Jorge Rodriguez holds press conference

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Transcript

00:00And join us now. We have last-minute information from Venezuela.

00:03The President of the National Assembly, Jorge Rodriguez, is offering statements during a press conference.

00:08Let's listen.

00:11The government, the state, has organized these press conferences

00:17in order to convey the impact of these dual actions,

00:28this dual earthquake had on the country in the various states, Aragua, Carabobo, Federal Districts.

00:38So today's information that we've been sharing with the population through the acting President Rodriguez

00:49and various speakers who have been informing about the victims of this dual earthquake.

01:02So today's report will be accompanied by a press conference to answer some of the questions.

01:11Today, the number of Venezuelans deceased through the direct effect of the earthquake is 4,333 people dead.

01:2516,740 injured, 6,400 people rescued by Venezuelan rescuers.

01:37The very same day, through an airlift, they helped their brethren that suffered after the crumbling of the buildings in

01:51the afternoon of the 24th.

01:52Then through international rescuers who very quickly arrived here and were embraced by the Venezuelan people.

02:01And also the rescuing activities through 29 people who volunteered to be rescuers.

02:11We have attended 85,000 families.

02:15We have installed 94 transit camps and I would like to elaborate further on the characteristics of these transit camps

02:30and to invite national, international journalists who want to visit these camps so you can engage with those living in

02:40those camps.

02:42We have not more than 19,000 people.

02:4718,400 people are already in this transit camps.

02:53And there we have, in some schools, larger camps of triage used in stadiums.

03:05And there we arrive a number of people, but we prefer that these people go to schools that are now

03:15part of the transit camps.

03:21850 buildings and 140 have totally collapsed.

03:30The level of damage of the buildings led to President Rodriguez to create two working commissions.

03:40First, a presidential commission in charge of assessing the buildings that have been somehow to take care of the people.

03:53Ninety-one percent of the patients that entered the hospitals or international hospitals, they are now without any danger and

04:10they have left the hospital.

04:12International rescuers, 2,000 are still among us in search and rescue operations.

04:23And 31,000 people from all the countries, they have joined the process of rescue and save activities.

04:38We have the Bolivarian National Army.

04:41They militarized the state the very same day, June the 24th.

04:50So we are working against time in order to rescue and save human lives.

04:58This process was conducted in an orderly fashion.

05:01Bolivarian police forces, civil defense.

05:05More than 30,000 volunteers joined through Del Poliedro in logistics, medical attention, rescue, transportation for material and people and

05:24food.

05:24They received a congratulations individually by President Rodriguez.

05:31And the purpose is that these people join us in the second stage, namely the reconstruction process of those buildings

05:43that were hardly hit.

05:46These volunteers who were so effective in La Guayra, well, they should join the common process to repair housing units,

05:58and to find land to build new housing units.

06:0640 days ago, we have more than 1,000 aftershocks since June the 24th.

06:20Regarding transit camps, we have 40 in Caracas, 28 in La Guayra, 26 in Miranda, for a total of 94

06:29transit camps.

06:31With a capacity for 24,000 people that can receive a dignified, a protected unit.

06:42We have tried to use the schools, and showers were built in the camps.

06:50The bathrooms have been appropriately adapted, so we have one or two families per school rooms.

07:03We don't want to have refugees with people sleeping side by side.

07:09In this case, we are making sure that in a single classroom, we can have one or two families.

07:18And that receive a nutritional food.

07:23We have the cooks in the schools cooking food for them.

07:30We have health care with 24 hours, doctors present in the premises, and also specialists.

07:40I will thank the UCV for helping us in order to address more complicated cases.

07:48For instance, there was a child with Res Syndrome, and they required special attention.

07:56For instance, children with cancer, et cetera.

08:00So we have the specialists that are taking care of these cases.

08:05Yesterday, President Rodriguez made some important announcements, and I would like to delve on those.

08:16First, a single registration of housing units for those who lost totally their dwellings.

08:31So once we complete the evaluation process, coordinated by Mr. Garces, there will be additional housing units that will be

08:43considered red, and they had to be replaced to give appropriate housing to these people.

08:53That's why we're going to have this single record that started today.

08:56So how does it work?

08:58First, we go to the transit camp in Caracas, La Guayra, and Miranda, and talk to these people, and also

09:08those who are in the surrounding places, those who are close to their flat, waiting for the end of the

09:15verification.

09:17We take the fingerprint.

09:20We take the fingerprint.

09:20The fingerprint is taken of each one entering the camp.

09:25So we have a database of all those in those transit camps.

09:31And on top of these records, well, this information is used for medical purposes, logistics, if they have a job,

09:44if they are jobless, how can we help them to continue performing their tasks, talk to the employers to explain

09:54the situation, to pay special bonus for those affected.

10:00There have been cases, for instance, of people in the camp.

10:04They are there, and they did not receive the assistance.

10:10So that's the importance of having the fingerprint.

10:16So this will be used to know how many new housing units are required in the country to address this

10:26situation.

10:27This is the page.

10:30This is the page.

10:30We capture the fingerprint.

10:32We take the phone number, email, and this is the document given to each family.

10:43And here we have a QR code.

10:48Because these people might leave this transit camp and go to stay with their relatives, this QR represents their housing

11:02unit.

11:03This means that this means that you lost your house, your apartment during the earthquakes.

11:10And if you stay in the transit camp or you go elsewhere, anyway, this QR is certifying that as soon

11:21as possible, you are going to receive a new housing unit.

11:29We need to speed up the process of those who lost their homes and then repair the housing units affected.

11:42So we have in September, October, we're going to start the school year.

11:50So these schools should be emptied.

11:53So we need to go back to the regular school activities.

11:58So we need to speed up the process on two items.

12:01First, the construction of camps, but for a single family, like transition homes.

12:11Where they are going to be in with their kitchen, their bathrooms while we build the definitive homes.

12:21And second, first, we are trying to find housing in the housing mission.

12:30That should be finished soon.

12:32Second, purchasing housing units in the secondary market.

12:37Third, in the National Assembly, we need to reform the laws.

12:43At least people can rent around 200,000 homes that are not used because they want to rent those homes.

13:00So we need to reform the rent law so the people are willing to rent their homes.

13:08From Venezuela, we're born again.

13:12We have seen that some buildings are affected.

13:17But, however, they still can house the residents, but there were some damages.

13:24They don't have left.

13:26The walls have been damaged.

13:29So a fund has been created for the property groups in the various buildings can receive their special funds.

13:41So they can conduct their repairs alongside where Venezuela will rise again for those homes to be reoccupied.

13:53This next week, we're going to inform about the first loans for the private and public banking sector.

14:02We're going to have to make sure that they could create some loans with 80% discount for those who

14:10want to buy a new apartment.

14:13Those who lost their apartment in La Guayra or Chacao, they could find a new apartment with a subsidy of

14:21up to 80%.

14:26Also, on top of finishing the great housing unit mission to finish the homes and the discount to purchase apartments

14:39and then to facilitate the rent market,

14:43we are also trying to find areas to build what the president has described as anti-seismic areas.

14:57We don't want to have a deposit of people.

15:00We want to have cities, urban areas with commercial centers, sports facilities where people feel pleased in living in those

15:15areas.

15:15So we have visited some areas, especially in La Guayra.

15:22So look, we have found more than 40 pieces of land.

15:30This is the Catelamar area.

15:33This is La Guayra and the old part of La Guayra.

15:43Downtown, we went to eastern Taraguarena, etc.

15:49And we found some pieces of land in Taraguarena and also towards La Sabana.

16:00Between Osma and Chuspa, there is a large area where we can have a master plan, a master plan for

16:12the whole of La Guayra estate.

16:14So we have found some land not too close to the coastline, but rather flatlands or who are in some

16:29areas close to the mountain where they can be built.

16:34These are 584,000 square meters.

16:40So we're going to build in La Guayra and elsewhere.

16:45We don't know how many housing units could be built because first we need to conduct the preliminary studies.

16:54But at any rate, these are going to be small buildings.

17:03So I apologize if I was too long.

17:08So I'd like to give the floor to you.

17:10Reuters with the floor.

17:11Good afternoon, Vivian.

17:17Could you please tell us the number of people that disappeared?

17:27Did we close phase one of search and rescue?

17:33How are we dealing with the relatives who have identified their loved ones, but afterwards they don't find the corpse

17:46of those relative people, of their loved ones?

17:51Well, Vivian, as long as there is life, there is hope.

17:55We still have active sites looking for people alive.

18:03Many teams brought by international rescuers are equipments.

18:09They bring equipment that can detect a heartbeat or worms or some mascot that could be alive.

18:21And this is accompanied with the removal of the debris.

18:27So from the first day, we are doing this very slowly.

18:36The removal of debris should be slow because if we go too fast, if we move a large number of

18:47debris,

18:48we run the risk of killing someone who is under the rubble.

18:55So also people want to rescue the corpse of the loved ones because mourning requires to recognize the loved ones

19:06who died and then to bury those corpse.

19:11People speculate about the number of disappeared people.

19:15Well, for day one, 25th of June, personally, we gave you the figures of people who died.

19:26People whose certainty exists that these people regrettably lost their lives during the two earthquakes.

19:37We cannot speculate.

19:39We cannot speculate.

19:40We need to rely on reality.

19:45In my phone, I have the number of people who have not been identified so far.

19:51They have died, but they have not been identified yet.

20:03Until yesterday, without being identified, 315 persons that were not identified because they were not recognized when we took the

20:23fingerprint,

20:24when it was possible, we could associate this person to any identity in the assignment.

20:31That's 7% of the total of people dead.

20:39Now, unidentified people, that is one of the things they are saying around.

20:43And I have a personal comment and apologize for making a parallel comment in my prayers.

20:54And because these are days of work, but also of days for praying.

21:01I wish sisterly countries in the world, I wish them that they never, ever, are the victims of this type

21:12of natural catastrophe.

21:15Because this is huge what happened in those 90 seconds.

21:21It was huge.

21:23And second, I hope that they are not the target of falsehoods, attacks, lies.

21:34Because those lies lead to the loss of lives.

21:39Perhaps because of those lies, many people who have died.

21:46Perhaps that led to the fact that one person who was starting to live their mourning,

21:52they have a very complicated mourning and they have greater pressure on,

21:58they can have a PST situation or generalized anxiety that needs medical treatment.

22:06What is the use?

22:09What is the use that on the 25th, they said that there will be a tsunami that will kill the

22:18survivors?

22:20What's the use?

22:21Don't you think that it's criminal to say such a lie?

22:25I do not know if you were around, but the people abandoned the rescue process

22:31and they took to the mountains because they were expecting a tsunami to come.

22:37Why do you do such a thing?

22:39What's the purpose of these lies?

22:42And these influencers in Madrid, Miami and Bogota go down to La Guayra with pigs and all the equipment

22:55because the government is doing nothing.

22:57What was the purpose of this call?

23:00Well, to block the highway and the road towards La Guayra.

23:08And the rescuer told me that the three hours that took them to reach La Guayra on the 25th,

23:21the next day, it took them just 15 minutes.

23:25But they said so.

23:27Then they disappeared children.

23:29Do you know how much time it took us trying to find it was true that the people disappeared,

23:36their children disappeared, the traffic in people that happened.

23:46So how do you feel if you have lost someone in La Guayra and someone told you that people are

23:54in a common burial ground?

23:57I mean, this is the La Esperanza burial ground.

24:05These are the people that we're not able to identify.

24:10So each one of these people, the fingerprints were taken.

24:18Each one of these people, they have a dental printer.

24:25And each one of these people, we took a sample of their skin so we can do the DNA test.

24:33So where their loved ones arrived, we can identify these people appropriately so they can receive a proper burial.

24:45What is the purpose of all these lies about this single burial ground?

24:53And they know it was not true, but they repeated this lie.

24:57So what is the next lie?

24:59We don't know what's the next lie.

25:02I hope, I do hope that any other country could go through such a catastrophe as the one that hit

25:10us.

25:10But I also hope that if regrettably they suffer a phenomenon like this one,

25:18we do hope that the hatred that we have witnessed will not affect them.

25:25We have said repeatedly, this is not time for political discourse or political attacks.

25:35I know that many politicians, both in the country and abroad, they are rather helping us instead of attacking us.

25:43They have made proposals, they have went to La Guayra to help.

25:54However, there are also those who want to use this catastrophe for political gains.

26:00So, Paola, Daphne, you have the floor.

26:06Good afternoon.

26:09Two questions.

26:12Regarding what you mentioned, who is taking advantage of this media manipulation?

26:19We've seen videos on rescues that have been on the front page.

26:26And we have verified we went to hospitals, to the buildings that fell apart.

26:37But, well, we have realized that AI has been used in manufacturing those videos.

26:45So all of this is affecting the bereaved.

26:49How are you handling this in how to try that you are preserving life and trying to rescue people alive?

27:02Second, you have requested for the recovery of the gold in the United Kingdom and the lifting of sanctions.

27:14And how this recovery of this gold could help in the recovery of the population after the tragedy?

27:24Well, the President sent a letter today to the King of the United Kingdom and other head of state that

27:38have monies belonging to Venezuela.

27:41The idea is for that gold through a direct fund be used solely to the reconstruction process.

27:51Initial calculations indicate that we need 25,000 housing units.

28:00But we have those who need to build, to rent.

28:04But also, we need to rebuild cities, entire cities, to overcome the tragedy and to be better than we were

28:19before.

28:19So La Guayra state could become, could be rebuilt based on a master plan to generate security, safety and habitat,

28:32urban areas.

28:34And to that purpose we need resources.

28:38The President is precisely doing the financial engineering to have the resources as soon as possible.

28:46So as soon as we detect free apartments, we can purchase them.

28:52So very quickly through construction methods, we can start building new urban areas and new buildings.

29:02We need to detect and to address all the lies.

29:09My wife from a child of 11 years that was kidnapped in a hospital.

29:16I devoted myself to go to hospitals and try to find this child in all the camps.

29:23That time that we devoted to try to find that fake child that was supposedly kidnapped could have been used

29:32in something useful.

29:34Well, there is a part of the declaration of Jorge Rodríguez.

29:38Statements at this hour from the President of the National Assembly and Chief of the Major Command that has been

29:45set up to assess the consequences of the back-to-back earthquakes that struck the nation on June 24th.

29:54He has been assessing key information.

29:57First, he offered another data, new data, regarding the damage that has created these back-to-back earthquakes.

30:08He referred to over 4,000 people that have died as a consequence of the damage that have caused these

30:17two earthquakes, struck the nation on June 24th.

30:20Also, he referred to the fact that there has been set up 94 temporary camps with dignified conditions.

30:29Let's listen once more to statements.

30:36We did not ask about their ideology or their position regarding Venezuela or what they did to Venezuela.

30:44Of course, yesterday, I saw in international media the bureaucracy in Venezuela hinders the arrival of international rescuers.

30:57We want to investigate.

30:59Apparently, one rescue team could not arrive because they did not receive any visa.

31:06But the thing is that all rescuer people arrived without visa.

31:11And the visa was given once they arrived at the airport at Maiketia or Valencia.

31:17So that is curious, right?

31:19And what about the rest?

31:22More than 4,000 rescuers, teams, that still 1,500 are in the country.

31:29Are there ghosts?

31:30And the videos that Bukele showed are done with AI, with all the rescuers from El Salvador arriving in Venezuela,

31:40and the intensive assistance provided by the United States.

31:44That assistance does not exist.

31:46And the UN work and the UN work and the UN work, the rescue teams from the UN that arrived

31:55on the 25th of June because they were in Colombia and they arrived without problems.

32:02We need to investigate this.

32:04But I hope, really, of course, you could use the need of objectivity.

32:15Yeah, well, if we make a mistake, okay, let's try to resolve those problems.

32:20We shouldn't use lies in order to hurt us.

32:25CNN, Mrs. Mena, you have the floor.

32:31Good afternoon.

32:35Some questions that we share.

32:38Yes, you met.

32:40Okay, good.

32:41One.

32:45The handling of the rubble.

32:50Of course, we have a lot of rubble.

32:53People are concerned that that rubble could reach the sea.

32:59In Caraballeda, Taraguarena, we see mountains of rubble close to the sea.

33:10Okay, let me answer that question.

33:13Yeah.

33:14I saw the influencer, you know, with their long hair, bearded, et cetera, saying, oh, they are throwing the rubble

33:24to the sea.

33:25We have 1,280,000 tons of rubble.

33:35There is no way us that international experts have got the idea of throwing this to the sea.

33:47Among those countries that protect the environment and the marine fauna is Venezuela.

33:57On the contrary, we are trying to find mechanisms of how this rubble could be reused.

34:03There are many technologies that enable us to classify this rubble and could be reutilized.

34:10For instance, to enlarge the lanes in the airport.

34:18And tell this guy, this influencer, please, he's not going to say that he's saying a lie.

34:25But this guy is telling a lie, very damageable.

34:29You mentioned the housing units and you have an aggressive plan.

34:36That's what she said.

34:37Do you have any estimate of when these housing units will be built?

34:42Three months, six months.

34:44Next week, President Rodriguez is going to deliver the first 200 housing units.

34:54In September, all the schools that are currently occupied, 90 schools or camps in the schools,

35:05in September, those people should leave because we start the school year.

35:11So, either through the purchasing of new units, the rental, or they're going to have unifamily units for those people

35:24with homeless.

35:25So, it is clear that the country is in exceptional conditions in the midst of an acting president in six

35:35months in the position.

35:39So, I would like to know what the tribunal is thinking about elections. Are we going to organize elections?

35:49We are not stopping any. We are not caring about the Supreme Court.

35:56Now, our concern is the people who are suffering.

36:01I think we are not going to meet among politicians in order to decide who is going to be sent

36:11to the Supreme Court.

36:16So, if you want to meet us in order to tell us how to reform the rental law to pass

36:25and emergency law, etc., and how to find land for new housing units, we are meeting all the constructors, people

36:38who can move forward.

36:40We are not asking political cards to any of these constructors.

36:49It is clearly these people are in the opposition, but their purpose is to build housing units.

36:55So, thank you very much. Do you have any other questions?

36:59Those were statements at this hour from the chief of the major state that has been formed to assist and

37:07to assess the consequences of the dramatic and tragic national disaster that has taken place here in Venezuela.

37:17We go back once more to Venezuela. The president of the National Assembly is offering more statements.

37:24The officers of the loved ones, they gave them to the CICP and they cannot find them anymore.

37:33I've been following this situation and I've seen how many cases you have, at least six cases.

37:39Please, could you give me those cases?

37:42But what we're doing in those cases is one, we need to do the autopsy of the corpse, and this

37:50is done in case of natural catastrophe.

37:53This is done very swiftly. Then we need to have an effective identification of the deceased to certify that person

38:03is actually dead.

38:05We need to have a legal identity of that person, and also they are placed in a special place to

38:18freeze and to protect their bodies.

38:20So give me those cases. But if I give you the answer, you need to inform the population, okay?

38:31And we are seeing this tragedy, and it could happen that because of the size of the authorities, the authorities

38:43ignore some cases, even if a single case.

38:47This does not mean that we are telling a lie. I'm not saying this, right?

38:53Yes, I'm just going to inform that I didn't say it's a lie. What I say is that the tsunami

39:04was an awful, awful lie.

39:08And the other question is the following. Going back to the people who disappeared, I know that you are trying

39:19to rescue people alive under the rubble.

39:24But do you have any senses or any other possibility to establish those people who have disappeared in order to

39:40have a data document where we have the people who had deceased or disappeared?

39:55Senamec, the institution regarding forensic medicine, these are dealing with those people who disappeared or whose courses are being presented

40:09by their loved ones.

40:10So we are checking the database of people reported by the relatives. We are the patria system, which is shared

40:22by most of Venezuelans as a communication system with the state.

40:28There you can record and then you can explain. So the only way to inform the authorities that they do

40:38not find the relatives because that's the question people pose, where they should go in order to ask.

40:46That's the one we have. We are going to see if we need to implement another mechanism.

40:53And the last question has to do with the communique of the government today on the statement by Abelardo de

41:01la Espriera in Colombia regarding the reconstruction or to send assistance for the reconstruction of the housing units.

41:07No, he didn't say that. No, he didn't say that. No, no, no. He didn't say that. Send assistance. You

41:13see how you're distorting. He said that he will take care of the reconstruction in Venezuela and the army in

41:22Colombia should come to Venezuela to solve the problem. That's what he said.

41:25He didn't say that. He didn't say that. He didn't say that he wanted to assist. One thing. This is

41:31a ridiculous thing what he said. Just imagine if I say the Venezuelan army is going to Colombia to get

41:38rid of the coca production.

41:43What would you think? Those were statements at this hour from the chief of the major state that has been

41:53formed to assess the tragedy that Venezuela has been living since June 24th, Jorge Rodriguez.

41:59He was assessing key and important information at this hour. First of all, he said that rescue operations remain active

42:08and nonstop because there are spaces where there could be still life after three weeks after three weeks after the

42:17tragedy.

42:18Also, he informed on the construction of temporary households as the definitive homes are built with anti seismic properties and

42:27technologies.

42:28Also, he ordered as well, there is underway the proposal for a reform of the housing rental law so that

42:36people can feel safer at the time when renting a household in the midst of these circumstances in which thousands

42:44of people have been houseless because of the collapsed buildings after the two powerful magnitude earthquakes that struck the nation

42:53on June 24th.

42:54Also, he informed on the geological studies that are underway for the creation of a new master plan for La

43:04White Estate in safer spaces away from the coastline that is more insecure at this hour.

43:11Also, he referred to the freezing of assets, for example, for example, in the UK with the gold that has

43:16been frozen there, Venezuelan gold.

43:19He referred that the actions are still underway as well to unfreeze those assets.

43:25And also, he referred to the misinformation campaigns that have been spreading lies about the recovery efforts that are being

43:32pursued by the national authorities.

43:34He said this has been one of the most dramatic and tragic events Venezuela has suffered.

43:40And also, there has been the impact as well of misinformation campaign of hatred that has been downpoured on the

43:47Venezuelan people in their darkest hours.

43:49In the face of these circumstances, he said that national authorities are going to keep working all together, united, regardless

43:57of political ideals,

43:59but for the well-being and for the development of the nation to overcome these circumstances.

44:05This is all for the moment. This is how this news brief from the south is ending at this very

44:10moment.

44:11For TELASUR English, I'm Alejandra Garcia. Thank you for watching.

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