By Amos Sarrouy
After I told my friend in Puerto Ordaz that I was in search of Guyanese living in Venezuela he took me to meet some people that he knew. My interest in Guyanese living in Venezuela derived from the territorial controversy between the two countries. For over a century and a half Venezuela has claimed about two thirds of Guyana as its own. Termed the “Zona de la Reclamación,” the area claimed by Venezuela includes all of the territory between Venezuela and the Essequibo River. The area is marked on that country’s official maps as part of Venezuela.
I had been staying in Guyana for several weeks prior to travelling to Puerto Ordaz and I wanted to know what Guyanese living in Venezuela thought about the territorial claim. My investigation brought me face to face with Guyanese whose interest in Venezuela had much more to do with business than with the territorial claim. Indeed, what I discovered was that for all the sabre rattling on the Venezuelan side and the much milder insistence in Guyana that the territory is theirs, there is benefit to be derived for both Venezuelans and Guyanese for simply trying to get along.
The Guyanese I was supposed to meet were to be found by the ferry terminal. Two or three vessels that resembled broken tugboats were lined up near the terminal. About fifty blue fuel drums stood nearby.
I crossed a piece of what appeared to be scavenged plank that led up to the dock. Some men were attending to a chore the specifics of which were unclear to me. Everything was dirty.
I fabricated a broad smile and introduced myself to the nearest man. He was standing around, watching the others. From the moment I started talking he put on a nervous grin.
I was altogether uncertain as to the response I would receive if I simply came out and raised what in the circumstances might have been a sensitive issue; so I told the man that I was looking for passage for a friend from Guyana who was seeking to travel to Venezuela. He said that I needed to talk with “the boss” and we agreed that I would wait. I seized the opportunity to engage him in light banter about Guyana and where he grew up. I told him how much I had enjoyed my stay in Georgetown. His answers were short and his nervous grin grew wider. It did not seem that this was a conversation with which he was altogether comfortable.
Eventually, the boss, a short fellow with a chubby face arrived. I told him the story of my friend wishing to get to Venezuela. He said he would be at Kaituma the following day and that the trip would cost US$200. A third man, a sturdy looking fellow bedecked in a red shirt, showed up. I asked how often they made the round trip between Venezuela and Guyana. “Regular,” he responded. I sought clarification and he notified me that “regular” could be taken to mean more than once a week. I asked a few follow- up questions and he gave me some telephone numbers.
Afterwards, I tried to get friendlier. “So why are you going to Guyana, if you don’t mind my asking?” I honestly thought he would mind.
“Transporting goods,” he responded nonchalantly.
“OK, well thanks a lot for the information! Actually, let me ask you one question. As a Guyanese living in Venezuela, what is your opinion of the Zona de la Reclamación?” I was starting to think that I was pushing my luck.
“I don’t think anything about it,” he said and afterwards he just left.
I raised the issue with the other two men with whom I had spoken earlier. They too had no opinion on the issue. I thanked them for their help and left them to transport their Venezuelan goods to Guyana and to bring Guyanese back to Venezuela.
Afterwards I met Hamraj Antonio. He had worked with Guyanese immigrants in Venezuela. He lived with his 17-member family in a set of concrete flats in San Felix. He told me that he had once met the Prime Minister of Canada at an official function. Frankly, I was impressed.
Hamraj’s mother had moved to Venezuela from Essequibo more than 30 years ago. His Guyanese accent was perfect, though he told me that he considered Venezuela his home. When I described my experience with the men I had met earlier he said he wasn’t surprised. The men were businessmen and they usually didn’t trouble themselves with a great deal else.
Venezuela, Guyana’s neighbour to the west, is one of the biggest producers of oil in the world. The state has significant control over oil production and keeps prices low. At the current black market rate a 55-gallon barrel of gasoline can be bought in Venezuela for two US cents. Put differently, in Venezuela, you can fill your car three times for two US cents. No Guyanese would be able to get his or her mind around those numbers.
Accordingly, smuggling is a lucrative business. On the Venezuelan side the practice is ignored. On the Guyana side there is little that the authorities can do to stop it. Indeed, there are those who contend that, in a sense, smuggled fuel is not at all bad for the Guyana gold industry. Cheap fuel keeps operating costs down and that would mean a higher gold yield, even though it is widely suspected that much of the gold produced in Guyana is exported illegally.
Funny things go on across borders in this part of the world. I was told that it has become common for smugglers to pay off officials in Venezuela to get access to the country’s ridiculously cheap fuel.
If the number of barrels I saw approximates the volume of fuel moved by the men I met then I estimate that an operator with a single boat moves an average of US$15,000 worth of fuel on every trip. That amounts to US$780,000 annually. This may seem like a modest amount given that Venezuela reportedly produces 800,000 barrels of oil per day for domestic use. On the other hand it is estimated that in excess of 100,000 barrels of gasoline are smuggled out of Venezuela every day. Smuggling fuel is lucrative business.
Immigration
The open border entry points between Guyana and Venezuela invite illegal immigration. More than that, the movement of fuel and the movement of people are two sides of the same coin. An estimated 100,000 Guyanese travel illegally between Guyana and Venezuela annually though no one is prepared to provide an actual illegal immigration figure. Unofficial estimates put the number of Guyanese living in Venezuela at around 55,000. Only about 20 per cent reportedly find gainful employment. Identifying and deporting illegal immigrants does not appear to be a priority for the Venezuelan government at this time.
The Guardia Nacional Bolivariana de Venezuela (GNB) controls borders, but it appears that the same bribes that facilitate the smuggling of fuel also allow illegal immigrants to enter Venezuela from Guyana.
Sometimes Guyanese are targeted for harassment by the GNB, though there is little if any indication that the treatment induces waves of remigration.
Much of Hamraj’s work has involved the resolution of immigration issues. He knows from his mother’s experience that immigrants in a new country face numerous challenges. In Venezuela, Guyanese illegal immigrants are frequently demonized. He and his supporters have argued that since Venezuela claims all of the territory west of the Essequibo River, people coming from those areas should automatically be recognized as Venezuelan citizens and, accordingly, receive such benefits as would accrue to them. Were this to happen, he says, thousands of people currently regarded as illegal immigrants would immediately become entitled to work legally, earn better wages and become entitled to better security. So far, the Venezuelan government hasn’t found the argument convincing, and Hamraj has now given up his advocacy.
