Official information about the victims of the double earthquake that hit Venezuela on June 24 remains without updating, a situation that led the non-governmental organization Provea to demand that the interim government periodically publish the records of the deceased and missing persons.
The NGO warned that more than 36 days have passed since the last official death toll, which placed the number of fatalities at 6,509. This record was released on August 24, when authorities also reported on more than 226,000 people treated in hospitals and 60,785 residential properties inspected.
The situation is even longer in the case of the disappeared. Provea pointed out that the latest official data, of 157 people with unknown whereabouts, corresponds to June 25, one day after the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes.
“Citizen initiatives have reported thousands of people with unknown whereabouts, without there being a public record to support it,” Provea said.
Relatives seek answers due to the lack of updated official figures
The claim becomes relevant given the lack of coincidence between the data that has circulated about the impact of the tragedy. In a report published on September 23, Amnesty International indicated that the national government maintained the latest death toll of 6,509, while the governor of La Guaira, José Alejandro Terán, had estimated 7,265 deaths.
The international organization He also noted that national authorities have not published an updated official number of missing people. As a reference, he indicated that Terán had estimated 1,579 missing people, while citizen initiatives had compiled more than 41,000 reports. Amnesty warned, however, that these independent records present errors and duplications, so they do not replace an official database.
The lack of information has forced relatives of missing people to carry out searches on their own in hospitals, morgues, shelters and affected buildings, in addition to having resorted to posters, social networks and citizen databases to try to locate their loved ones.
“We demand that the Venezuelan State update and publish both figures continuously,” Provea claimed.
The request adds to questions that Provide had already formulated about the management of the emergency. In July, the organization denounced opacity in the handling of official information during the first hours after the earthquakes and demanded that the reconstruction be accompanied by mechanisms of transparency and access to information.
They demand that the State prioritize the right to public information
The authorities have concentrated their latest public balance sheets on recovery efforts. The official report on August 24 indicated that 600,790 tons of debris had been removed, while thousands of people remained in camps and temporary shelters.
Provea considers, however, that reconstruction cannot be separated from the identification of the victims and the information their families need.
“Information saves lives and is an obligation of the State to the victims, their families and the country,” the organization stated.
The earthquakes of June 24, of magnitude 7.2 and 7.5, caused one of the largest emergencies recorded in Venezuela in recent decades, with La Guaira as one of the most affected areas. Three months later, human rights organizations continue to demand public, verifiable and updated information about the human consequences of the tragedy.
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