Speaking during a military ceremony marking Venezuela’s Independence Day, Rodriguez said the country was united by solidarity rather than instability. Her remarks came amid growing public criticism over the government’s handling of one of Latin America’s deadliest earthquake disasters in recent history.

The twin earthquakes killed nearly 3,000 people and left thousands more missing, according to authorities. The powerful tremors caused widespread destruction, collapsing scores of buildings and leaving thousands without homes, particularly in the coastal state of La Guaira, north of the capital, Caracas.

Rodriguez defended the government’s emergency response, saying thousands of public officials and rescue personnel had been mobilized immediately after the disaster to search for survivors, recover victims and provide assistance to affected communities.

Her comments followed complaints from many Venezuelans who argued that the government’s initial response was inadequate before international rescue teams arrived to assist with search and recovery operations.

Eleven days after the earthquakes, international rescue teams were winding down efforts to locate additional survivors as hopes of finding more people alive diminished. Families continued searching through the rubble for the bodies of missing relatives while recovery operations shifted increasingly toward humanitarian assistance and debris removal.

The disaster has placed enormous pressure on emergency services and displaced thousands of residents, particularly in heavily affected coastal communities, where collapsed buildings and damaged infrastructure have complicated relief efforts.

Rodriguez’s assurance that Venezuela would avoid social unrest reflected the government’s effort to project stability as the country continues to confront one of the worst natural disasters in its modern history while managing ongoing rescue, recovery and reconstruction operations.