Organizing some ideas about Venezuela

From Indymedia Venezuela by Lucia Lotta, published January 24th, 2019. (all footnotes by translator)

What’s happening in Venezuela?

Venezuelans have gone out to protest against the government of Maduro since April 21st. Since 1989, the popular neighborhoods have not come down from the mountains. During those times, the government of Acción Democrática [Democratic Action] murdered many protesters, with it becoming known as the Caracazo.[1]

Today, the popular forces, the only ones capable of changing the political balance in Venezuela, choose to put their weight on the side of Nicolas Maduro and his ministerial process.

Why are popular neighborhoods protesting against the leader of the “Revolución Bonita”

Since the death of President Chávez, the Venezuelan economy has greatly deteriorated. The main factor has been corruption and let’s remember that Hugo Chávez grew the State bureaucracy to unsustainable levels. However, we also need to clarify that Maduro is not solely responsible for the failure of the economy. Chávez implemented the so-called “país supermercado [supermarket country]” which means that preference is given to the importation of basic items like food and medicine. With the fall in oil prices, the populist model imposed by Chávez has become untenable. In addition, in the first year since his death, government officials created one disaster after another by stealing money from PDVSA [Petroleum of Venezuela], the Central Bank, etc.

With the lack of dollars, the President of the Central Bank of Venezuela, announced the most antisocial cuts in Venezuelan history. Never before has the national budget been cut so much. This has had a drastic effect on medicine and basic foods that we talked about months after the passing of Chávez.

And, from 2013 until today, Venezuela has entered into a spiral of continual inflation, until today, where it is now hyperinflation. A product of the mediocre economic policies of Maduro, and from 2016, with the addition of sanctions imposed on Venezuelan government officials by various countries.

People on the ground, the workers have seen their salary reduced to half a cartoon of eggs per month. It all depends on the CLAP [Los Comités Locales de Abastecimiento y Producción / Local Committees of Supply and Production] boxes and on the popular markets that the government opens for people to purchase goods; but, this is not enough. In addition to the irregular distribution of the CLAP boxes, there is the shadow of corruption of the companies in charge. It is known that the government pays for products of high quality, but what arrives are products, in many cases, in poor condition, and of poor quality.

Recently, everything being sold has changed to a parallel dollar[2], making everything out of reach.

It has generated a mass exodus, poverty, and has caused deaths due to the malnutrition of children and older adults.

The lack of medicine for chronic illnesses like arthritis, cancer, and the high cost of over-the-counter medicine has also pushed people to leave the country.

On top of all this, is the state of fear generated by police operations called OHLP (Operativos para la Liberación Humanista del Pueblo [Operation Freedom of the People])[3] who are operatives of social cleansing who criminalize people of the poor neighborhoods in the main cities of the country. It is not a secret, that they come to kill. They have also incorporated a xenophobic component when detaining Colombians who they accuse of being paramilitaries, who are just workers.

The social violence is one indicator that the social mission of Chavismo has not had a real impact on the population.

Why do they say that Maduro is illegitimate?

Because he convened a Constituent Assembly, without first creating a referendum to ask the country to change the Constitution of 99. Moreover, he called the Constituent Assembly because, despite all of the obstacles, the National Assembly passed into the hands of the opposition. This bothers the government, who is used to being in control of all public entities of the country.

This is why he is illegitimate, along with the many reasons and ample evidence that the May Presidential election was rigged.

Are their interests of Yankee Imperialism?

Yes, for the oil and gold, the cobalt and the diamond mines. However, China and Russia, and the European Union also have a lot of interest in the mining exploitation of our country. This is why Chávez and Nicolas Maduro created the ARCO minero del Orinoco [Mining arch of the Orinoco] [4]. Handing over the resources to transnational companies of Global Capitalsim.

From Venezuela, you can’t debate in terms of Imperialism vs Anti-Imperialism. We have a Global Capitalism that needs raw materials. This includes China, Russia, and the USA. Non of these countries are anti-capitalist. It can be seen in this way: a wild struggle for control of the raw materials that follows alongside the politics of economic growth that are destroying the planet.

We must also remember that Nicolas Maduro donated half a million dollars to Trump for his inauguration party. Chávez knew and Maduro knows that Venezuela’s role in Global Capitalism is to provide raw material, and for this reason, up until now, no one has invaded Venezuela.

Is Guaido President?

According to, the Venezuelan legislation he would be President in charge until the 23rd of February. In that time, he should call for free, credible and impartial elections. Guaranteeing a transition. Remember that, the Constituent Assembly skipped the important step of the referendum, which makes the election of Maduro illegitimate.

Did Trump do this?

Trump supports Guaido alongside the political right of the continent.

Does it have popular support?

Yes, including the sectors that used to be the foundations of Chavismo.

Do I agree with this?

Venezuela needs to undertake a path of social reconstruction, a peaceful exit, of Social Justice, and of reconciliation. In Venezuela, from the Caracazo, impunity has been order, the time has come for the murderers of the country to pay, those of yesterday and today. We should also remember that voting is another tool, and in the Venezuelan case, today it is necessary because we are talking about repression and death.

I also support the need to talk about Direct Democracy, economic self-management, municipalism, etc. The social reconstruction needs to happen through the ideas of anarchism.

I’m against any intervention or interference in the country, each town needs to choose their path. Venezuelans must oppose the intervention of Brutal Capitalism in our country. This is also why, we want the end of the Arco Minero del Orinoco.

All footnotes are those of translator:

[1] Carazazo (the Caracus smash) - is the name given to the wave of protests, riots, looting, shootings and massacres that began on 27 February 1989 in Venezuela's capital, Caracas, and the surrounding towns. - Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caracazo

[2] Dollar Paralelo Venezuela today - https://paralelovenezuela.com/ - illegal website in Venezuela
&Venezuelan bolívar - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venezuelan_bol%C3%ADvar

[3] Operación Liberación del Pueblo on Wikipedia - https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operaci%C3%B3n_Liberaci%C3%B3n_del_Pueblo

[4] Arco Minero del Orinoco - https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arco_Minero_del_Orinoco

There are 11 Comments

Both people are Trash, all political parties are trash, the State is trash, imagine being an anarchists and supporting a State or State leader

FTFY not entirely. If one is to consider the failure of humanity's place in the biosphere, and the weak genetic path it has taken towards technological domestication and moral authoritarianism, the entire known cosmos is trash, ruled by a heap of feeble lying shit for brains greedy tyrants who, if there really was a god, would be terminated.

I AM THE GOD OF GREEDY TYRANTS WHO BUILD CATHEDRALS IN MY HONOR, NO, I WILL NOT TERMINATE THEM!!

these pithy comments! What fuckin' use is saying 'all political parties are trash' etc? It's like saying screaming ranting that all tax is theft. We are where we are and people need help NOW. It's like walking up to a homeless person and saying that property is theft and it's the government's fault. I see people from charities going out to the homeless with food and sleeping bags. Just chatting with a homeless person and making eye contact can be sustenance. I'm just so fuckin' weary of anarchist rants I guess.

… but all political parties ARE trash, regardless of your levels of fatigue

What tells you that no anarchists are doing that, or that those who do wouldn't be commenting on here about taxes being forceful extortion (which they are)? Maduro's got a lot of gold -now held in Britain- that he failed to give back to "el pueblo"... that says a lot about the quality of their "rrrevolucion".

Down with all corrupt wealthy politicians and Up with all slogans which require the least intellectualization and abstract references!

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