Press. voanews.com
"When a
human being wants to recover his freedom, he will take any risk and that is
what I did," Ledezma said in an interview Wednesday with the VOA Spanish
Service. "I took a personal risk to recover my freedom after more than one
thousand days deprived of my human rights."
The nation he
left is a shadow of its former self. Venezuela is one of the top oil producers
in OPEC and as recently as 2011 topped Saudi Arabia as having the largest
proven reserves among members of the cartel. Now Ledezma, like other exiles,
laments chronic food shortages and empty shelves in once gleaming supermarkets,
and often nonexistent basic medical supplies and services.
Maduro has said
his country's economic problems are not the result of bad policy or a failure
of the Chavista socialist model, but rather the outcome of U.S. sanctions and
an "economic war" waged by Venezuela's remaining business elite. The
Venezuelan leader has also refused to roll back government controls enacted
during the Chavez years.
Now free to
travel, Ledezma visited Washington this week to meet with the head of the
Organization of American States, give speeches at think tanks, and make media
appearances in a bid to call attention to the plight of a nation he said is
being held hostage.
"That is my
role, to be one more of these wave of Venezuelans who had to flee Venezuela and
seek refuge in other parts of the world because they feel persecuted
politically in the country or because they simply feel that to stay in
Venezuela is to wait to be shot in the head," he said.
"Or at the
very least die of hunger," he added, referring to rising malnutrition and
low wages.
Oil and Cuba
OPEC figures
show Venezuela's oil production tumbled in recent months, reaching a 28-year
low in October. Analysts say the state-owned oil company, PDVSA, has been
unable to find enough money to maintain wells and pipelines and keep other
parts of the production infrastructure working. Critics blame mismanagement and
corruption.
The crisis has
deepened to the point where Maduro has begun appointing members of the military
to run the company. This week, he named a general, Manuel Quevedo, to run
PDVSA, and sources at the company told Reuters more military officers are to be
appointed.
Critics question
whether the moves are truly anti-corruption measures, suggesting they are
really meant to give Maduro more control of Venezuela's oil industry, which
accounts for 90 percent of the country's overall exports.
Ledezma sees no
hope of resurrecting Venezuela's collapsed economy as long as Maduro remains in
power and maintains the links to communist Cuba that were established by
Chavez, who offered Havana preferential terms on oil contracts. Like many in
the Venezuelan opposition, Ledezma accuses Cuba of siphoning off Venezuela's
oil wealth — with Caracas' consent.
"Venezuela
is the only country with a government that is paying so that it can be invaded.
Venezuela is financing the Cuban regime, handing over oil money that we need
for food and medicine that are scarce now," Ledezma said. "We have told
the international community it needs to be vigilant of what is happening in
Venezuela because its people have been taken hostage."
'Hope' or
'vampire'?
Reaction to
Ledezma's flight into exile and his new crusade in the world has been mixed.
Supporters showered praise during a Facebook Live appearance on the VOA Spanish
website. One blogger wrote, "You are our hope." Venezuela's
president also expressed approval, albeit sarcastically, of Ledezma's
departure. In a speech to supporters, Maduro laughingly described the Caracas
mayor as "the vampire that is flying free about the world," and
called for Spain not to return him.
There is little
chance Ledezma will go back while Maduro is in power. In Wednesday's interview,
the ousted mayor indicated that any negotiations would have to include
discussions on Maduro's exit. In starting his
life in exile, Ledezma has plenty of company. Venezuela researchers say the
number of Venezuelans living outside the country has risen by 2,000 percent
since the 1990s.