Why can't Venezuela keep talents?

Once upon a time, people did not flee Venezuela, but flocked to it.

"Venezuelans today are suffering from many misfortunes that happened in Central and South America in the past."

At Value Store It Self Storage, a self-service warehouse in Dollard, Florida, you can see new Venezuelan nationals every Friday.

On the brightly lit fourth floor, four areas are stacked with sheets, towels, tableware, toys, clothes donated by the citizens, and 60 boxes of fancy women's casual shoes sent this day. The recipients began to arrive at 2 pm: an accountant and his wife as a reporter; Veterinarians; A registered nurse and her baby and 10-year-old daughter.

Everyone has just been in America for a few months. "I didn't know there was such a place before," said nurse Dianna Diaz. After getting some kitchen utensils and a microwave oven, she couldn't help crying.

"They need everything."

Most of them are well-educated young professionals.

In order to escape political persecution or the collapsed economy, there are more and more such people. In Dollard, a Miami suburb, Venezuelans and Venezuelan-born Americans account for more than one third of the total population.

Patricia Andrade, who lives here, said that she began to receive desperate calls for help from these professionals on 20 15. Andrade immigrated from Caracas in the 1980s. He said:

"There are too many such people. They need everything. "

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In order to help newcomers gain a foothold, she founded a charity and sought donations from all walks of life. Now the organization organizes the above gift-giving activities once a week.

Patricia andrade

There are no official statistics on the number of Venezuelan immigrants, but according to the statistics of US Citizenship and Immigration, they ranked first among asylum seekers in the fiscal year ending March 20 17. The number of applicants reached 14525, while it was at 20 18 1.

According to the data compiled by the US Department of Homeland Security, in 20 15 years, the number of Venezuelans overstaying with tourist visas increased by 78% over the previous year, reaching12,729.

From running to fleeing

Once upon a time, people did not flee Venezuela, but flocked to it.

"Venezuela has always been a country where immigrants go instead of fleeing." Venezuelan sociologist Thomas Paz said. He pointed out that since the 1960s, this country has become a "big magnet", attracting a large number of Europeans (especially Spaniards) and South Americans. At that time, its attractions included a mild climate, an oil-driven economy and a history of democratic governance.

At that time, Concorde opened a flight from Paris to Caracas. Venezuelans fly to Miami for shopping from time to time. "This is very cheap, give me two copies" is their representative statement. Paes wrote the voice of Venezuelan expatriates on 20 15.

1999, Hugo Chá vez came to power and formulated a plan of socialism and strongman rule supported by oil revenue. Before the death of 20 13, Chá vez appointed his successor Nicolás Maduro Moros to lead the Bolivarian Revolution.

At that time, oil prices were already falling, causing Venezuela's economy to fall into recession, and strict price and foreign exchange control made the recession even more painful, because control caused a serious shortage of all commodities, from basic foods to anticancer drugs.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates that Venezuela's gross domestic product (GDP) will decrease by 65,438+08% in 2065,438+06, and will decrease by 7% again in 2065,438+07. The monthly average inflation rate of 20 17 is expected to reach 720%.

Shortly after Chavez came to power, the richest people left first, and then the government purified the state-owned oil companies, and oil workers began to flow to Texas, Calgary and Saudi Arabia. Many of the recent wave of people leaving their jobs are middle-class professionals, so some people call this phenomenon brain drain.

Paes estimates that by 20 14, more than 2 million Venezuelans will be living abroad. The population of this country is about 3 1 ten thousand.

In Miami, the first group of Venezuelans also set up import and export business with resources and organized political forces against Chavez and Maduro. In Brickel financial district, it is obvious that there are more and more Venezuelans, and some newly-built high-rise houses present colorful geometric facades with unique Venezuelan characteristics.

I think it can be said that Venezuelans today are suffering from many misfortunes in Central and South America in the past 20 years. "