The Venezuela Briefing WOLA

What will the normalization of Colombia-Venezuela diplomatic relations mean for Venezuelans along the border? This episode features interviews with human rights defenders, humanitarian workers and journalists in the Venezuelan western border states of Tachira and Zulia, recording during an August visit by WOLA's Geoff Ramsey. They paint a complicated picture of life along the border, and share how conditions in the interior of the country differ from the capital city in Caracas.

In this episode Geoff Ramsey interviews Venezuelan LGBTI activist and researcher Quiteria Franco, General Coordinator of Unión Afirmativa. They discuss the status of LGBTI rights in Venezuela, which is far behind much of the rest the Americas on issues like marriage equality, adoption rights for same-sex couples, and protections for transgender people. Despite these obstacles, Franco explains how committed activists in the LGBTI community are working for change.
Follow Quiteria Franco on Twitter at @qfranco and see the latest from Unión Afirmativa at www.unionafirmativa.org.ve.

In this episode of The Venezuela Briefing, Geoff Ramsey and Kristen Martinez-Gugerli interview Cristina Ciordia of the Center for Justice and Peace (CEPAZ) about the differentiated impact of Venezuela’s humanitarian crisis on women and girls. Ramsey, Martinez-Gugerli and Ciordia discuss the findings of a recent study by Con Ellas on the situation for these groups, and Con Ellas’s recommendations for how to incorporate a gender and diversity lens into the humanitarian response in Venezuela.
Follow the work of CEPAZ on Twitter at @_cepaz, and look out on www.venezuelablog.org for an upcoming report by Con Ellas.

In this latest episode of The Venezuela Briefing, Geoff Ramsey and Kristen Martinez-Gugerli had the opportunity to interview Francisco Monaldi, a leading scholar on the politics and economics of energy policy in Venezuela. Ramsey, Martinez-Gugerli and Monaldi discuss the state of Venezuela’s oil sector, the recent visit of U.S. officials to Caracas, and the potential return to negotiations in Venezuela.
Follow Francisco Monaldi on Twitter: @fmonaldi
Read the latest report by the Atlantic Council’s Venezuela Working Group, which Monaldi contributed to: https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-research-reports/report/exploring-humanitarian-frameworks-for-venezuela/

In this latest, Spanish language* episode of The Venezuela Briefing, Geoff Ramsey and Kristen Martínez-Gugerli interview Eugenio Martínez, expert in Venezuelan politics and electoral matters, about the results of the regional elections on November 21, 2021, as well as the repeat elections in Barinas state on January 9. Martínez discusses the implications of this latest electoral process, and of the opposition’s historic victory in Barinas, for the political situation in Venezuela.
Follow Eugenio Martínez on Twitter: @puzkas
*An English transcript of this episode will be made available at a later date.

In this latest episode of The Venezuela Briefing, hosts Geoff Ramsey and Kristen Martinez Gugerli interview Adelys Ferro, a Venezuelan-American community leader and director of the recently-launched Venezuelan American Caucus, a new initiative to mobilize and organize the Venezuelan diaspora in the United States to advocate for comprehensive policies centered around humanitarian needs and democratic efforts in Venezuela. Ramsey, Martinez-Gugerli, and Ferro discuss the current political moment in Venezuela, the goals and objectives of the Venezuelan American Caucus, and the Biden administration’s policy towards Venezuela so far.
Learn more about the Venezuelan American Caucus and see their introductory statement at https://www.venezuelanamericancaucus.com/
Read WOLA’s recent report on the need for humanitarian accords at https://www.wola.org/analysis/how-us-policymakers-can-support-humanitarian-accords-venezuela/