Drug Trade and Fishing at Venezuela’s Paria Peninsula: A Delicate Balance

GÜIRIA, Venezuela (AP) — Situated along the shimmering Caribbean coast, Venezuela’s Paria Peninsula conceals an uncomfortable truth: boats leaving its ports are often engaged in transporting both fish and drugs.

Residents claim ignorance about the ownership of the illicit cargo, yet they can sense when business is booming. Increased dining out, visits to hair and nail salons, and indulgent meat purchases signal that the underground economy is thriving. However, this vitality has faltered since the U.S. military struck one of those boats earlier this month.

A Deadly Strike

Details remain murky regarding the deadly strike on September 2nd, in which the Trump administration asserts that a boat departing from Venezuela was transporting drugs and members of the Tren de Aragua gang. Fishermen along the peninsula voiced a certain empathy for those who turn to crime, noting that traditional fishing alone offers little in an impoverished country.

Once-reliable fishing vessels have been repurposed for a variety of clandestine activities, including smuggling migrants and trafficking fuel and wildlife. These so-called “other businesses” have taken root since the country’s economic collapse over a decade ago.

Living in Fear and Poverty

“There is no revolution here,” lamented retiree Alberto Díaz, critiquing the socialist movement initiated by the late Hugo Chávez, which promised to uplift the poor through the country’s oil wealth. “What exists here is hunger, sacrifice, and pure pain.”

Díaz mourned the local fishing industry’s decline, which once provided stable, living wages and a sense of happiness for families.

Speculation and Doubt

The aftermath of the strike has ignited widespread speculation across Venezuela. Residents are questioning the motivations behind the deaths and whether they fit into a broader strategy to undermine President Nicolás Maduro’s regime. Some skeptics challenge the government’s assertions that a video allegedly depicting the strike was fabricated using artificial intelligence.

However, fishermen recognized characteristics in the footage showing a 12-meter-long fishing vessel known as a “peñero.” They pointed out that the boat was equipped with unusually powerful motors, each boasting around 200 horsepower—or five times the norm for local vessels.

“Fishing doesn’t pay enough to buy a motor like that,” said fisherman Junior González, repairing a boat in Guaca. Only a fraction of local sardine processing plants remain operational in this fishing community, having succumbed to overfishing and economic strife.

Government Response and Local Reality

The Trump administration has yet to clarify how it discerned the boat’s cargo and passengers’ affiliations. While U.S. military operations ramp up in the Caribbean, Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello has stated that investigations into the strike are underway but has provided no further information. He, along with Maduro, has consistently downplayed Venezuela’s role in the global drug trade.

While some fishermen are driven to supplement their income through illegal means, Christopher Sabatini, a research fellow at Chatham House, suggests that the Trump administration has overstated the scale of these operations by linking them to the Tren de Aragua and branding them as immediate threats to the United States.

Desperation Fuels Choices

On a recent Sunday, González and a few family members were the sole fishermen on a shore now deserted due to policy changes limiting the sardine catch. As new regulations threaten to reduce fishermen’s incomes to below $100 a month, desperation breeds desperation, with drug-running offering immediate, if perilous, rewards.

“He doesn’t have food this week,” noted Kira Torres, describing a fishing crew that returned empty-handed. Despite local leaders coordinating food subsidies, residents have often been without assistance for months. “Many make the mistake because they are in dire need,” she explained, emphasizing that hunger drives choices.

Economic Impact of the Illegal Trade

The immediate economic effects of the illegal trade are apparent: local businesses thrive momentarily when the drug trade flourishes but suffer when it falters. Restaurant owner Jean Carlos Sucre expressed concerns for his establishment, highlighting that his sales have plummeted post-strike. “Those working illegally are no longer sailing for fear of capture,” he said, revealing a community rife with silent acknowledgment of the precarious reality they inhabit.