They denounce impunity of criminal groups against Venezuelan ranchers on the border with Colombia

“Not only do criminals charge these producers an amount of money, if the producer does not want to pay, then they steal the equipment, the machinery; the producer is not saved in one way or another from these criminal groups,” explains Adriángela Álvarez, a researcher at the Venezuelan NGO Fundaredes, you just launched an alert about how irregular armed groups continue to extort and threaten ranchers in the border states with Colombia: Apure, Táchira and Zulia. Álvarez denounces permanent looting.

“They range from a large amount of money to asking for a monthly quota of cattle. This is more or less how criminal gangs and irregular armed groups operate in these border areas. It is also important to say that the Zulia state is where this type of criminal activity is seen most, also in the Táchira, Apure and Barinas states, but I repeat with more emphasis in the Zulia state, ”he points out.

“I want to make a parenthesis here because the state of Zulia is the entity with the highest rates of violence registered by Fundaredes for four years, where there are approximately 18 criminal gangs with high firepower dedicated to extortion, specifically extortion, homicides and kidnappings. They are kidnappings carried out because sometimes the producers, the merchants, the businessmen refuse to pay the so-called “vaccine” or the extortion that these people demand.

Álvarez denounces that this phenomenon continues in total impunity despite, they say, that the military and police authorities are aware of it.

“Last year, Fundaredes filed complaints with national authorities such as the Ombudsman’s Office, such as the Public Ministry, about everything that happens, not only extortion issues, but homicides, kidnappings, disappearances on the Venezuelan border, without receiving any response from these organizations.” , it states.

“It is unfortunate what is happening today in our territory. The omission by the authorities of the Venezuelan state to all these denunciations made not only by Fundaredes, but also by victims of these irregular armed groups is regrettable. People are also afraid to denounce them so they don’t get murdered, so they don’t do anything to their family, so they don’t kidnap them. So what we are experiencing today is unfortunate, because many of these people tell us why we are reporting, we are afraid, the government is not going to do anything, the authorities are not going to do anything to protect them, ”he denounces.