Eva
5th May 2009, 02:01
I took the time to put together a casual summary of Venezuela's history beginning from the 1940s in an attempt to thoroughly explain its current situation. My sources for information were various Spanish-speaking diaries and web publications, Venezuelan government websites, news articles, and Spanish wikipedia. All the statistics listed come from National Institute of Statistics, International Monetary Fund, Human Development Report, and CIA World Facts. Some of the details are personal account from my experience living in Venezuela.
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Narrating the political history of Venezuela during the 1940s is a difficult task. Throughout this era, the country was frantically juggled among various politicians, a great majority having been military dictators. We had three indirectly elected presidents who were, incidentally, members of some of Venezuela's most disreputable political parties. For reference, historically speaking, Venezuela's two most prominent parties have been Accion Democratica (A.D), and Comité de Organización Política Electoral Independiente (C.O.P.E.I.).
Founded in 1941, A.D was originally a socialist party advocating social democracy through race and class equality, progress, and anti-imperialism. It was founded by writer and philosopher Romulo Betancourt, who was with all his faults, and considering the political climate of Venezuela, a rather radical man for his time; having documented ties with the socialist party of Chile, and Salvador Allende. Betancourt was president of Venezuela from 1945 to 1948. Although he successful avoided several assassination attempts, Betancourt was ultimately overthrown by a military coup d'etat led by the Venezuelan right. Changes in political dominance, and a thirst for power led A.D to eventually adopt a much more conservative centrist social-democrat ideology, a more pluralistic doctrine that many label as neo-liberal.
C.O.P.E.I, founded in 1946, was founded by a merger between ex-members of A.D and members of the National Union of Students. The founder of C.O.P.E.I (and leader for many years) was Christian sociologist Rafael Caldera. From the beginning, C.O.P.E.I has been a Christian-Democrat party with center-right tendencies. Party dogma has included the belief that man is a limited being needing the aid of God and the state to fulfill his fate, and the notion that the development of individuals and society must occur simultaneously so that none grows at a faster rate; which unavoidably became a subject of much controversy.
Back to the topic at hand, in 1948 the man in power was dictator Carlos Delgado Chalbaud, an elite military officer and engineer. Chalbaud was assassinated in 1950, only two years in his administration. Following these events, lawyer Germán Suárez Flamerich took over transitively. Two years later, General Marcos Perez Jimenez took the presidency through a coup d'etat. Although to this day it has not been confirmed, intellectuals believe that Chalbaud's assassination was part of an intricate conspiracy to orchestrate Perez Jimenez rise to power in a relatively discrete matter.
The fact of the matter remains that in 1952, Venezuela was due to hold elections for the national assembly, which would have been in charge of deciding the country's fate following Flamerich's transitional term. Preliminary results showed an almost certain triumph of alternative political party URD, which prompted Perez-Jimenez' party to reject the verdict and forcefully proclaim Perez-Jimenez provisional president of Venezuela. Such measure, anything but discreet, was considered fraudulent by an alarming majority. In an unprecedented effort, all remaining political parties, along with the communist party, united in an attempt to prevent the affair. Unfortunately, in 1953 Perez-Jimenez was proclaimed president of Venezuela. He would remain in power for six years.
Perez-Jimenez's regime was a right-wing, authoritarian dictatorship; infamous for silencing its opposition, banning competing political parties from both the left and the right, shutting down newspapers that criticized his actions, and imposing harsh censorship on both radio and television. Throughout his time in power, a great number of detractors were harassed, tortured, assassinated, sent out in exile, or imprisoned by national security without any evidence besides being suspected of opposition to the government. Alarmingly enough, right-wingers nostalgically look back at this period, remembering men in uniforms and developments in infrastructure. Like many other Latin American dictatorships, Perez-Jimenez's was supported by the United States, who perceived the dictator as an important asset in oil distribution and a key player in preventing the expansion of communism in Latin America.
In 1958, Venezuela was due to call for a plebiscite to decide whether Perez-Jimenez would remain in power. As expected, Perez-Jimenez won by a wide margin. In disbelief, a vast number of the population went out in the streets to protest, ignoring sanctions and the possibility of arrest. On January 23rd of the same year, A.D, the Venezuelan communist party, and part of the national armed forces succeeded at overthrowing Marcos Perez Jimenez.
Following these events, A.D allied with C.O.P.E.I and signed the infamous Pact of Punto Fijo, a contract that called for equal participation of political parties within the winning executive cabinet. Although it was alleged that the pact was an attempt to ensure the endurance of democratically elected governments in Venezuela, in practice,it mostly led to both parties (which were now rather similar politically), to alternating power between their selected candidates. From this point on, the Venezuelan political system became bipartisan. Although the pact was only legal for one year, the tactics remained in practice until 1999. According to some, this move was a deliberate measure for preventing the advancement of leftist tendencies within the Venezuelan government.
Things remained fundamentally the same for two decades. Elected presidential candidates of both parties engaged in economic interventionism, greatly damaging small businesses and providing an advantage to large conglomerates; including the Cisneros group, media magnates and owners of television channel Venevision. Due to a middle eastern blockade to the United States, demand for Venezuelan oil grew immensely leading to oil prices reaching a high of $30 per barrel. Revenue became so high that we suddenly became one of Latin America's most developed nations. For a period of time, exchange rates reached an unprecedented low of 4 Bolivares per dollar. Venezuelan elites engaged in extravagant and wasteful behavior. Upper class families went as far as to make weekly trips to the United States to shop for groceries. To everyone's disadvantage, during this era of bonanza, the Venezuelan government failed to invest in any other type of industry, aside from oil extraction and refining. For this reason, when oil prices drastically decreased in 1983, our debt grew to astronomic proportions and the country fell in a severe economic crisis. By 1983, the Bolivar had begun to drastically lose its value.
Meanwhile, around the early 1980s, a socialist tendency was growing in strength within some branches of the national army. Hugo Chavez, then a colonel, proposed to his fellow soldiers that they added the letter 'R' of 'revolution' to the name of their division, as a means to celebrate the bicentennial of Simon Bolivar's birth. From this point, several military divisions had begun to discuss a political social, economic, and cultural transformation inspired by the ideas of Bolivar.
Back on the center stage, Carlos Andres Perez served as president from 1989 to 1993. Following recommendations of the IMF, Perez begun a program of neo-liberal reform on the Venezuelan economy. Some of his measures included the elimination of price controls, privatization of energy and public service companies, freezing of salaries, increase the cost of gas and public services within the country (within a year, gas praises were raised by 100%, and transportation by 30%), and elimination of duty costs of imported goods. The resulting monstrous inflation led to the “Caracazo”. Working class citizens and barrio-dwellers organized large protests and business plundering operations in commercial districts across Caracas, looting everything from food to domestic appliances. Perez's administration responded with brutal force. Casualties fell somewhere in between 200 and 5,000 people. According to official records, 185 died, the non-official figure estimates 350.
These events were followed by two attempted coup d'etat, the first led by Hugo Chavez, who in a televised appearance justified the actions of the armed forces by explaining the deteriorating social situation of Venezuela, and the prevalence of administrative corruption within the government. Such address earned Chavez much popularity among working class Venezuelans. He was later sent to jail without a trial, which only further fueled his sentiment. Perez endured Chavez's attempt by escaping the presidential palace and seeking refuge on the headquarter on television station Venevision. A few months later, dissenters acted again, bombing a variety of public buildings. The second attempt failed as well, but it contributed to further discredit the president's image. In 1993, the Supreme Court forced to Perez to abandon the presidential seat.
In 1994, Rafael Caldera, founder of A.D, became the new democratically elected president of Venezuela; running with Convergencia, a political party which he personally founded for the sole purpose of avoiding being associated with Accion Democratica. Among the promises that he listed in his platform was the pardoning of Hugo Chavez, a measure aimed at appealing to angry and skeptical voters. During his term, Caldera managed to more or less stabilized\ the country, however, the economic situation of Venezuela did not improve by much. Chavez was released from prison that same year.
Free and aware of the country's dissatisfaction with political parties, Chavez begun a political campaign urging people not to vote on the upcoming elections as a means to demonstrate that the nation was not interested in enduring the same social and economic politics of traditional political parties. With the support of several prominent leftists, Chavez founded the Movimiento Quinta Republica party in 1994. The following year, he toured Venezuela explaining to people why he thought it was necessary to call a national assembly for the purpose of re-building Venezuela from scratch.
In 1998, Chavez ran for office. He faced two main opponents on the presidential elections: Irene Saez, former beauty queen, and Henrique Salas Romer, a caudillo-looking fellow who made television appearances riding horses while wearing a cowboy hat. Chavez had the support of Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS), the Communist Party of Venezuela (PCV), and Patria Para Todos (PPT). By mid 1998, Chavez headed national polls. A few months later, he was elected president of Venezuela with 56,5% of all votes. To no surprise, from the beginning, Chavez dealt with a small and violent opposition, particularly threatening due to its ties to the media and the catholic church. As election results were released, dozens of conservative Venezuelans begun to flee the country.
During his first year of presidency, Chavez called for a national referendum seeking to introduce a variety of changes to the Venezuelan constitution. Following the drafting of the new constitution, a second referendum was held for the public to re-evaluate the document and ensure the legality and transparency of the process. Aside from cosmetic changes, such as a name change from "Republic of Venezuela" to "Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela", the document implemented the following changes:
- Minerals and natural resources became property of the nation. It was confirmed that national territory was not to be leased or trespassed, not temporarily nor partially, by foreign nations.
- Established new methodology to call for national assemblies, making the process more accessible.
In 2007, Chavez presented a proposition to further reform the Venezuelan constitution, which would have altered some 70 articles of the document drafted in 1999. The changes did not pass by a small percentage: 50.7% voted No, and 49.29% vote Yes. Last year, a second referendum held, in which Venezuelans voted for lifting Presidential term limits.
In 2000, following the legitimization of the new constitution, Venezuela held general elections. The Carter Center monitored the process, affirming that the elections legitimately reflected the will of the people. Chavez won with 59,76% of all votes.
On August of the same year, Chavez indiscriminately visited leaders of all OPEC nations- including Iraq, which led to much controversy in the US- , with the purpose of pushing for a more active role of the organization in global politics. By 2005, oil prices had risen considerably, reaching a peak of $60 per barrel, which undoubtedly also aggravated the United States.
Also during that year, Chavez pushed for the creation of Bolivarian circles, base organizations founded for the discussion and diffusion of ideas among communities. The circles, decentralized and autonomous, served as a forum for effective cooperation. Discussion was not limited to local politics, debate in regard to national issues was also encouraged. In response to what they deemed a dangerous socialist tactic, the Venezuelan opposition accused the circles of engaging in political crimes. The process of expansion was closely moderated finding no evidence for such claims.
Aside from these circles, several “missions” (misiones) were developed across the country. Programs such as Mision Robinson, Rivas, and Sucre were aimed at improving school infrastructure, providing learning materials, and bettering recreation areas in poor communities. Barrio Adentro was aimed at providing quality medical assistance to the uninsured, later expanding to more developed communities. Today, B.A offers everything from diagnostic medicine to cardiology and rehabilitation. Additionally, Mision Mercal set up communal markets which pushed for the consumption of local foods at lower prices, often reaching discount of up to 45% due to lack of a middleman.
In late 2001, Chavez actions became more openly socialist. That same year, he invited Fidel Castro to visit Caracas, which led to much consternation among the opposition. When confronted by the press -which as stated before, has strong ties with the Venezuelan right-, Chavez declared his radical tendencies and confessed to having had a good relationship with Castro even prior to having been elected president. Chavez explained his interest in cooperating with Cuba, exchanging oil for doctors, teachers, sport trainers, and other professional to work in Venezuelan social programs. He also expressed his interest in creating Alternativa Bolivariana para America Latina y el Caribe, ALBA (Today comprised of Bolivia, Cuba, Dominica, Honduras, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and San Vicente), an alternative organization aimed at bringing together nations of Latin America and the Caribbean, including Cuba, in the struggle against poverty and social exclusion. News were met by harsh criticism from the press.
From this point on, Venezuela begun to sell oil to Cuba at preferential rates, credit, or in exchange of professional services. It was later unveiled that to the knowledge of Chavez's administration, Cuba did not consume all of the oil acquired, but rather sold the remaining quantities at international prices to generate internal revenue. The controversy led to the Venezuelan right accusing Chavez of committing political suicide, and dangerously risking the possibility of having the country end up in a similar situation to Cuba. Chavez replied by stating that he had no interest in copying any country in the world, not Cuba nor the United States; and emphasized that for the purposes of collective advancement, it was his priority to maintain a good relationship with all nations of Latin America, in particular those who were members of Mercosur.
Disinformation and panic further intensified by the Administration's suggestion for the implementation of an agrarian reform, and a televised appearance in which Chavez openly rejected US actions in Afghanistan. Following these declarations, the US Department of State responded by calling an American envoy home from Venezuela. Meanwhile, the opposition marched in the streets of Caracas and the Confederation of Venezuelan Workers (CTV), incidentally founded by political party A.D, called for a national strike in which PDVSA, the principal oil company in the country, played a very important role. The strike was greatly successful. Industrial paralysis led to oil production dropping by 90% and Venezuela's GDP falling by 7.7%. 10,000 million dollars were lost.
On April of 2002, a Venezuelan colonel of aviation made a television appearance requesting Chavez to step down from the presidency arguing political polarization among the masses. Shortly after, several high ranking military officials began to step down. As the national strike continued, Chavez proceeded to publicly fire PDVSA officials through a televised appearance. CTV along with Fedecamaras, the nation-wide chamber of commerce with right-wing tendencies and great influence in Venezuelan politics, called for an extended strike in solidarity to PDVSA officials. The opposition responded by organizing a march to PDVSA headquarters. The march was legal and authorized by the government, but it failed to keep its promised route and was redirected to the presidential palace. The site was surrounded by Chavez supporters who had gone out in the streets to denounce sabotage and support Chavez's administration. Soon after, a violent confrontation between both parties begun. The Metropolitan police showed up, allegedly taking the side of the opposition and creating further disorder. It is important to note that the Metropolitan district was then under the jurisdiction of an opposition Mayor.
Chavez, who was in the presidential palace during the confrontation, addressed the armed forces through a televised appearance calling for the implementation of the Avila Plan, Venezuela's response to national security threats, and instructing safety measures to the Venezuelan people. Meanwhile, opposition television stations disregarded the presidential address by splitting their screens, muting Chavez's address, and continuing to broadcast images of the confrontation. It is relevant to note that by Venezuelan law, all television stations are obligated to broadcast emergency presidential addresses. Several of these television stations additionally delivered messages inciting further violence and intensifying fear among the Venezuelan population. Given the gravity of the situation, the government shut down these television stations. Through alternate means, opposition stations continued to broadcast with lesser resolution.
At mid afternoon, television stations broadcasted a message by a group of high ranking generals in which they denied Chavez's government validity and informed the public of the death of six people during the violent confrontation outside of the presidential palace. Official casualties had not yet been released, hence the message was suspected of having been pre-recorded, and of having been evidence of deliberate assassinations. According to investigations by international scholars, more notably by journalist Otto Neustald of CNN, due to a number of technical incongruencies it is a strong possibility that this was the case.
Soon after, Venevision broadcasted images of a group of Chavez supporters shooting from Llaguno bridge towards the south, a site several miles away from the protest's route. These images are suspected of having been edited, for the targets of the shooters were never shown, the camera-man filmed steadily at ground level during the chaos, and the narrator explained the events for Venevision's studios, claiming that gunmen were shooting at opposition protesters while not receiving any visual evidence of such. Several witness accounts claim that the gunmen fought in defense against Metropolitan Police, which had stationed several snippers in buildings surrounding the march.
At the end of the day, it was documented that twelve people had been killed. Nine members of the Metropolitan police, two members of the national guard, and a suspected accomplice, former member of Quinta Republica were tried for the assassinations. They were all declared innocent in 2004.
Later that night, Chavez was pressured to resign by military officers participating in the coup, threatening to attack the presidential palace, which was still surrounded by pro-Chavez supporters. At 12 A.M, Ministry of Defense Lucas Romero addressed the nation attesting that Chavez had resigned. Chavez was flown to Fuerte Tiuna, a military base in the outskirts of Caracas. Hours later, Pedro Carmona, president of Fedecamaras, self-proclaimed himself president of Venezuela, proceeded to repeal all constitutional changes, dissolve the Parliament, Tribunal of Justice,etc; assigned a new board, and gave himself powers above the constitution. Both Chavez supporters and opposition moderates reacted with great indignation. Fourteen Latin American presidents condemned Carmona's actions and deemed them as unconstitutional. The only Latin American country to show approval was Colombia.
The following day, April 13th, the people of Caracas took the streets. Multiple highways, including La Guaira, linked to Venezuela's biggest airport, were shut down by protesters. The sentiment extended all throughout the country. Meanwhile, television stations abstained from delivering news and opted for broadcasting films and cartoons. The Venezuelan people were kept informed mostly by CNN, and Radio Caracol. While captive by the armed forces, Chavez released a written address to the Venezuela stating “I have not resigned from the legitimate power that the people have given me”.
That night, Chavez supporters managed to take over Venezolana de Television, and began to broadcast news to the Venezuelan people. The station had been previously seized by the Miranda Police, controlled by Governor Enrique Mendoza, also a strong Chavez opponent. In a television broadcast, a battalion from Maracay declared its adherence to the constitution the Venezuelan people created, and called for an operation they baptized National Dignity Rescue. Meanwhile, Chavez supporters took over the presidential palace, which had been abandoned as the coup perpetrators attended the inauguration. Aminds this threat, the opposition responded by naming Diosdado Cabello, newly named Vice-President, as provisional president. A military operation rescued Chavez and transported him back to Caracas.Once in the capital, Chavez addressed the troubled masses and asked them to remain calm as the situation was normalized.
The events of April 2002 are refered to by a great majority of international sources as a failed coup D'etat, given that it entailed an attempt to focefully overthrow a democratically elected President. There was no evidence of a legitimate constitutional approach to Carmona's rise to power, given that there was not a formal resignation. On the other hand, Diosdado Cabellos' brief mandate has also been deemed as illegitimate, given that even if Carmona had been legitimately elected president, he would have had to submit a resignation before presidential powers were passed down to his Vice-President. On August of 2002, the Venezuelan Supreme Tribunal of Justice concluded that a coup d'etat did not occur in Venezuela. The sentenced was argued by many. It was later annulled by the same Tribunal in 2005. In November of 2003, members of the Venezuelan Parliament published materials suggesting that the coup was backed by the CIA.
During 2004, Chavez's administration begun to modify PDVSA, nationalizing it and involving it in social programs aimed at improving the life conditions of the Venezuelan people. The same year, Venezuela experienced a growth of 17.9% in its GDP, one of the largest improvements over a short period of time to ever be documented by the IMF. Additionally, internal investment in educational, and health-related programs increased noticeably. To alleviate internal tension, and by request of the opposition, a national referendum was held to legitimate Chavez's presidency. 40.64% voted against, and 59.06% voted for Chavez. The Carter Center and the Organization of American States monitored the elections and deemed them as transparent. The right to recall a president by referendum is upheld in the Bolivarian constitution.
Beginning in 2005, the newly democratically re-elected Hugo Chavez began the process of expropriating unproductive land owned by transnational companies, seeking to distribute them among farmers and put them in production. Chavez explained that this expropriation was part of a deepening of the Bolivarian revolution, and a way to ensure reliable food reserves in case of a national emergency. The opposition continues to call the measure communist and unconstitutional.
In 2005, Venezuelan exports reached a historical high of 56,000 million dollars in revenue, ranking the country in third place in Latin American charts after Mexico and Brazil. A large percentage was invested in acquiring solvency with international debts. International reserves reached some 30,000 million dollars. Venezuelan GDP grew by 9.4%, ranking first in growth among Latin American countries for the second years in a row. Inflation was as low as it had been in the last seven years. According to annual records of Venezuela's Central Bank, Venezuela's GDP grew by 10.3% in 2006. Non-oil-related industries grew by 11.4%, with the manufacturing sector growing by 10%. International reserves reached a record high of 37,299 Million Dollars.
In January of 2007, Chavez purchased and nationalized CANTV, Venezuela's main telecommunication's company, and it's cellphone communications branch Movilnet, which until that moment had been under the control of American company Verizon. Electricidad de Caracas, the electric company of the capital city of Caracas, along with 92.98% of it's stocks (82.14% which had been previously owned by American company AES) were also purchased and nationalized.
In may of 2007, Chavez denied the renovation of Radio Caracas Television's (RCTV) license to broadcast citing violations committed in 2002. This measure led to much controversy. Several protests led mostly by students and opposition journalists took place in the capital city of Caracas. Organizations such as the American Department of Exterior, the International Federation of Journalists, and the European Parliament, deemed the move as politically retaliatory and a thread to freedom of the press. However, the denial of broadcasting licensing would only keep the television station for broadcasting an open signal, and not lead to a definite closing of all operations; RCTV was not prohibited from broadcasting through cable or satelite. The television station moved its headquarters to Miami, and currently broadcasts through Intercable, Net Uno, Telmex, Supercable, DirecTV, and Movistar TV. More recently, the Comition of National Telecommunication of Venezuela solicited RCTV to re-register as a Venezuelan audiovisual broadcaster. RCTV responded by stating that since the television station now operates on international soil and reaches an international audience, they would abstain from registering and hence avoided being held accountable from remaining loyal to the Venezuelan Law of Radio and Television Responsibility (enacted following the incidents of 2002), which ironically enough, merely calls for all national stations to respect emergency government broadcasts.
Recently, diplomatic relationships between Colombia and Venezuela have been affected by the Humanitarian Accord, methodology for a possible agreement seeking the liberation of both citizens kidnapped by the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC), and guerrilla soldiers imprisoned by the government of Colombia. Some members of the international community, especially within the United States, accuse Chavez of being a terrorist and supporter of FARC, Bolivia's Cocateros, Brazil's Sin Tierra, and Argentina's Piqueteros. None of these accusations have been proved to be true; these statements, however, have moderately damaged Chavez's image within the international community. In addition, Chavez was involved in a verbal altercation with the King of Spain during the XVII Ibero-American Summit, held that same year, which was greatly ridiculed by the press. Chavez has been criticized for openly supporting the struggles of Palestine, and Western Sahara.
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Narrating the political history of Venezuela during the 1940s is a difficult task. Throughout this era, the country was frantically juggled among various politicians, a great majority having been military dictators. We had three indirectly elected presidents who were, incidentally, members of some of Venezuela's most disreputable political parties. For reference, historically speaking, Venezuela's two most prominent parties have been Accion Democratica (A.D), and Comité de Organización Política Electoral Independiente (C.O.P.E.I.).
Founded in 1941, A.D was originally a socialist party advocating social democracy through race and class equality, progress, and anti-imperialism. It was founded by writer and philosopher Romulo Betancourt, who was with all his faults, and considering the political climate of Venezuela, a rather radical man for his time; having documented ties with the socialist party of Chile, and Salvador Allende. Betancourt was president of Venezuela from 1945 to 1948. Although he successful avoided several assassination attempts, Betancourt was ultimately overthrown by a military coup d'etat led by the Venezuelan right. Changes in political dominance, and a thirst for power led A.D to eventually adopt a much more conservative centrist social-democrat ideology, a more pluralistic doctrine that many label as neo-liberal.
C.O.P.E.I, founded in 1946, was founded by a merger between ex-members of A.D and members of the National Union of Students. The founder of C.O.P.E.I (and leader for many years) was Christian sociologist Rafael Caldera. From the beginning, C.O.P.E.I has been a Christian-Democrat party with center-right tendencies. Party dogma has included the belief that man is a limited being needing the aid of God and the state to fulfill his fate, and the notion that the development of individuals and society must occur simultaneously so that none grows at a faster rate; which unavoidably became a subject of much controversy.
Back to the topic at hand, in 1948 the man in power was dictator Carlos Delgado Chalbaud, an elite military officer and engineer. Chalbaud was assassinated in 1950, only two years in his administration. Following these events, lawyer Germán Suárez Flamerich took over transitively. Two years later, General Marcos Perez Jimenez took the presidency through a coup d'etat. Although to this day it has not been confirmed, intellectuals believe that Chalbaud's assassination was part of an intricate conspiracy to orchestrate Perez Jimenez rise to power in a relatively discrete matter.
The fact of the matter remains that in 1952, Venezuela was due to hold elections for the national assembly, which would have been in charge of deciding the country's fate following Flamerich's transitional term. Preliminary results showed an almost certain triumph of alternative political party URD, which prompted Perez-Jimenez' party to reject the verdict and forcefully proclaim Perez-Jimenez provisional president of Venezuela. Such measure, anything but discreet, was considered fraudulent by an alarming majority. In an unprecedented effort, all remaining political parties, along with the communist party, united in an attempt to prevent the affair. Unfortunately, in 1953 Perez-Jimenez was proclaimed president of Venezuela. He would remain in power for six years.
Perez-Jimenez's regime was a right-wing, authoritarian dictatorship; infamous for silencing its opposition, banning competing political parties from both the left and the right, shutting down newspapers that criticized his actions, and imposing harsh censorship on both radio and television. Throughout his time in power, a great number of detractors were harassed, tortured, assassinated, sent out in exile, or imprisoned by national security without any evidence besides being suspected of opposition to the government. Alarmingly enough, right-wingers nostalgically look back at this period, remembering men in uniforms and developments in infrastructure. Like many other Latin American dictatorships, Perez-Jimenez's was supported by the United States, who perceived the dictator as an important asset in oil distribution and a key player in preventing the expansion of communism in Latin America.
In 1958, Venezuela was due to call for a plebiscite to decide whether Perez-Jimenez would remain in power. As expected, Perez-Jimenez won by a wide margin. In disbelief, a vast number of the population went out in the streets to protest, ignoring sanctions and the possibility of arrest. On January 23rd of the same year, A.D, the Venezuelan communist party, and part of the national armed forces succeeded at overthrowing Marcos Perez Jimenez.
Following these events, A.D allied with C.O.P.E.I and signed the infamous Pact of Punto Fijo, a contract that called for equal participation of political parties within the winning executive cabinet. Although it was alleged that the pact was an attempt to ensure the endurance of democratically elected governments in Venezuela, in practice,it mostly led to both parties (which were now rather similar politically), to alternating power between their selected candidates. From this point on, the Venezuelan political system became bipartisan. Although the pact was only legal for one year, the tactics remained in practice until 1999. According to some, this move was a deliberate measure for preventing the advancement of leftist tendencies within the Venezuelan government.
Things remained fundamentally the same for two decades. Elected presidential candidates of both parties engaged in economic interventionism, greatly damaging small businesses and providing an advantage to large conglomerates; including the Cisneros group, media magnates and owners of television channel Venevision. Due to a middle eastern blockade to the United States, demand for Venezuelan oil grew immensely leading to oil prices reaching a high of $30 per barrel. Revenue became so high that we suddenly became one of Latin America's most developed nations. For a period of time, exchange rates reached an unprecedented low of 4 Bolivares per dollar. Venezuelan elites engaged in extravagant and wasteful behavior. Upper class families went as far as to make weekly trips to the United States to shop for groceries. To everyone's disadvantage, during this era of bonanza, the Venezuelan government failed to invest in any other type of industry, aside from oil extraction and refining. For this reason, when oil prices drastically decreased in 1983, our debt grew to astronomic proportions and the country fell in a severe economic crisis. By 1983, the Bolivar had begun to drastically lose its value.
Meanwhile, around the early 1980s, a socialist tendency was growing in strength within some branches of the national army. Hugo Chavez, then a colonel, proposed to his fellow soldiers that they added the letter 'R' of 'revolution' to the name of their division, as a means to celebrate the bicentennial of Simon Bolivar's birth. From this point, several military divisions had begun to discuss a political social, economic, and cultural transformation inspired by the ideas of Bolivar.
Back on the center stage, Carlos Andres Perez served as president from 1989 to 1993. Following recommendations of the IMF, Perez begun a program of neo-liberal reform on the Venezuelan economy. Some of his measures included the elimination of price controls, privatization of energy and public service companies, freezing of salaries, increase the cost of gas and public services within the country (within a year, gas praises were raised by 100%, and transportation by 30%), and elimination of duty costs of imported goods. The resulting monstrous inflation led to the “Caracazo”. Working class citizens and barrio-dwellers organized large protests and business plundering operations in commercial districts across Caracas, looting everything from food to domestic appliances. Perez's administration responded with brutal force. Casualties fell somewhere in between 200 and 5,000 people. According to official records, 185 died, the non-official figure estimates 350.
These events were followed by two attempted coup d'etat, the first led by Hugo Chavez, who in a televised appearance justified the actions of the armed forces by explaining the deteriorating social situation of Venezuela, and the prevalence of administrative corruption within the government. Such address earned Chavez much popularity among working class Venezuelans. He was later sent to jail without a trial, which only further fueled his sentiment. Perez endured Chavez's attempt by escaping the presidential palace and seeking refuge on the headquarter on television station Venevision. A few months later, dissenters acted again, bombing a variety of public buildings. The second attempt failed as well, but it contributed to further discredit the president's image. In 1993, the Supreme Court forced to Perez to abandon the presidential seat.
In 1994, Rafael Caldera, founder of A.D, became the new democratically elected president of Venezuela; running with Convergencia, a political party which he personally founded for the sole purpose of avoiding being associated with Accion Democratica. Among the promises that he listed in his platform was the pardoning of Hugo Chavez, a measure aimed at appealing to angry and skeptical voters. During his term, Caldera managed to more or less stabilized\ the country, however, the economic situation of Venezuela did not improve by much. Chavez was released from prison that same year.
Free and aware of the country's dissatisfaction with political parties, Chavez begun a political campaign urging people not to vote on the upcoming elections as a means to demonstrate that the nation was not interested in enduring the same social and economic politics of traditional political parties. With the support of several prominent leftists, Chavez founded the Movimiento Quinta Republica party in 1994. The following year, he toured Venezuela explaining to people why he thought it was necessary to call a national assembly for the purpose of re-building Venezuela from scratch.
In 1998, Chavez ran for office. He faced two main opponents on the presidential elections: Irene Saez, former beauty queen, and Henrique Salas Romer, a caudillo-looking fellow who made television appearances riding horses while wearing a cowboy hat. Chavez had the support of Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS), the Communist Party of Venezuela (PCV), and Patria Para Todos (PPT). By mid 1998, Chavez headed national polls. A few months later, he was elected president of Venezuela with 56,5% of all votes. To no surprise, from the beginning, Chavez dealt with a small and violent opposition, particularly threatening due to its ties to the media and the catholic church. As election results were released, dozens of conservative Venezuelans begun to flee the country.
During his first year of presidency, Chavez called for a national referendum seeking to introduce a variety of changes to the Venezuelan constitution. Following the drafting of the new constitution, a second referendum was held for the public to re-evaluate the document and ensure the legality and transparency of the process. Aside from cosmetic changes, such as a name change from "Republic of Venezuela" to "Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela", the document implemented the following changes:
- Minerals and natural resources became property of the nation. It was confirmed that national territory was not to be leased or trespassed, not temporarily nor partially, by foreign nations.
- Established new methodology to call for national assemblies, making the process more accessible.
In 2007, Chavez presented a proposition to further reform the Venezuelan constitution, which would have altered some 70 articles of the document drafted in 1999. The changes did not pass by a small percentage: 50.7% voted No, and 49.29% vote Yes. Last year, a second referendum held, in which Venezuelans voted for lifting Presidential term limits.
In 2000, following the legitimization of the new constitution, Venezuela held general elections. The Carter Center monitored the process, affirming that the elections legitimately reflected the will of the people. Chavez won with 59,76% of all votes.
On August of the same year, Chavez indiscriminately visited leaders of all OPEC nations- including Iraq, which led to much controversy in the US- , with the purpose of pushing for a more active role of the organization in global politics. By 2005, oil prices had risen considerably, reaching a peak of $60 per barrel, which undoubtedly also aggravated the United States.
Also during that year, Chavez pushed for the creation of Bolivarian circles, base organizations founded for the discussion and diffusion of ideas among communities. The circles, decentralized and autonomous, served as a forum for effective cooperation. Discussion was not limited to local politics, debate in regard to national issues was also encouraged. In response to what they deemed a dangerous socialist tactic, the Venezuelan opposition accused the circles of engaging in political crimes. The process of expansion was closely moderated finding no evidence for such claims.
Aside from these circles, several “missions” (misiones) were developed across the country. Programs such as Mision Robinson, Rivas, and Sucre were aimed at improving school infrastructure, providing learning materials, and bettering recreation areas in poor communities. Barrio Adentro was aimed at providing quality medical assistance to the uninsured, later expanding to more developed communities. Today, B.A offers everything from diagnostic medicine to cardiology and rehabilitation. Additionally, Mision Mercal set up communal markets which pushed for the consumption of local foods at lower prices, often reaching discount of up to 45% due to lack of a middleman.
In late 2001, Chavez actions became more openly socialist. That same year, he invited Fidel Castro to visit Caracas, which led to much consternation among the opposition. When confronted by the press -which as stated before, has strong ties with the Venezuelan right-, Chavez declared his radical tendencies and confessed to having had a good relationship with Castro even prior to having been elected president. Chavez explained his interest in cooperating with Cuba, exchanging oil for doctors, teachers, sport trainers, and other professional to work in Venezuelan social programs. He also expressed his interest in creating Alternativa Bolivariana para America Latina y el Caribe, ALBA (Today comprised of Bolivia, Cuba, Dominica, Honduras, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and San Vicente), an alternative organization aimed at bringing together nations of Latin America and the Caribbean, including Cuba, in the struggle against poverty and social exclusion. News were met by harsh criticism from the press.
From this point on, Venezuela begun to sell oil to Cuba at preferential rates, credit, or in exchange of professional services. It was later unveiled that to the knowledge of Chavez's administration, Cuba did not consume all of the oil acquired, but rather sold the remaining quantities at international prices to generate internal revenue. The controversy led to the Venezuelan right accusing Chavez of committing political suicide, and dangerously risking the possibility of having the country end up in a similar situation to Cuba. Chavez replied by stating that he had no interest in copying any country in the world, not Cuba nor the United States; and emphasized that for the purposes of collective advancement, it was his priority to maintain a good relationship with all nations of Latin America, in particular those who were members of Mercosur.
Disinformation and panic further intensified by the Administration's suggestion for the implementation of an agrarian reform, and a televised appearance in which Chavez openly rejected US actions in Afghanistan. Following these declarations, the US Department of State responded by calling an American envoy home from Venezuela. Meanwhile, the opposition marched in the streets of Caracas and the Confederation of Venezuelan Workers (CTV), incidentally founded by political party A.D, called for a national strike in which PDVSA, the principal oil company in the country, played a very important role. The strike was greatly successful. Industrial paralysis led to oil production dropping by 90% and Venezuela's GDP falling by 7.7%. 10,000 million dollars were lost.
On April of 2002, a Venezuelan colonel of aviation made a television appearance requesting Chavez to step down from the presidency arguing political polarization among the masses. Shortly after, several high ranking military officials began to step down. As the national strike continued, Chavez proceeded to publicly fire PDVSA officials through a televised appearance. CTV along with Fedecamaras, the nation-wide chamber of commerce with right-wing tendencies and great influence in Venezuelan politics, called for an extended strike in solidarity to PDVSA officials. The opposition responded by organizing a march to PDVSA headquarters. The march was legal and authorized by the government, but it failed to keep its promised route and was redirected to the presidential palace. The site was surrounded by Chavez supporters who had gone out in the streets to denounce sabotage and support Chavez's administration. Soon after, a violent confrontation between both parties begun. The Metropolitan police showed up, allegedly taking the side of the opposition and creating further disorder. It is important to note that the Metropolitan district was then under the jurisdiction of an opposition Mayor.
Chavez, who was in the presidential palace during the confrontation, addressed the armed forces through a televised appearance calling for the implementation of the Avila Plan, Venezuela's response to national security threats, and instructing safety measures to the Venezuelan people. Meanwhile, opposition television stations disregarded the presidential address by splitting their screens, muting Chavez's address, and continuing to broadcast images of the confrontation. It is relevant to note that by Venezuelan law, all television stations are obligated to broadcast emergency presidential addresses. Several of these television stations additionally delivered messages inciting further violence and intensifying fear among the Venezuelan population. Given the gravity of the situation, the government shut down these television stations. Through alternate means, opposition stations continued to broadcast with lesser resolution.
At mid afternoon, television stations broadcasted a message by a group of high ranking generals in which they denied Chavez's government validity and informed the public of the death of six people during the violent confrontation outside of the presidential palace. Official casualties had not yet been released, hence the message was suspected of having been pre-recorded, and of having been evidence of deliberate assassinations. According to investigations by international scholars, more notably by journalist Otto Neustald of CNN, due to a number of technical incongruencies it is a strong possibility that this was the case.
Soon after, Venevision broadcasted images of a group of Chavez supporters shooting from Llaguno bridge towards the south, a site several miles away from the protest's route. These images are suspected of having been edited, for the targets of the shooters were never shown, the camera-man filmed steadily at ground level during the chaos, and the narrator explained the events for Venevision's studios, claiming that gunmen were shooting at opposition protesters while not receiving any visual evidence of such. Several witness accounts claim that the gunmen fought in defense against Metropolitan Police, which had stationed several snippers in buildings surrounding the march.
At the end of the day, it was documented that twelve people had been killed. Nine members of the Metropolitan police, two members of the national guard, and a suspected accomplice, former member of Quinta Republica were tried for the assassinations. They were all declared innocent in 2004.
Later that night, Chavez was pressured to resign by military officers participating in the coup, threatening to attack the presidential palace, which was still surrounded by pro-Chavez supporters. At 12 A.M, Ministry of Defense Lucas Romero addressed the nation attesting that Chavez had resigned. Chavez was flown to Fuerte Tiuna, a military base in the outskirts of Caracas. Hours later, Pedro Carmona, president of Fedecamaras, self-proclaimed himself president of Venezuela, proceeded to repeal all constitutional changes, dissolve the Parliament, Tribunal of Justice,etc; assigned a new board, and gave himself powers above the constitution. Both Chavez supporters and opposition moderates reacted with great indignation. Fourteen Latin American presidents condemned Carmona's actions and deemed them as unconstitutional. The only Latin American country to show approval was Colombia.
The following day, April 13th, the people of Caracas took the streets. Multiple highways, including La Guaira, linked to Venezuela's biggest airport, were shut down by protesters. The sentiment extended all throughout the country. Meanwhile, television stations abstained from delivering news and opted for broadcasting films and cartoons. The Venezuelan people were kept informed mostly by CNN, and Radio Caracol. While captive by the armed forces, Chavez released a written address to the Venezuela stating “I have not resigned from the legitimate power that the people have given me”.
That night, Chavez supporters managed to take over Venezolana de Television, and began to broadcast news to the Venezuelan people. The station had been previously seized by the Miranda Police, controlled by Governor Enrique Mendoza, also a strong Chavez opponent. In a television broadcast, a battalion from Maracay declared its adherence to the constitution the Venezuelan people created, and called for an operation they baptized National Dignity Rescue. Meanwhile, Chavez supporters took over the presidential palace, which had been abandoned as the coup perpetrators attended the inauguration. Aminds this threat, the opposition responded by naming Diosdado Cabello, newly named Vice-President, as provisional president. A military operation rescued Chavez and transported him back to Caracas.Once in the capital, Chavez addressed the troubled masses and asked them to remain calm as the situation was normalized.
The events of April 2002 are refered to by a great majority of international sources as a failed coup D'etat, given that it entailed an attempt to focefully overthrow a democratically elected President. There was no evidence of a legitimate constitutional approach to Carmona's rise to power, given that there was not a formal resignation. On the other hand, Diosdado Cabellos' brief mandate has also been deemed as illegitimate, given that even if Carmona had been legitimately elected president, he would have had to submit a resignation before presidential powers were passed down to his Vice-President. On August of 2002, the Venezuelan Supreme Tribunal of Justice concluded that a coup d'etat did not occur in Venezuela. The sentenced was argued by many. It was later annulled by the same Tribunal in 2005. In November of 2003, members of the Venezuelan Parliament published materials suggesting that the coup was backed by the CIA.
During 2004, Chavez's administration begun to modify PDVSA, nationalizing it and involving it in social programs aimed at improving the life conditions of the Venezuelan people. The same year, Venezuela experienced a growth of 17.9% in its GDP, one of the largest improvements over a short period of time to ever be documented by the IMF. Additionally, internal investment in educational, and health-related programs increased noticeably. To alleviate internal tension, and by request of the opposition, a national referendum was held to legitimate Chavez's presidency. 40.64% voted against, and 59.06% voted for Chavez. The Carter Center and the Organization of American States monitored the elections and deemed them as transparent. The right to recall a president by referendum is upheld in the Bolivarian constitution.
Beginning in 2005, the newly democratically re-elected Hugo Chavez began the process of expropriating unproductive land owned by transnational companies, seeking to distribute them among farmers and put them in production. Chavez explained that this expropriation was part of a deepening of the Bolivarian revolution, and a way to ensure reliable food reserves in case of a national emergency. The opposition continues to call the measure communist and unconstitutional.
In 2005, Venezuelan exports reached a historical high of 56,000 million dollars in revenue, ranking the country in third place in Latin American charts after Mexico and Brazil. A large percentage was invested in acquiring solvency with international debts. International reserves reached some 30,000 million dollars. Venezuelan GDP grew by 9.4%, ranking first in growth among Latin American countries for the second years in a row. Inflation was as low as it had been in the last seven years. According to annual records of Venezuela's Central Bank, Venezuela's GDP grew by 10.3% in 2006. Non-oil-related industries grew by 11.4%, with the manufacturing sector growing by 10%. International reserves reached a record high of 37,299 Million Dollars.
In January of 2007, Chavez purchased and nationalized CANTV, Venezuela's main telecommunication's company, and it's cellphone communications branch Movilnet, which until that moment had been under the control of American company Verizon. Electricidad de Caracas, the electric company of the capital city of Caracas, along with 92.98% of it's stocks (82.14% which had been previously owned by American company AES) were also purchased and nationalized.
In may of 2007, Chavez denied the renovation of Radio Caracas Television's (RCTV) license to broadcast citing violations committed in 2002. This measure led to much controversy. Several protests led mostly by students and opposition journalists took place in the capital city of Caracas. Organizations such as the American Department of Exterior, the International Federation of Journalists, and the European Parliament, deemed the move as politically retaliatory and a thread to freedom of the press. However, the denial of broadcasting licensing would only keep the television station for broadcasting an open signal, and not lead to a definite closing of all operations; RCTV was not prohibited from broadcasting through cable or satelite. The television station moved its headquarters to Miami, and currently broadcasts through Intercable, Net Uno, Telmex, Supercable, DirecTV, and Movistar TV. More recently, the Comition of National Telecommunication of Venezuela solicited RCTV to re-register as a Venezuelan audiovisual broadcaster. RCTV responded by stating that since the television station now operates on international soil and reaches an international audience, they would abstain from registering and hence avoided being held accountable from remaining loyal to the Venezuelan Law of Radio and Television Responsibility (enacted following the incidents of 2002), which ironically enough, merely calls for all national stations to respect emergency government broadcasts.
Recently, diplomatic relationships between Colombia and Venezuela have been affected by the Humanitarian Accord, methodology for a possible agreement seeking the liberation of both citizens kidnapped by the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC), and guerrilla soldiers imprisoned by the government of Colombia. Some members of the international community, especially within the United States, accuse Chavez of being a terrorist and supporter of FARC, Bolivia's Cocateros, Brazil's Sin Tierra, and Argentina's Piqueteros. None of these accusations have been proved to be true; these statements, however, have moderately damaged Chavez's image within the international community. In addition, Chavez was involved in a verbal altercation with the King of Spain during the XVII Ibero-American Summit, held that same year, which was greatly ridiculed by the press. Chavez has been criticized for openly supporting the struggles of Palestine, and Western Sahara.