00:03And we go live now to Zulia, the state of Zulia in Venezuela, as the president,
00:08the acting president, Delsi Rodriguez, is in the state participating in this
00:14pilgrimage for peace that she convened for this day in 19... we see live images
00:25at this time of the acting president taking part in this pilgrimage in the state of Zulia
00:31in the western part of Venezuela in this pilgrimage that she convened for today and will be in
00:40place until May 1st.
00:44It is important to highlight that this is an important moment for Venezuela that are taking
00:53part in this pilgrimage, the pilgrimage for Venezuela without sanctions and in peace that
01:03begins precisely today, April 19, and where Venezuelans are demanding an end to the economic
01:12blockade imposed by the United States.
01:15Live images at this time, the acting president of the country taking part in this pilgrimage,
01:21this national pilgrimage for Venezuela without sanctions and in peace is an initiative that
01:27the acting president, Delsi Rodriguez, launched before the aim at uniting the political, social
01:36and religious sectors in a massive upcry against the unilateral cohesive measures that are affecting
01:44the national economy.
01:46The mobilization began today on a date of great historical significance coinciding with the anniversary
01:55of the proclamation of independence and will extend across the entire national territory according
02:02to the official schedule.
02:04Our activities started today simultaneously in the state of Stashira and Amazonas and this is the one
02:11that we are seeing right now that is taking place in the state of Zulia in the western part of
02:18Venezuela.
02:19We see the large crowd accompany the acting president alongside other officials in this pilgrimage
02:28for a Venezuela free of sanctions and in peace covering all regions of the country.
02:35This pilgrimage that will take place until May 1st when they all converge to the capital city, Caracas.
02:45The national executive has emphasized that this call transcends partisan differences, inviting civil society
02:51to join under the premise of sovereignty.
02:55The pilgrimage will conclude on May 1st as I was saying, as all the caravans will converge.
03:13As part of these preparations to the pilgrimage, the president of the National Assembly, Jorge Rodriguez, took the floor a
03:24few minutes ago in one of the caravans that are taking part of this pilgrimage.
03:31Also, Dioslado Cabello, also to the floor, they're all calling for peace, talking about the achievement that could be possible
03:46in case that all sanctions be lifted.
03:52They're making reference how the economy of Venezuela will grow when all sanctions will be lifted, how all the progress
04:01will be achieved once all sanctions be lifted.
04:09Jorge Rodriguez led a meeting last February with representatives from various opposition parties at the Federal Legislative Palace in a
04:17meeting focused on consolidating the program for peace and democratic coexistence as a key foundation to strengthen dialogue strategies ahead
04:25of the national mobilizations.
04:28The closing of this major mobilization, as I've been saying, will take place on May 1st, that is International Workers'
04:36Day, with a massive national march in the country's capital.
04:43Authorities expect this traveling demonstration to serve as a unique plea to the international community to demand respect for economic
04:52freedoms and the well-being of the Venezuelan people.
04:58The national government has reaffirmed that meaningful dialogue with all sectors is the path to overcoming current difficulties and preserving
05:09stability.
05:10Through this great pilgrimage, Venezuela seeks to demonstrate its determination to move towards sustainable development and economic growth, free from
05:21external obstacles and financial pressures.
05:25Political sectors were also invited to take part in this great pilgrimage to the Generalismo Francisco de Miranda Park in
05:36Miranda State to participate in the Programme for Coexistence for Venezuela Free of Sanctions.
05:43The coordinator of the Programme for Peace and Democratic Coexistence, Ernesto Villegas, highlighted the start of the route in the
05:51state of Zulia, Amazonas, and Tachira.
05:53This one we are seeing right now is the state of Zulia in the western part of the country.
06:03And we see now the acting president of Zulia is greeting all the fishers, all the fishermen that are present
06:12there on the boats.
06:15This is the national pilgrimage for Venezuela Free of Sanctions and Peace demands the cessation of all the blockades and
06:28sanctions against the country.
06:33It is important to highlight that Jorge Rodriguez took the floor a few hours ago and he was highlighting, as
06:39I was saying, that all the indigenous communities and all the people
06:49that are affected by these economic measures, these sanctions, these sanctions, this is the reason why they are demanding the
07:00lifting of these sanctions in order to recover properly the national economy.
07:11In this context, Jorge Rodriguez also highlighted the participation of the opposition leaders in this national pilgrimage, also demanding for
07:20the lifting of sanctions against the country.
07:30We see that there are deputies of the opposition present in this mobilization, so this pretty much doesn't have political
07:43boundaries.
07:44This is the call of a country that is being subjected to sanctions that are affecting the economy and the
07:55livelihood of people, communities, indigenous communities, workers, students.
08:04So this pilgrimage is taking place in the midst of these sanctions demanding the lifting of these coercive sanctions in
08:16order to recover the national economy.
08:21As I was saying, the Venezuelan people is mobilizing to demand the lifting of the humanitarian coercive measures, coercive sanctions
08:29that are being imposed by the United States and the European Union.
08:32This popular demand is in response to the imposition of more than 1,080 sanctions over the last 10 years,
08:40which placed the South American nation as the third most affected country in the world by this type of policy.
08:49It is important to mention that the measures resulted in a loss of $232 billion and a 99 percent drop
08:58in foreign exchange revenues,
09:00severely impacting oil production.
09:04As of April 2026, the total number of measures is reported to exceed 9,900 unilateral sanctions targeting both public
09:13agencies and private companies.
09:16Venezuela has frozen assets such as 39 domestic and foreign vessels that are prohibited from operating 58 aircraft, most of
09:27which are state-owned, are subjected to sanctions.
09:32In turn, the United States maintains individual sanctions against 209 people, while Canada sanctions 123 and the European Union sanctions
09:4269.
09:45Figures from humanitarian and health organizations reflect the social consequences, with approximately 9.3 million people suffering from moderate to
09:56severe food insecurity and chronic malnutrition,
09:59that has risen from 18 percent in 2016 to nearly 30 percent today, according to data from Caritas Venezuela.
10:08Similarly, Venezuela's economy will grow by 7.4 percent in 2026 compared to last year, while inflation will close at
10:18271.6 percent, according to a report released this Friday by the United Nations Development Program team in the South
10:26American country.
10:27As I was saying, let us remember that today also is an important date, because this is the national pilgrimage
10:35that began precisely on April 19, commemorating the 216th year since the proclamation of Venezuela's independence,
10:43a milestone that marked the end of the colonial regime through the struggle for emancipation and sovereignty of the people
10:51who long for freedom, dignity and the right to have their own voices to decide their own future.
11:03This is not an isolated pilgrimage, it's a collective call to the demand, to the lifting of sanctions.
11:17We see this huge pilgrimage, national pilgrimage, this huge caravan that we can see live images right now, with the
11:27Upton president taking part in the state of Zulia, demanding the lifting of sanctions against the country.
11:42This mobilization represents the union of all sectors.
11:52These measures are affecting the whole country in all these fears, social, economy.
12:02We see the large crowd filling the bridge in the state of Zulia and will be taking place until May
12:171st, until May 1st in Caracas.
12:21We will converge all the pilgrimage, all the caravans that were starting to date in the state of Tashira, Amazonas,
12:33and now the state of Zulia, where the acting president is participating.
12:39We see the large crowd, a huge crowd taking place in this, participating in this caravan through the bridge that
12:47we see filled with a lot of people in this pilgrimage for Venezuela without sanctions and in peace.
12:59Many states, many states are expected to join these caravans, little by little, and we see the acting president greeting
13:11the whole crowd, all the people that are joining this caravan, this pilgrimage, demanding the lifting of sanctions that have
13:23been affected for a long time.
13:25The life, the livelihoods of a whole people, a whole country.
13:37Because the sanctions not only have attacked the government of Venezuela, but also the whole country.
13:46So this caravan and this pilgrimage that start today is in order to demand the lifting of sanctions, the lifting
14:00of these coercive measures targeting not only the economy, the social life of the people, not only the government.
14:14The sanctions also affect the people of Venezuela, and we see at this time live images.
14:22This caravan taking part in this caravan taking part in the bridge that passed through the lake of Maracaibo in
14:32the western part of the country in Zulia State.
14:37We see that the president, we see that the president, the acting president taking part in this caravan.
14:48This initiative that she launched, the acting president launched this initiative, and will be taking part in different parts of
15:01the country, the sovereign state will be joining this caravan, this pilgrimage, leader by leader, until all converge on May
15:091st in Caracas, in the international work state.
15:14Another remarkable date.
15:18Also that, let's remember that today, the Venezuelan is celebrating the 216th anniversary of the proclamation of independence.
15:31...
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