Venezuelan Migrants Feel Abandoned at Brazil Border

Venezuelans waiting to enter Brazil said the international community has deserted them.

Emigrants waiting for hours and days at a UNHRC facility in the Brazilian border town of Paracaima, said that they didn’t see any support forthcoming from other countries and international organizations which could have potentially altered Venezuela's political path.

The flight to Spain of former Venezuelan opposition presidential candidate Edmundo Gonzalez has largely extinguished any hope for a political change in the country as long-time President Nicolas Maduro shrugs off international criticism about the conduct of July's disputed election.

Election officials and Venezuela's top court said the July 28 vote was won by socialist Maduro, who has been in power since 2013. The opposition says tallies collected by its observers show a resounding victory for Gonzalez.

The aftermath of the election has seen a decline in protests and a lack of substantial international action, leading many Venezuelans to lose hope in a potential transition.

Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has called for international recognition of Gonzalez as president-elect, drawing parallels to Juan Guaido's failed attempt to establish a parallel government in 2019. 

The United States, which had previously engaged in negotiations leading to some concessions from Maduro's government, is now considering reimposing sanctions. However, the Biden administration is proceeding cautiously, balancing concerns about Venezuela's economic situation and potential increases in migration to the US.

Brazil has reported an increase in Venezuelan arrivals at its border town of Pacaraima.

More than 7.7 million people have left Venezuela in recent years and more are setting out to join its robust global diaspora.

In August, 12,325 Venezuelans arrived in Pacaraima, according to Brazil's Federal Police, up from 8,050 in June.