The Venezuelan community in Vancouver expresses mixed emotions over the U.S. capturing President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
Maxyori Araque owns TekeGourmet, a small startup in Burnaby that offers Venezuelan cuisine. She immigrated from Caracas to British Columbia in 2012. On Saturday, her conversations with family back home were filled with emotion.
“I spoke with my family, and they are happy,” she told CityNews. The local Venezuelan community is responding with mixed feelings to the news that the United States captured the South American country’s president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife after carrying out airstrikes.
Araque says their reactions have been shaped by years of unrest and repression. “Nicolás Maduro was cruel, even at the beginning, people protesting, children protesting, 14- or 15-year-olds at school,” she said.
Her daughter, Maria Suzin, says Venezuelans are carefully weighing the latest developments, including the actions taken by the United States. “It is much easier to negotiate with the U.S. than it is with a dictatorial regime that has been silencing us, torturing us, and keeping us away for so long,” Suzin said.
She believes many Venezuelans see the situation as a trade-off with serious consequences. “I think if we have to choose between oil and freedom, we choose freedom.” Suzin also stresses the importance of Venezuelan voices being heard. “I feel that it is unreasonable to speak over Venezuelans on this topic or on how we should feel.”
Venezuelan-Canadian Adriana Peña, who lives on Vancouver Island, expressed her happiness about Saturday’s news. “It’s been years of chaos and havoc in Venezuela, and I thought it would continue on,” she said. “It’s about time, to be honest, so I’m happy for my friends and family in Venezuela.”
Peña moved to Canada in the ’80s and was unsure if she would ever be able to return. “I didn’t think it was safe to go back there.” However, she acknowledges the uncertainty of the situation. “There’s a bit of a vacuum; we don’t know what the new regime is going to look like,” she said. “Obviously, there are going to be questions, but anything is better than what we had before.”
Community advocates say that change, if it comes, will take time. “It’s a step, the first step on a long road to hopefully a new government and a stronger democracy,” said Meriely Arias with the Canadian Venezuelan Society of B.C.
While many in the local community express cautious optimism, concerns remain for family members still waiting for lasting change. Some believe it’s time to focus on the positive. “Maybe one day, it will be safe for me to go back there and see my family,” said Peña.
| Date | Location | Person | Event |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday | Burnaby, British Columbia | Maxyori Araque | Discussed family reactions to news from Venezuela |
| Saturday | Venezuela | Nicolás Maduro | Captured by the U.S. after airstrikes |
| 2012 | Caracas | Maxyori Araque | Immigrated to British Columbia |
