Deadliest Roads | Colombia/Venezuela | Free Documentary

[Applause] [Music] hey [Music] [Music] is at the foot of the mountain between colombia and venezuela is a small village it lies on one of the most high-risk borders in latin america cuesta alongside its 4 000 inhabitants the fuel container rains in this town they're everywhere cans of petrol are sold illegally on most roadsides but here fuel is contraband high quality fuel is purchased on the other side of the border in venezuela there it only costs one cent per liter and is resold for 30 times its original price in colombia a real bargain for the cartels the police leave the low-key street sellers alone targeting instead the more serious traffickers like jose luis who goes in search of his contraband fuel in this modified four by four [Music] [Music] what [Music] luis is leaving to collect 4 000 liters of fuel in venezuela [Music] [Applause] [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] if all goes well jose luis should arrive at his destination in an hour and a half however today nothing will go as planned [Music] the border between colombia and venezuela is situated in the north of latin america and is made up of 2 200 kilometers worth of roads it is a dangerous and uncontrollable region where conflict between armed groups traffickers and soldiers is intense [Music] cameras are not welcome here all of this trafficking is fed by the current state of poverty in venezuela a country in crisis in two years the cost of basic commodities like flour and milk has multiplied by five due to the collapse in fuel prices the country's entire economy depends on the black gold market every day thousands of venezuelans travel to colombia to buy things that they can no longer find at home although the supermarket shells are empty fuel is the one resource that's always available venezuela is home to the largest fuel reserve in the world since the beginning of the crisis a third of their fuel stock has been resold illegally in colombia on the other side of the border the most sought after commodity is not fuel but water those most affected by the repercussions of global warming live in the middle of the colombian desert the waiyu people haven't seen rain in over five years the women and children walk for hours just to get their hands on a few drops of water [Music] on this arid ground trying to harvest crops is futile their herds have been completely wiped out in order to survive the waiyu people have also resorted to fuel trafficking but it is a dangerous game in the north of colombia jose luis arrives at the border to collect the batch of contraband fuel waiting for him unfortunately the police are everywhere [Music] jose luis leaves the motorway to avoid them this road is much safer it's here that the other traffickers have placed their henchmen foreign [Music] foreign by doing this jose luis risks a seven-year prison sentence as well as the confiscation of his vehicle worth five thousand euros [Music] one of the watchmen is missing from his post strange a few kilometers down the road another stops to warn them it's bad news jose luis makes a u-turn the police are patrolling a large stretch of the road and they do not take kindly to [Music] traffickers [Music] this man and woman are part of a family of small time traffickers they don't understand why the police are jeopardizing their business to them this is nothing but a matter of survival solo they have been here all morning the group of police officers and soldiers began their operation at dawn the tachira river has turned into a makeshift border on the one side is colombia and on the other venezuela [Music] just a few hours ago a small stretch of rocks linked the two shores together dozens of traffickers used this passage every day our presence here is a problem they ask us to leave immediately [Music] foreign even though the police and the army have doubled their patrols fuel still finds its way across the border traffickers are willing to take more and more risks on the colombian side near the border and the tachira river lies the village of juan freo this is a small quiet town or at least at first glance here smuggling is a trade that passes from generation to generation carlos and his cousin are 20 years old every day they take the same route to the edge of the village just a few kilometers away from the entrance to a paddy field carlos and his cousin do not want to get caught by the police venezuela is not far its mountains are just ahead of them [Music] [Applause] [Music] oh [Music] [Music] venezuelan accomplices to their arrival carlos asks us to film from a distance because he's worried he's not told the other traffickers that we're with him he also just found out that there are soldiers patrolling in the area using gestures he explains that the police could shoot at us once we arrive at the meeting point carlos worries that he's gone too far by bringing us with him [Music] [Music] he's worried about the oncoming traffickers reaction we hide in the bushes but we don't have to wait long twenty minutes later a few silhouettes appear at the edge of the cliff first five then ten then twenty then thirty all of these men are nervous and exhausted they've taken huge risks to deliver this fuel carlos organizes the distribution of the fuel oh hello yes is going to plan until the leader of the venezuelan traffickers arrives he's aggressive he does not believe that we're journalists the traffickers crowd around us to stop us from leaving [Applause] [Music] after two hours of arguing we managed to calm the traffickers down they finally understand that we're not spies that we're not there to turn them into the authorities the death threats are forgotten the traffickers continue their march like a colony of ants each individual is carrying almost 50 liters on his back in just a few moments a ton and a half of fuel illegally crosses over from venezuela [Music] although they still have another field to cross the group is now out of the soldiers range some individuals weren't even able to afford plastic containers so they transported the fuel in plastic bags [Laughter] [Applause] [Applause] [Applause] the carriers earn 10 euros per trip a real fortune in venezuela before the crisis broke out in venezuela all of these young people had a future estudio estoy nowadays the only thing worth learning is resourcefulness and it's not without risk although the crisis in venezuela generates trafficking it also created a legal economy it allows hundreds of thousands of colombians to make a living for themselves we leave the area and head to the big city of kukuta kukuta is a city on the border between colombia and venezuela the borders have been closed for a year and have just reopened every day from 5 a.m to 8 p.m almost 40 000 venezuelans cross over the bridge [Music] the two countries don't share the same currency the bolivar is used in venezuela while in colombia they pay in pesos across the bridge several men and women stand waiting with wads of cash in hand they are illegal currency converters in colombia one of the most sought after products are tires 90 000 pesos is around 36 euros venezuelans buy all the essentials in colombia that they can no longer get at home [Music] to limit the amount of contraband taken over venezuelans are not allowed to use their cars on the bridge they have to carry everything themselves that's the law and it works in favor of these carriers almost 100 people offered to carry other people's goods over the bridge [Applause] olga has been looking for potential clients since 3am [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] hey [Music] okay [Music] olga's price is 4 000 pesos less than 2 euros some don't even have the strength to cross the border m the misfortune of the venezuelans is the colombians gain in some way or another everyone manages to benefit from the repercussions of the crisis in venezuela even the police this passage on the border has always been a hot zone for contraband [Music] 25 year old andres does not know which side of the border he comes from he's nicknamed laurel the parrot because he's very talkative laurel is an experienced trafficker a lot of speciality is smuggling gas every day he and his accomplices make the round trip to venezuela but today there is a problem they have just spotted some men in uniform on the opposite shore venezuelan soldiers laurel goes straight to the source he calls one of his accomplices on the other side the team of smugglers are worried along with the usual soldiers there is a man that they do not recognize a senior officer the man on the left with the red scarf [Music] continued [Music] normally the traffickers offer the soldiers a bribe in order to cross over the presence of an officer that they do not know complicates everything foreign on the opposite shore laura's accomplice indicates that the coast is clear the soldiers are gone laurel is free to go and collect his gas bottles in venezuela [Music] other smugglers also take this opportunity to cross over some of them have unexpected goods in hand like this car engine evidently anything goes in the trafficking business [Music] venezuela these coins are no longer valid but they still have a certain value this man resells them to a foundry [Music] on the shore of the tachira river you can find almost anything [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] this doesn't seem like much but poultry trafficking is lucrative on the border even if it's not always very easy [Music] this man transports nearly 100 chickens per day by doing this he makes almost 150 euros a month a small fortune in colombia this small trafficking business allows a dozen people to make a living for themselves [Music] he left just two hours ago but laurel the parrot is already back with his gas bottles he's exhausted [Music] he paid four euros for the bottles and he will resell them for double that price eight euros equates to almost half of his total income it is a large amount but laurel prefers to pay it he's already spent three months in prison and he never wants to go through that again especially since his wife has just given birth [Music] foreign [Music] his assistant's main job is to push the motorcycle and now he has had enough hype all right foreign foreign [Music] almost all of the inhabitants of the villages on the border have resorted to trafficking work is scarce in this region and unemployment is overwhelming almost all of the villagers have no other alternative but to smuggle laurel will be able to feed his baby this month okay back to christos the town where the fuel container is king here we meet jose again the man driving this modified 4x4 he was supposed to go to venezuela to collect his contraband fuel but with too many police in the vicinity he had to turn around jose hid his truck here while he waited for the obstruction to subside [Music] at first glance it appears to be a normal garage but the trucks of several other traffickers have been hidden behind the fence when he isn't driving jose makes some extra money as a mechanic at this very moment a small fortune lies above his head oh these drivers have also had to stop and each one tries to pass the time as best he can [Music] the largest coal deposit in the world those who get the opportunity to work at the mine are the most fortunate in the region others have no choice but to stand and watch as trains export the coal to the rest of the world the train crosses an area that's completely void of any sign of life [Music] in the far north of colombia lies the guajira peninsula a land of dust that belongs to the waiu people one of the poorest tribes in colombia [Music] [Music] almeida is part of the wayu tribe every sunday afternoon a car from her community comes to pick her up and take her back to her village one in three children suffer from malnutrition in the guajira peninsula since the beginning of the year more than 60 children have died of starvation and dehydration to try to survive some have built makeshift booms they wait in the 50 degree heat all day [Music] [Music] so [Music] during the three-hour journey there are 15 tolls to pay the price varies depending on the individual some ask for money a bottle of water or even food at the end of the track there are a few houses in the middle of the desert almeida and her family live here in this desolate region one resource is more expensive than fuel and more necessary than anything else [Music] is in the weiyu tribe finding water is primarily a task for the women it's a daily chore while the sun is still high in the sky almeida and the other village women make the long journey to the well the route leading to the well used to be a riverbed unfortunately the river dried up a long time ago it may be hard to believe but these children have never seen rain it's not rained here for five years [Music] [Applause] after walking for an hour and a half they finally reached the well [Music] the inhabitants have built a barrier around the well to protect it from animals the while see this well as a blessing however it's salted water barely drinkable but it is still very precious to them almost 100 families are re-energized every day thanks to the efforts of these women [Music] is [Music] foreign [Music] it's time to turn back now another hour and a half walk just to get home [Music] [Applause] in venezuela often get together to celebrate the yonah a traditional dance used to spur the rainfall [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] tata is one of the youngest women in the community and she worries about the future of her two children [Music] foreign like all of the children in the community tatar's daughter goes to school on foot she's one of the rare children in this desert that have the opportunity to study there is no infrastructure in the guajira no roads and no school transport some children walk for up to two hours to get to school their backpacks and their uniforms were provided by a humanitarian organization [Music] a foreign every day the children most look forward to their lunch hour [Music] and the meal is actually quite basic manioc flour maize and some powdered milk [Music] on that day there was a lot of thunder but not a single drop of rain even the sky refuses to shed a tear for the fate of the waiu people even the heavens could not save them and the whale people realized there was only one thing left that could contraband so they too started smuggling the sound of this group of bikes fills the night these are the whale fuel traffickers that have just returned from venezuela with their containers they do their round trips at night their leader is a man called william be [Music] like most people william was a farmer before this he worked on the land and raised goats [Music] from nowadays there are no goats left to raise all of the herds were wiped out by the drought william is getting ready to deliver the fuel that he purchased last night in venezuela my all the men in the family take part in the business with five motorcycles between them they managed to transport 900 liters of fuel every day if the police catch them they will confiscate their fuel and their bike [Music] but the waiu have an advantage they know these roads by heart so they're able to access the more discreet trails hidden amongst the cacti it's a real maze [Music] [Music] the final kilometers are the most dangerous the convoy has no choice but to take the busiest road where all of the soldiers and police officers do their rounds [Music] each year this seemingly unremarkable convoy manages to smuggle two hundred thousand liters of fuel into colombia [Music] behind these palisades is the home of the leader of the fuel cartel we are not allowed to enter [Music] with 120 000 inhabitants urubia is the capital of the waiu territory this is the only town where the villagers can do their shopping william reinvests his salary immediately [Music] [Music] fuel in exchange for food that's what it takes to make a living on the black market but just like the rest of the wayu people william will never leave this place this is the land of his ancestors he would rather die than abandon it [Music] so [Music] [Music] you

Channel: Free Documentary

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Keywords: Free Documentary, Documentaries, Full documentary, most dangerous roads, most dangerous journeys, worlds most dangerous roads, deadliest roads, deadliest roads in the world, dicing with death, deadliest journeys, dicing with death venezuela, dicing with death colombia, dangerous venezuela, dangerous colombia, deadliest roads venezuela, deadliest roads colombia, deadliest journeys venezuela, deadliest journeys colombia, dangerous roads venezuela, dangerous roads colombia

Id: NyJ1YjVvF-k

Length: 52min 28sec (3148 seconds)

Published: Sun Dec 20 2020