Violent Crime in Caracas

[fa2991]

...has risen significantly in the last decade, apparently. It seems unusual that a much more progressive government would preside over a rising crime rate. What do you think the causes are? Solutions?

[Nolan]

It's not that surprising.

Factor 1: The country is politically unstable. Chavistas and anti-Chavistas are fighting for domination. Corruption has risen because many people who shouldn't be there side with the PSUV for political expedience and rise in position. A lot of Venezuelans seem to think that many of the major drug dealers are in league with government officials, so police often look the other way, or they even get assassination jobs for crooked state officials. But it apparently goes both ways: many of the state governments are anti-Chavez and PSUV members and unionists are often killed, so one could say there is a hidden war between the PSUV and the opposition on the streets. This is just speculation, but stuff like this is business as usual all over the third world.

Factor 2: It's the Economy Stupid. A lot of Chavez's policies and the structure of the capitalist economy itself in Venezuela (relies almost entirely on oil exports) have hurt the economy. Venezuela is currently one of the (if not the) worst in inflation right now.



Just a few weeks ago in the state where my family is from, a little girl was kidnapped. The kidnappers sent the family her severed finger. I'll try to find the source later.

It's worth noting though that murder peaked in 2008 and has went down since then.

[Proletarian Ultra]

The biggest problem with Chavista policy is that valuable resources have been spent compensating capialists for expropriated enterprises. Those are resources that are not going toward revolutionizing the means of production and increasing the economy's capacity to meet human needs and provide good jobs.

[mossy noonmann]

there is an article here

Http ://mondediplo.com/2010/08/07venezuela




in english which saved you my really bad translation effort.

sorry its not a link , i'm not allowed

[Raúl Duke]

The homicide rate is high...I heard people tell me that 600 people die yearly in Caracas (or is it in the entire country?). I was told this after saying that 300 people die yearly in Puerto Rico by homicide, but recently it's also 600 homicides per year here too.

[REDSOX]

Crime is falling in venezuela albeit too slowly which is strange because venezuela has low poverty and high employment

[KurtFF8]

Factor 2: It's the Economy Stupid. A lot of Chavez's policies and the structure of the capitalist economy itself in Venezuela (relies almost entirely on oil exports) have hurt the economy. Venezuela is currently one of the (if not the) worst in inflation right now.

What's your source here. This is of course ignoring that the material conditions of the worse off of Venezuela have gotten significantly better since he came to power.

I also disagree with your assessment that Venezuela's economy has "gotten worse" as a result of Chavez.

http://www.cepr.net/index.php/press-releases/press-releases/report-examines-economy-and-social-indicators-during-the-chavez-decade-in-venezuela/

[El Rojo]

oh man crime in caracas is the worst. i was robbed twice while there, its seriously unpleasant.

off the top of my head id say its coz of the pop levels. one fifth of the venez pop lives in caracas, one fifth. its gonna take a while to dent such a serious ammount of inequality, as a PSUV branch leader told me "as rome was not built in a day, so revolution is a long process"

[Artemis3]

If you come to Caracas it would be advised to be with someone who knows the place. Or you could try going to other cities/towns etc. Would be nice if you contact an organization beforehand if you are coming for political exchange, etc. Caracas is like Rio do Janeiro and other latinamerican metropolises, you just can't be wandering around anywhere at any hour and expect to be safe, especially if you look like a tourist.

For example if you land a late hour at the airport, stay INSIDE until morning. You will also save a ton of money using the airport's Buses instead of the Taxis (using a taxi is like signaling "'I'm rich, come get me". Besides, traffic in Caracas sucks, you are better off using the Metro subway). The Airport is supposed to be building a Hotel, but i don't know if its finished.

[RadioRaheem84]

Crime has risen sharply in Chile since the New Labour type Democrats took power. There is some small nostalgia for Pinochet by certain sectors only in the sense that he kept crime low. Santiago has become pretty dangerous and where my family is from Vina Del Mar, my family are afraid to go out at night for the most part.

Now, the stats, say otherwise as they note only a slight increase in comparison to other Latin American cities but you have to put this into context of the fact they went from relatively no crime to seeing the crimes committed in most nations where neo-liberal reforms were implemented in liberal democracies.

So this is happening everywhere. To say that Caracas is experiencing crime because of Chavez is spurious.