VENEZUELA – As ousted Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro and his wife sit behind bars in New York, after pleading not guilty to multiple drug trafficking charges in January, memories that are hard to look back on have rushed to the surface for Venezuelan journalist Felix Amaya.
The attacks began in 2015, picking up speed in 2017.
“Two people threw a Molotov cocktail through my house. Shot my house, with long weapon, maybe 30 bullets,” Felix Amaya said. “Can you imagine, 2 A.M., my family and I sleeping, I open the door, fire in all the house, running outside through my house, my neighbor helped me.”
Telemundo anchor and reporter Felix Amaya remembering desperate moments in 2017 when the radio and television program he was running in Venezuela was violently shut down. Now, nearly ten years later, as Amaya prepares to cover Venezuela from his new home, Washington State, he’s haunted by his time working there, and escaping there.
“For freedom back in Venezuela, no is near,” Amaya said.
Amaya said in Venezuela freedom did not come easily; not for him, or his family.
“In this moment, I need to smile because my daughter, my wife, and my son are afraid.”
Freedom was replaced with fear.
“In 2017, my boss told me, ‘Hey Felix, it’s impossible, your program is off the air because the government want to close my radio and TV,’” Amaya said.
Looking back, Amaya said his show in Venezuela was much like any newscast in the United States, covering the community and the issues, but when he aired certain stories, ones that highlighted problems in the neighborhood, the consequences came quickly.
“When you’re a journalist in Latin American countries, you know that sooner or later you’ll confront those in power, because that’s the price of giving a voice to those who suffer and are powerless. Reporting the truth can cost you your life, but undoubtedly, knowing and making public what others keep silent about due to personal interests, and being able to help them, is fulfilling your duty,” Amaya said. “Being a journalist in Venezuela is impossible working good, because the bad news is impossible to make public. Bad news for this government is reason for you to be in jail, or dead.”
Under Maduro, a difficult job became a dangerous one. Amaya said in October of 2017, a Venezuelan human rights group informed him that the government was going to kill him. They helped Amaya and his family escape from their hometown, Coro, to Caracas, Venezuela’s capitol. Then, he contacted the American non-profit organization, Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), who helped the Amayas flee to Quito, Ecuador, where Amaya was granted asylum.
He stayed and worked there for five years. In 2019, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) told Amaya his case qualified for resettlement, which involves relocating a refugee to another country with better economic opportunities. This began the process of Amaya and his family moving to the United States.
The journey was long – from Ecuador the Amayas went to Houston, Texas, then Denver, Colorado, before finally landing in Washington.
“I live in Kennewick, in Tri-Cities, thank you for God, safe with my family, I am happy here,” Amaya said.
Amaya and his family live here legally. They worked with U.S. immigration from 2019 to 2022, verifying their entrance into the country that promised freedom.
“Thank you for United States, for me, for my family, because here we live in peace,” Amaya said.
A country now led by President Donald Trump, who ordered a military raid in Venezuela at the start of the year, which led to Nicolas Maduro’s arrest. When asked if he would describe Maduro as a dictator, a criminal, Amaya said “absolutely.” And when the question was asked if Amaya believed President Trump did a good thing by capturing Maduro, Amaya said:
“Yeah, I’m happy. I’m happy for Maduro in jail in the United States, but the system, the repressive system is alive right now, the solution no is near,” Amaya said. “No democracy, no liberty, no freedom. It’s very bad in my country in this moment, the people don’t have all the opportunity. Exile or silence.”
Amaya, his wife, his daughter, and his son, call Washington State home now. He is comfortably working at KNDU-TV in Kennewick, reporting the news on Telemundo every day, without fear of death. Life is good here, he says, but Amaya’s thoughts, his prayers, they travel to his first home, in a time of great need for change.
“I have hope, but freedom is not near,” he said. “I cry when I remember my country, but it’s necessary to fight, fight, to freedom back my country.”
As for Maduro, his next court date is scheduled for March 17, according to AP News.
