More and more Portuguese in Venezuela find themselves in a situation of poverty, but they are ashamed to know that they need the help of the local community and the Portuguese Government, which prevents them from knowing the true dimension of the needs.

The alert was given by the outgoing president of the Sociedade de Beneficência de Damas Portuguesas (SBDP), Fátima Pita, in Caracas, during a fundraising bingo that marked the 54th anniversary of that institution and aimed to raise funds for different social works .

“People are ashamed to come to an institution to ask questions, because they came with the purpose of making a better life and they were not lucky enough to do so,” Fátima Pita told the Lusa news agency, stressing that “there are not many causes ” for those who ended up having “the same life that they see in other people”. According to Fátima Pita, “not everyone had the same luck”.

Some have a little more, others less, and there is a large group of people who do not even know where they are, because they are ashamed to approach us. We are sad when a case like this arrives at our institution, and many are arriving, every day, especially this year, ”he described.

The official said that the organization needs “a lot of support to be able to help those who do not receive help from Portugal, or who do not have the same rights as those who have lived in Portugal all their lives, to be able to solve the problem.” problems they have.”

According to the SBDP leader, in Venezuela many Portuguese have difficulties paying for medicines, food, rent and other day-to-day necessities. These are mainly elderly and impoverished people who can no longer work and who do not receive help “because they do not have the same rights as those who live in Portugal, despite being Portuguese.”

It would be very important for them to receive help, like any other elderly person living in Portugal, because they came to Venezuela in search of a better life, but they were not lucky enough to get it (…) they reach 60 and 70 years of age, and they cannot work, and they do not have a small pension, and in Venezuela it is very difficult,” he explained.

On the other hand, she said she was very grateful for the opportunity to be part of the board of directors of the SBDP for 15 years, particularly during the seven years in which she was president: “I gained a lot of experience, both from those who asked us for help, and of previous presidents. It was a learning experience. It was satisfying to work.”

He also reported that this institution went through some difficult years, but now it is “much better.”

“During the last four years we have received help from the Portuguese Government, from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which has been very useful for us to be able to fulfill our duties (…). The help from Portugal has been a fundamental part of being able to work. We also receive a lot of help from businessmen and individuals, but there are many people in need and we need more and more help, ”he said.

About the day to day in SBDP, he explained that the ‘ladies’ wake up thinking about what they have to do, answering phone calls, preparing the baskets and soups that they distribute, as well as medicines.

For her part, Lucecita Fernandes, president-elect of the SBDP, thanked the community for the birthday bingo, noting that it was organized by the ‘ladies’ to raise funds for social works. However, she warned that “on the one hand the community responds by contributing, but on the other hand there are also more compatriots knocking on our door to ask for help.”

“We are accompanying more than 100 families [mais de 300 beneficiários] and we also have specific cases of people who come for timely help, to complete a treatment or when they cannot pay for a medical examination”, he described.

Regarding his management, he explained that he hopes to “do the best possible” to help the Portuguese and that he has “a team of women who treat people with the necessary respect and dignity”.

“I also want to thank the Government of Portugal, because it took us into account, thank you for the trust you placed in the Ladies of Charity so that we can serve our compatriots in the best way,” he said.

Ambassador asks women to remain active in caring for Luso-Venezuelan women

The Portuguese ambassador in Caracas, João Pedro Fins do Lago, praised the work carried out by charity associations in Venezuela, particularly women, whom he asked to remain active in caring for the Portuguese in need.

“NGOs that support civil society are expected to come out of civil society, emanate from civil society and not just sit where everyone is, but go to civil society where they belong,” the diplomat said. .

This is the big difference between the new stages and the world in which we live. It is a world of immediacy and needs that are renewed and our role, that of all, is to go out to meet people”, stressed the diplomat, who congratulated the Portuguese community and the Ladies of Charity for the “54 years of fruitful life, working for others”.

“But this is because SBDP is an example: going out to meet the people who need us, being attentive to what people need from us,” he said.

“In today’s times, being an active member of an organization that cares about society is being up to date with technology, being on social networks. Being close to others and to the new generations today means using the new means of communication intelligently and actively, which are action tools, so that we can bring water to the mill, so that we can bring food, medicine, support and more than anything. it is a word of affection for those who need it, ”he said.

João Pedro Fins do Lago also said that “this is expected from all non-governmental organizations of our time, as is expected from an active commitment to gender equality”.

“54 years ago, SBDP paved the way, gave a space, voice, tools, presence, a purpose to the women of the Portuguese community of Caracas. And, today, this concept opens. Talking about inclusion and diversity are not empty words, they are current words that we must translate into the actions of the organizations to which we belong, ”she said.

The diplomat concluded with a message of hope and encouragement to the Ladies of Charity “for the task that lies ahead: that it be a task that is always attentive to everyone and that they know that they have the support of this ambassador, of the family , with the support of the Portuguese Government, with the support of the Government of the Autonomous Community [da Madeira] also”.

“For the last four years, the Portuguese Government has supported, not only with words, but also with money, what it considers to be a good cause and one that gives results. May these results multiply and there are more people to whom they bring happiness, to whom they bring food, to those who bring well-being, to those who bring peace in their hearts, ”he said.