By M.K.George
Rome, July 4, 2026: What is happening in Venezuela is deeply personal to me.
My Superior General is Venezuelan, and so is the priest who faithfully attends to my daily needs, providing food, care, and companionship.
It pains me to see them carry the weight of a shattered homeland, yet continue to smile, serve, and give of themselves with remarkable generosity. Their quiet resilience has made the suffering of Venezuela more than a distant news story—it has become a reality that touches my own life.
Beyond my personal concern, I think Venezuela should matter to all of us, for two reasons: it is a tragedy beyond comparison, and it has political and social implications for the emerging world order.
A tragedy beyond compare
In a world where every morning and every night ends with announcements of new tragedies, the Venezuelan one is unique. It combines decades of political turmoil, economic collapse, humanitarian suffering, and now devastating earthquakes.
Though one of Latin America’s wealthiest nations due to its vast oil reserves, Venezuela entered a prolonged decline following political polarization under Presidents Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro.
Mismanagement, corruption, falling oil prices, and international sanctions contributed to hyperinflation, food and medicine shortages, and the emigration of more than seven million people.
The United States has also played a significant role through sanctions, diplomatic pressure, and support for opposition movements, with many critics arguing these measures worsened economic hardship, while supporters say they targeted authoritarian rule.
Then came the massive earthquakes on 24 June 2026—two earthquakes, a “seismic doublet,” occurring just 39 seconds apart, with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5. As of 4 July 2026, there were 2,645 confirmed deaths, 12,000 injuries, and 15,000 people left homeless. The reality, however, may still be far worse than reported.
C. J. Sandoval reported in The New York Times (1 July 2026):
“These earthquakes … have heaped new devastation onto a country already buckling under a protracted economic and humanitarian crisis.
“By the end of 2025, the United Nations and independent civil society organizations estimated that more than 7.9 million people faced critical food, water, and healthcare shortages.
“Nearly eight million Venezuelans (out of 28.5 million), including doctors, nurses and other essential workers, have fled the country in recent years.
“The long collapse of public services… left Venezuelans utterly unprotected when the earthquakes struck… so did years of government attacks on civil society, which dismantled the non-profits and civilian rescue networks that might have aided the response.”
She added: “…In the face of all these deficits and dysfunctions, the people of Venezuela have shown a tremendous amount of solidarity and resilience. But Venezuelans’ support for one another—impressive as it is—cannot rebuild the country.”
Venezuela calls for the maximum compassion from the world, now.
Lessons for the whole world
Who does not see that the old world order is under severe stress, and that a new world order is struggling to emerge?
The conflict with Iran is only the most recent provocation in the debate about an emerging multipolar world order.
Many believe Washington has failed to demonstrate effective leadership, exposing the limits of military power.
At the same time, countries such as China, Russia, India, and other regional powers are seeking greater autonomy and influence in global affairs—a phenomenon we should be watching closely and reflecting upon.
The weakening of civil society, the silencing of free speech, the neglect of the rule of law, and the inability of international organizations such as the UN to exert meaningful influence—whether in Russia’s attack on Ukraine, the assault on Iran, the continued devastation in Gaza, or multiple crises in Africa—are also a serious warning.
The Venezuelan experience shows clearly that when free speech is silenced and civil society is side-lined, instability is not a possibility—it is only a matter of time.
Wake up citizens
Across the world, ordinary citizens should wake up to this emerging world order: the silent but steady weakening of free speech and civil society activism, and the resulting disempowerment of people—especially when tragedies occur.
What President Chávez and later President Maduro did—purging the country of opposition, eroding judicial independence, and dismantling civil society institutions—is a phenomenon now observable in many countries across the world, including our own.
Beyond the call for compassion, Venezuela is also a warning: when authoritarianism grows, humanity dies.
Indian Jesuit Father George Mutholil, based in Rome, serves as the Society of Jesus’ General Counsellor and Regional Assistant for South Asia. He advises on matters specific to this region while also supporting the Superior General on broader issues of governance.
(Image courtesy of BBC)