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🇻🇪 Venezuela /Disasters & Emergencies

Opposition party proposes Japanese model for La Guaira earthquake reconstruction

From El Nacional · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Outcome reported
  • Venezuela's opposition party Primero Justicia (PJ) proposed a Japanese model for rebuilding La Guaira after a double earthquake.
  • The plan emphasizes technical planning, international experience, and scientific criteria for reconstruction.
  • PJ criticized the government's capacity and urged immediate aid for survivors.

Venezuela's opposition party Primero Justicia (PJ) has put forward a proposal for the reconstruction of La Guaira, a coastal state devastated by a recent double earthquake. The party advocates for a reconstruction model inspired by Japan's extensive experience in seismic event prevention and response. This approach, they argue, should integrate technical planning and international best practices to guide the recovery process.

From Primero Justicia, we urge to prioritize the attention to survivors... and that the reconstruction of Vargas (La Guaira) be urgently planned based on scientific criteria and accumulated experience.

— María Gabriela HernándezStressing the immediate needs and the basis for reconstruction.

María Gabriela Hernández, PJ's national secretary for Environment and Sustainability, stressed the immediate need to prioritize survivors and develop a reconstruction strategy grounded in scientific knowledge. She stated, "From Primero Justicia, we urge to prioritize the attention to survivors... and that the reconstruction of Vargas (La Guaira) be urgently planned based on scientific criteria and accumulated experience."

Hernández also voiced skepticism regarding the Venezuelan state's ability to comprehensively address the disaster's aftermath, citing a lack of technical and political will. The party's proposal includes implementing a waste management system similar to Japan's, which would process debris for road clearance and prevent the dumping of contaminated materials into the sea. Official figures indicate the earthquakes generated approximately 2.1 million tons of debris.

The Venezuelan state lacks the technical capacity and political will required to comprehensively address the communities affected.

— María Gabriela HernándezCriticizing the government's response to the disaster.

Furthermore, PJ suggested revisiting a disaster prevention plan for the Caracas Metropolitan District, developed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency after the 1999 landslide, which also impacted La Guaira. The party also called for the adoption of recommendations from the Central University of Venezuela to modernize concrete channels and incorporate new building criteria in the affected areas.

implementing the parceling, classification, crushing, and mobile incineration of debris for the reopening of roads.

— María Gabriela HernándezDetailing the proposed waste management system for debris.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by El Nacional in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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