Nearly 8 million Venezuelans who have decided to emigrate in the last decade. At least 10 000 people killed on behalf of the authorities – either by the Bolivarian National Police or at the hands of the police colectivosThat is, government militias recruited from criminal groups. 15,000 political prisoners and over 1,500 people tortured. These are only any of the figures that can be summed up by the eleven years of Nicolás Maduro's rule, which came to power in 2013, shortly after the death of Hugo Chávez. And on 28 July 2024 – on the birthday of his charismatic mentor and predecessor – he won the election for the 3rd time.
His rule, however, no longer has much to do with the large socialist revolution dreamt years ago by the chavists. They are examples of authoritarianism, clientelism, corruption and complete deficiency of public hearing. Venezuela has never been a prosperous country, as any commentators of the idealizing era before Chávez's regulation convince. Praised prosperity remained the privilege of the wealthiest inhabitants and the advanced mediate class. However, in fresh years, due not only to American sanctions (which paralyzed the local economy from 2017 to 2019), but besides to powerful corruption and deep inability of the authorities, Venezuela has become a fallen country. The crisis-stricken economy, affected by recession and hyperinflation, present is mainly maintained by those who live abroad and send money to their loved ones in their homeland.
Contrary to the assumptions of the Bolivian Revolution, which erstwhile drew respective million Venezuelans out of poverty, fewer people can afford a decent life here, and social inequalities are among the largest in the region. According to a survey conducted 2 years ago by Universidad Católica Andrés Bello, the income difference between the wealthiest and poorest parts of the population is seventy times. Today, the first group includes the alleged boliburguesía, which developed during the Chavists' rule. These are Venezuelans who work for the military, political police, state media or another institutions or private companies associated with the government. And they know precisely how to decision well in the network of influences – hence their word enchufados, meaning “connected to the system”. In turn, mediocre people have become even poorer in fresh years. According to last year's Human Rights Watch reports, over 65% of Venezuelans, especially those inhabiting the interior of the country, live in utmost poverty. all 3rd individual is not provided with food safety and access to medical services.
Venezuela's economical collapse and the drama of its inhabitants have become an perfect scare, willingly utilized by the far right across the region. An example of this country under various lexical forms (such as Chilezuela, Argentinazuela is Peruzuela) is given by all who want to discourage their electorate to left-wing formations. Sometimes it has its intended effect. Although the conservative, heavy oligarched and militarized Maduro government seems to have little and little in common with the left.
Last Sunday
The changes desired by most of the society did not bring the last presidential election held on Sunday 28 July. 2 hours before the end of the vote, Maduro's triumph was officially announced, which would most likely regulation the country until 2031. Nicolás Maduro Guerra, president of the United Socialist Party, and privately boy of the President-in-Office, did so. After 23 p.m., the results of nearly 80 percent of the committee were published in public by the president of the National Electoral Council (CNE) Elvis Amoro. He immediately congratulated Nicolás Maduro on his victories, identifying them as “strong and irreversible”.
According to authoritative results, the president won 51.2% of the votes, theoretically winning with the main opposition candidate, 74-year-old Edmund González Urrutia, who was to evidence 44 percent of the votes. However, the electoral board controlled by the government did not uncover detailed results, i.e. polling reports (the vote takes place electronically in Venezuela and reports are issued automatically on the basis of the votes marked with a button at the selected candidate's name). For more than 2 weeks now, both opposition representatives and a large part of the global community have been demanding this.
For fewer people too the most ardent chavists believe in this victory. Everyone besides remembers that the Maduro government had done everything before to impede the opposition's participation in the elections. respective twelve politicians and activists were arrested, and those criticizing the authorities were threatened with death. In January, the right to run for 1 of the key figures of the anti-government opposition, 56-year-old Maria Corina Machado, headed by the Coalition for Democratic Unity was removed. Accordingly, the politician supported the candidacy of a long-term diplomat, González Urrutia, who became a joint candidate for anti-government factions. These stood for elections united as never before – including the distancing towards Maduro Communist organization and belonging to the anti-government Social politician coalition.
Manifestation of supporters of Nicolás Maduro. photograph by Voz de América/Wikimedia CommonsThe hope for a breakthrough was fueled by polls that indicated González Urrutia's decisive victory. It was estimated to receive around 70% of the votes, and the support of the President-in-Office was estimated to be little than 30%. This consequence was confirmed by the first results obtained in the fast conversion of votes in randomly elected committees. He besides repeated himself a fewer days later in reports that the Machado squad had reached. According to the opposition, 73.2% of the automatically issued protocols show that González Urrutia received support from 6.2 million voters and Maduro only 2.7 million. So the solution to the mathematical equation is clear – even if it turned out that the remainder of the votes were given to the incumbent president, it would inactive not be adequate to give him a victory.
Elections are hard to consider fair besides due to how they were organized. Contrary to erstwhile findings, the government limited the presence of abroad observers, which was 1 of the points of Maduro's agreement with the opposition coalition, signed last year in Barbados. respective weeks before the vote, representatives of the European Union and respective national delegations, including Spain, Colombia, Argentina and Chile, were not allowed to enter.
Eventually, the participation of elected UN envoys and Carter Center was allowed. Representatives of the second institution who have left for their safety Venezuela shortly after the election, they issued a message stating, "The elections did not match global parameters and standards of electoral integrity and cannot be considered democratic and the results can be considered credible." Observers from the U.S. Foundation noted, among others, the information blockade, the deficiency of transparency and many irregularities accompanying the organisation of the event, including the exclusion of most electorate surviving abroad. Among nearly 6 million Venezuelans entitled to vote in another countries, only 69 000 people could participate in the elections. A Venezuelan community surviving in the United States, with more than half a million, was completely excluded from voting.
We're not afraid.
The authoritative results were met with an immediate social response. On Sunday evening after Caracas began to carry metallic sound cecerolazo – the sound of hitting a pot or pan with a spoon, which is simply a popular form of social opposition in Latin America. shortly thereafter, Venezuelans went to the streets crowded. The first protests broke out in the poorest districts of the capital, considered to be barrios chavistas, Chavism bastions. due to the fact that it was the poorest inhabitants that the crisis of fresh years has hit the hardest. And it is they who feel the top rage today. “Everybody is protesting, no matter. The conflict for democracy is equal to the conflict for survival. Many people went to the streets due to the fact that they no longer have a choice," wrote Carlos Julio Rojas, writer and activist from La Candelaria, adding that for the first time on specified a large scale, even erstwhile supporters of the government and government officials joined the opposition. On the post-election Monday, Venezuela had already protested, demanding the disclosure of the overcounted votes, overthrowing Chávez's monuments and shouting with 1 voice: “no tenemos miedo!” (we are not afraid!).
And indeed, Venezuelans seem fearless in their anger. Since the end of July, all day they have been out on the streets, even though protests are brutally pacified by military and militants from colectivos. PROVEA, a non-governmental organization monitoring the situation, confirmed to date (on 12 August) that at least 25 people were killed in the protests, nearly 2 1000 demonstrators were detained, more than 200 seriously injured, and more than 40 were missing without trace (including any opposition representatives, including those kidnapped by the government militias Freddy Superlano from the centre-left organization Wola Ludu).
However, as in erstwhile years, social force does not work – for 2 weeks the Venezuelan government has not presented accurate reports on the basis of which it announced the victory. During regular conferences Maduro does not mention to calls of opposition and protestor society. Instead, he reads passages of the fresh Testament, quotes Simón Bolívar and Hugo Chávez as a change, and traditionally accuses of destabilising the country of "imperial forces of evil", i.e. Elona Muska and the American government, and even social media. Thank you to the ‘Venezuel people for their support’, suggesting that people going out to the streets are ‘saboteurs’ trained in Chile or Peru. He besides announces that with "spy" and "diversaries" he will settle without pity – those detained during the demonstration are to be sent to peculiar prisons with increased security.
On the another hand, the Minister of Defence, General Vladimir Padrino, assured of the continued "absolute loyalty" of the armed forces to the President. "We confirm unconditional support for Nicolás Maduro, the constitutional head of state, our commander-in-chief, legally elected one more time by the folk power," he declared. He added that the army would proceed to “do everything to keep order.”
Split Left
The “order” forces who have been repressing protesters for more than 2 weeks besides include militants from Wagner Groups. This is nothing fresh – Maduro already utilized the Kremlin's “support” on the occasion of earlier mass demonstrations in 2017. Vladimir Putin was 1 of the first heads of state to congratulate him on his victory. In addition to him, congratulations were made by Xi Jinping, among others, Aleksandr Lukashenka, Ali Chamenei and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
In Latin America itself, Maduro inactive enjoys the support of tough allies: Cuba, Nicaragua, Honduras and Bolivia. However, most countries in the region are more or little skeptical about this victory, do not recognise authoritative results and request the publication of electoral protocols. On Monday, the governments of 9 Latin American countries expressed in a joint letter concerns about the way they felt the vote was not transparent and the result, not supported by the publication of detailed reports, raises serious doubts.
"We request a review of the results in the presence of independent observers who will confirm the will of the Venezuelan people, who participated in the mass and peaceful elections," wrote the authorities of Argentina, Costa Rica, Peru, Ecuador, Guatemala, Panama, Uruguay, Paraguay and Dominican Republic. The left-wing Chilean government besides took a firm position. president Gabriel Borić Shortly after the announcement of the results in Caracas, he issued a message in which he considered Maduro's win to be "very unlikely". In the following days, he confirmed that he would not recognise the triumph of the President-in-Office, which "is the consequence of his assessment of the forgery."
Other left-wing leaders in the region, i.e. 3 allies, took a little decisive basis: Brazilian president Lula da Silvathe president of Colombia Gustavo Petro And ending his word as president of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador. Each of them demands a fair calculation of the votes, but has a much more conciliative ratio towards Maduro. Brazilian abroad Minister Alexandre Padilha has pointed out in fresh days that his country primarily wants to resolve the situation without conflict and avoid escalation of force against another countries. A akin position was taken by Colombian minister Luis Gilberto Murillo, highlighting, among others, an impartial view of the situation and the request to respect the protection of human rights. In a peculiar statement, he wrote: "Any action that leads to greater force on either side of the conflict or repression should be condemned."
The left besides remains divided in Europe and the United States. In Spain, designation of Maduro's triumph (against the statements of the Prime Minister) Pedro Sánchez) demand, among others, the Minister of Labour Yolanda Díaz and co-writer Podemos and current Euro-Parliamentarian Irene Montero. Promadurian sympathies besides do not traditionally hide (in spite of socialists) a veteran of the French left Jean-Luc Mélenchon and leader of Portuguese communists, Jerónimo de Sousa. The support for the Venezuelan government and the criticism of the opposition for respective days has been expressed, among another things, in social media and in the fresh York streets, by a number of American activists calling for “to leave Venezuela alone” ("Hands off Venezuela").
Another wave
"Why should the Venezuelan people, who have been experiencing migration exodus for years, disasters in the wellness system, constant power gaps and permanent human rights violations, adapt to what American activists think? Why does Venezuela's proletariat gotta adapt to the world's, frequently profoundly privileged left on geopolitics? Why do Venezuelan protestors of the planet have the left as agents of American imperialism erstwhile they are just fighting for fundamental human rights? (...) How can the left support a government that is mainly based on a violent military?” Its left-wing politicians in Venezuela, including the leader of the Óscar Figuer Communist Party, who, in consequence to the reactions of left-wing politicians in the Iberian Peninsula, stated: “I do not realize how Communist organization leaders can support Maduro's rule, dramatically deteriorating the situation of the poorest, violating labour laws, repressing people going out into the streets. Do you truly know our country better than we do?”
This sense of misunderstanding is felt peculiarly powerfully by Venezuelans with leftist views, who live on emigration. 1 of them is the poet and prosaik Sergio Sánchez Colmenares, who has lived in Buenos Aires for respective years. “ Talking about my country has always been hard for me... It became a lost land for me. And it is already in specified a bad condition that any improvement seems impossible. But on this election Sunday, we all hoped that something would yet change... It's not about whether you're left or right. Situations in Venezuela cannot be considered in the categories in which we think of a average democratic country. erstwhile we talk about Maduro, we don't talk about a government based on ideological principles. It's a criminal government and narcos about the level of corruption so advanced that for all Latin countries it became the essence of the complete collapse of the law. (...) We do not have the luxury of reasoning about alleged ideologies. Over the years we have divided into 2 factions: either supporting the government or being in opposition. (...) All of us who live outside Venezuela carry the burden of experience: any of us risked their lives in protest, any of us were victims of repression, others have individual close to us in prison, but each of us continues to experience the consequences of a broken system.”
It is the migration crisis that most reflects the dramatic situation of Venezuelan society – increasingly exhausted and desperate. As many as a 3rd of the population live abroad today, most frequently in Spain, Brazil, Colombia, Peru and Chile. And those who have not yet left the country are announcing that they will shortly – if protests do not give anything and the government does not change. Humanitarian organizations operating in the region are already preparing for another Venezuelan exodus. And they estimation that in the coming months, even another 3 million Venezuelans can leave their disappearing homeland.
