Venezuelan native in Bowling Green says situation in homeland is deteriorating everyday
BOWLING GREEN, Ky.- Anti-government demonstrators clashed with troops loyal to Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro near an air base in the capital Caracas on Tuesday and a Bowling Green city official, who was born in Venezuela, is reacting.
The clashes happened hours after opposition leader Juan Guaido took to the streets with a small contingent of heavily armed troops early today a risky attempt to oust Maduro.
The early-morning rebellion was by far the most-serious challenge yet to Maduro’s rule since Guaido, with the backing of the United States and dozens of other countries, declared himself the country’s interim president in January.
Flanked by a few dozen national guardsmen and some armored crowd control vehicles, Guiado called on civilians and the military to join what he called “a final push” to topple Maduro.
Troops loyal to Maduro sporadically fired tear gas from inside the adjacent Carlota Air Base.
Leyda Becker, the international communities liaison for the city of Bowling Green, is a native of Venezuela. Her family still resides there. Becker said things are deteriorating day after day under the current government regime and says democracy must be restored.
“I’d like to someday be able to take my children to visit my homeland and for them to know where I came from,” Becker said. “Now, it’s just through pictures. I don’t know if that will ever be possible. That makes me incredibly sad, to not be able to share that with future generations I hope that one day that won’t be the case though.”
According to Becker, there are five or six families from Venezuela that reside in Warren County.