In Venezuela, Covid-19 Data Is a State Secret, but Citizens See Many Deaths

June 3, 2021

(Wall Street Journal) – On most days, Venezuela’s authoritarian government reports a daily Covid death toll of about 17 victims, a strikingly low number given that South America as a continent currently records the highest mortality rate of the pandemic. But Venezuelan funeral service operators say they regularly cremate at least six times more bodies a day than the official toll—a telling indicator because health authorities want those who have died of respiratory disease to be cremated rather than buried. (Read Full Article)