Emigrating from Venezuela to Brazil, First Steps
HAVANA TIMES – I never thought I would leave Venezuela. But here I am. I have crossed the border into Brazil, and now I am waiting to process my papers through Operation Welcome, which Brazil offers to Venezuelan migrants. I am not Venezuelan, but here they also receive those fleeing from Haiti and Cuba.
Because this is the week leading up to the presidential elections in Venezuela, many, like me, have predicted that Nicolas Maduro will not recognize the people’s will. That is why the lines in Pacaraima have multiplied. The first step is to request entry permission. Compared to the rest, this is the easiest and quickest step.
Then the ordeal begins: trying to get into the “Blue House.”
At this place, they conduct the COVID test and collect the data for the health card, an essential document to receive public health benefits in Brazil.
On my first attempt to enter the Blue House, I was naive. I arrived around 4 in the morning. The line was already stretching outside the tent set up to shelter those in the various lines from the rain and sun.
That morning seemed endless; it rained, the sun came out, and it got hot. I bought some hot coffee and Venezuelan empanadas. The line remained immobile, like an ancient god taking its unshakable nap. There were no seats, although there were water fountains nearby. The NGO Caritas also offers a very clean and pleasant bathroom. But alone, not knowing anyone, I didn’t dare leave the line.
At four in the afternoon, a voice announced that they would no longer attend to anyone else, only those in the front spots from the previous day.
The day ended in vain. It’s Tuesday, July 23rd, and I have a plane ticket booked for July 28. I can’t miss it; I’m already racing against time. I have to put all my effort into getting into the Blue House the next day.