By Daniel Bastos

The news about the serious economic, political and social problems that reach us daily from Venezuela reveals the dramatic situation currently being experienced in this South American country, where there are approximately half a million Portuguese people.

The weight of Portuguese emigration to Venezuela dates back to the 1940s and continued until the 1980s, mainly motivated by the escape from poverty and the search for better living conditions. Initially, the Portuguese in Venezuela were mainly involved in agriculture, but from the second half of the 20th century onwards, the vast majority, mainly from Madeira, began to work in the food trade, such as bakeries, small grocery stores, sandwich and juice shops, and even in small and medium-sized industries, especially in the manufacturing sector.

Perfectly integrated into Venezuelan society, Portuguese emigrants, the second largest Portuguese community in Latin America, after Brazil, are a fundamental link in the development process of Simón Bolívar’s homeland, with their businesses and companies today becoming a reference, but also a target for looting and robberies, often stained with blood.

The situation has worsened in recent months, and tension over the lack of essential goods, in the context of a deep economic and political crisis, has led to violent protests and clashes that have already left dozens dead and injured, as well as numerous robberies in supermarkets and stores.

In a country marked by one of the highest homicide rates in the world, and the lack of medicines in pharmacies and hospitals, the lack of security and the path that Venezuela seems to be taking towards the abyss, are leading many emigrants to consider or even leave for Portugal, and it is already clear that there are more and more emigrants returning to Madeira.

It is no coincidence that the Portuguese government has publicly stated that it has a contingency plan for the Portuguese community in Venezuela. The signs are increasingly clear about the plight of our compatriots, and Portuguese society in general, and Madeira in particular, must prepare and join forces, in the name of national solidarity, for the eventuality of having to receive the hundreds of thousands of Portuguese people who live and work in Venezuela.