Venezuela Aid Live
Venezuela Aid Live was a concert to benefit Venezuela in Cúcuta, Colombia, a city near the Venezuelan border, on 22 February 2019. The all-day concert, called Música por Venezuela: Ayuda y Libertad, was organized by Richard Branson and Bruno Ocampo, and featured over thirty of the best known Latin American artists from nine countries. The concert's slogan was, "Let the stars shine for all".
Venezuela Live Aid's charity page said, "Not that long ago, was the wealthiest country in South America. Now it is facing the worst humanitarian crisis in the Western Hemisphere." The purpose of the concert was to raise money and to pressure Nicolás Maduro to "open Venezuela's border so humanitarian aid stockpiled on Venezuela's borders can finally reach those millions who need it the most". Donations of US$2.5 million were raised online in the first four days after the concert.
The concert was entirely funded through donations, artists performed without charge, and the event itself was free. The concert was livestreamed on the Internet, with the aim to raise funds via website donations. The only webpage authorized for donations was the official website at www.VenezuelaAidLive.com.
Background
Shortages in Venezuela have occurred since the presidency of Hugo Chávez, with the country experiencing a scarcity rate of 24.7% in 2007. Venezuela has also been suffering a socioeconomic crisis under Nicolás Maduro, as rampant crime, hyperinflation and shortages diminished the quality of life since 2010. Beginning in 2015, the Maduro government rejected offers of aid, stating that there was no humanitarian crisis in Venezuela and that such claims were only used to justify foreign intervention; his refusal of aid worsened the situation. The National Assembly of Venezuela declared a "health humanitarian crisis" in January 2016, given the "serious shortage of medicines, medical supplies and deterioration of humanitarian infrastructure", asking Maduro's government to "guarantee immediate access to essential medicines".Near the end of 2018—before the Venezuelan presidential crisis when Juan Guaidó swore an oath to serve as interim president—the Maduro government said aid from other countries would be coordinated through the UN. Reuters reported concerns that the UN funding would be lost to corruption in Maduro's government. After the 2019 presidential crisis, Maduro continued to refuse aid, saying that Venezuela was not a country of "beggars".
Guaidó made bringing humanitarian aid to the hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans who could die if aid does not arrive a priority. Cúcuta has become the hub and focal point of the humanitarian aid crisis in Venezuela; in addition to being the site of the concert, it was the main border crossing point for thousands of Venezuelans fleeing their country in the Venezuela–Colombia migrant crisis, and the location where most of the aid was stockpiled. Images of the Tienditas Bridge, joining Colombia and Venezuela at Cúcuta, have come to symbolize the crisis because the "Venezuelan government blocked it with shipping containers". Due to the migrant crisis, the bridge was never opened after its 2016 completion, and was previously closed with fences and concrete block.
Purpose
Branson and his friend, Colombian businessman Bruno Ocampo, spoke of Venezuela and their passion for human rights in December 2018. Six weeks later, Branson wrote to Ocampo, inquiring about ways to help Venezuela, and by 30 January, they had made contact with interim president Guaidó and his mentor Leopoldo López. Branson announced on 14 February 2019 that his inspiration to organize the benefit concert was Guaidó and Lopez asking for humanitarian aid to be allowed into Venezuela. The concert was held only three weeks after the four men spoke.Branson said the event was held to raise money for aid in Venezuela, to pressure the government of Nicolás Maduro to allow the humanitarian aid funded by various nations and stored in Cúcuta to be distributed within Venezuela, and to raise awareness of the crisis in Venezuela. He criticized Maduro's regime for refusing aid. The concert's Spanish website listed five general groups in Venezuela which the concert aimed to help: children who go hungry every day, grandparents left to die in the streets due to lack of welfare, parents who work hard and still can't provide, young people unjustly persecuted, and humanity deserving a life in peace.
A press release from Venezuela Aid Live said that all money donated to the cause would be given in humanitarian aid to the people of Venezuela. Branson asked for donations to reach "$100 million dollars in 60 days". The concert was livestreamed on the Internet, with the aim to raise additional funds via website donations. Organizers said the concert was entirely funded through donations, artists were not compensated for performing, and the concert was free.
Branson advertised that the concert would be "a beautiful concert", featuring a "fantastic line-up of top Latin American and global artists", that would be live-streamed around the world. The Spanish website of the concert featured the story of a young man who watched his mother suffer in pain from cancer, with a highlighted statement that 50% of cancer patients in Venezuela receive no treatment.
Organization
The concert was modelled after The Concert for Bangladesh and Live Aid. It took place in Cúcuta, a Colombian city near the border with Venezuela, from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm. It was originally planned to be held on the San Martín Roundabout, a short distance from the Simon Bolivar International Bridge, but the location was changed to the Tienditas Bridge.Colombian producers were businessmen Ricardo Leyva, and brothers Fernán and Bruno Ocampo. Leyva, who owns a marketing company called Sistole, was brought to the project by Bruno Ocampo, who had never previously organized a concert, and Leyva said they made it a priority to "guarantee world class content, with great sound and great production".
Leyva hired Persival and Árbol Naranja, production companies with experience at producing music concerts. A rotating stage high with 11 sound towers and 400 tons of equipment were installed on the bridge. The rotating stage allowed one musician to be preparing during another's performance. Support for setting up live streaming was provided by YouTube, and WK Entertainment got streaming rights cleared.
At least 1,800 local police provided security, and hospital services were on alert. The aircraft flying in musicians and producers were quickly cleared through airports by Colombia, and a civic holiday was declared for the city of Cúcuta on the day of the concert. There were 1,300 journalists accredited to work the event ; 1,800 people did logistical work, and 800 volunteers helped as well.
Attendance
Organizers said the space could accommodate up to 500,000 people, while they hoped for about 250,000. The Los Angeles Times and National Radio of Colombia estimated there were more than 200,000 present. Colombia's English-language newspaper and Billboard reported 300,000 or more. Concert organizers said the attendance was 370,000, as reported by CNN en Español.Juan Guaidó defied the restriction imposed by the Maduro administration on him leaving Venezuela, and showed up at the concert. In a move that tested Maduro's authority, he was met by Colombian president Iván Duque, and welcomed by a crowd chanting, "Juan arrived!" Duque, Chilean president Sebastián Piñera, Paraguayan president Mario Abdo Benítez, and Luis Almagro, Secretary General of the Organization of American States attended. Piñera said he was at the concert to demonstrate solidarity with the people of Venezuela, to help them recover democracy under the leadership of Guaidó, and to support the collection and distribution of humanitarian aid. He described the Maduro government as lacking in respect for human rights and undemocratic, and said that "Maduro is part of the problem, not the solution." Benítez expressed confidence that the people of Venezuela, for resisting tyranny, would go down in history, adding that a free Venezuela was close.
Juanes, one of the performers, commented that "Music and art will always be fundamental in building peace in any society. The world’s atmosphere is more tense now. There’s less innocence and more information online. The presence of the presidents, in a way, changed the humanitarian slant and made it different."
Financial
With a goal to raise US$100 million in 60 days from 22 February, in the first four days, US$2.5 million was raised online, with donations to be accepted through 22 April. Facebook expedited their process for setting up non-profit status, to help get donations in quickly. Ocampo explained that credit card processing was not fully in place at the time of the concert, and that credit card penetration in Latin American is low, but that other donation methods were put in place after the concert.Some musicians were flown to the concert, but none charged to perform; total costs for artists was US$60,000 and the overall cost of the concert was under US$600,000. The main donors were Argos, Betcris and WeSend.
Performers
Most of the 31 performers were Venezuelan and Colombian; they were joined by artists from Argentina, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Spain, Sweden and the United States. Branson joined some on stage.Caterina Valentino, Erika de la Vega, George Harris, Lele Pons, Luis Chataing,, Patricia Velásquez, and Patricia Zavala were announcers, as were, Hannah Stocking, and Juanpa Zurita.
Performing artists were:
Venezuelan musician Franco de Vita said that he had been told that there was so much interest from musicians that there was no more room and he could not be included; he said it was unfortunate that he was unable to participate, but he encouraged people to donate. The Venezuela Live Aid organization issued a press release, in which they apologized for not being able to accommodate all of the artists who wanted to participate, asked for their understanding, and said they hoped to do more benefit concerts in the future.