchira and Zulia, the ICRC worked in parternship with the Venezuelan Red Cross and local health authorities to provide primary and preventive health care to over 4,400 patients.
Around the world, the ICRC supports the efforts of national prison authorities to improve living conditions for people deprived of their liberty, while also seeking to increase detainees’ access to primary health care and enhance prison design when necessary. Our colleagues Ana María and Alfredo went to see one of the eight prisons that the ICRC visited in Venezuela during 2019. Since March, almost 8,000 detainees were visited by ICRC delegates. Detainees also received sets of hygiene supplies, and were given assistance to restore contact with their families through Red Cross Messages and calls.
After hours of travelling by bus, many travellers and migrants run out of battery and lose signal on their phones. Some do not even own a phone with which to communicate with their relatives and inform them of their whereabouts and how they are doing. To help them reconnect with their loved ones, Venezuelan Red Cross volunteers offered 12,900 communication services, making it possible to charge mobile phones, make phone calls, and connect to the Internet, at sixteen locations across the country. Furthermore, 75,000 travellers received messages containing self-defence and self-care advice that enabled them continue their journey safely.
Throughout 2019 we worked hard to improve the infrastructure and maintenance of emergency services in public hospitals, where we also trained 950 health professionals in how to care for trauma patients. “The ICRC´s training has given us a more suitable course of action to take when caring for patients who are admitted to the emergency room,” explained Dr. Armando Rico when asked what changes he has seen in his hospital as a result of the ICRC’s teaching materials and support.
Juan Manuel, Arantza, Suset and Ariane are four of 1,000 children who receive one meal a day in their school canteen in Petare, one of the most vulnerable areas of Caracas. By the end of 2019, this and another 29 community soup kitchens in the capital district and in the states of Bolívar, Táchira and Zulia received cooking utensils and equipment such as refrigerators, blenders, plates and kerosene stoves, that were used to feed 7,658 people daily.
The ICRC foments dialogue with law enforcement to ensure that they are familiar with and apply international human rights law and international humanitarian law in their operations. In 2019, a total of 2,261 military and police officers in Caracas, Miranda, Táchira, Zulia and Bolívar received training on international human rights law and international standards on the progressive use of force in operations to maintain law and order.
2019 was a very busy year for us. We expanded our activities in Venezuela, helping more than 300,000 people throughout the country. Our work spanned several areas, including: health, water and sanitation, detention, restoring contact between family members separated by migration, dissemination of international humanitarian law (IHL) and human rights in the Military and Police Forces, among others. This photo gallery illustrates some of the activities carried out by both ICRC staff and Venezuelan Red Cross volunteers. Everyone's hard work, guided at all times by our principles of neutrality, impartiality and humanity, enabled us to respond to the most urgent needs facing Venezuelans.