The protests in Venezuela are the product of a crisis that has been going on for years — one that has erased the social and economic gains of the Hugo Chavez era.
The photograph of a woman blocking an armoured vehicle in Caracas has gone around the world and will likely become one of the symbols of the protest movement that has long been shaking Venezuela under President Nicolás Maduro. In recent years there have been numerous waves of demonstrations, which in recent weeks led to the organisation of several large marches, with the aim of calling for early elections and respect for the prerogatives of Parliament.
#Caracas like Tiananmen: Woman stands up to police tank in #Venezuela. (photo AP) #venezuelaencrisis pic.twitter.com/PWz5rwjoZx
— The European Post (@theEUpost) 20 aprile 2017
The protests have spilled over into clashes and violence that have claimed 26 lives, with dozens more injured. Even so, on Wednesday the 19th thousands of government opposition activists were still taking to the streets in the capital, Caracas. A further protest was organised on Monday 24 April: the toll was four people killed. The opposition pointed the finger at "the paramilitary forces of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela" — that is, Maduro's Psuv. Meanwhile Tarek Saab, president of the Authority overseeing respect for human rights, offered a diametrically opposite account, at least regarding one of those killed, who was in fact said to be a government supporter "who was peacefully demonstrating and was struck by a bullet".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKbPXluGK-0
The situation in Venezuela has in any case looked precarious for some time: the defeat suffered by Maduro in the legislative elections in December 2015 stems from the discontent that grew around the successor of Hugo Chavez, the leader of the "Bolivarian revolution", who came to power in 1999 and died in 2013 after fourteen years at the helm of the Latin American nation. Over the course of his long period in government, Chavez had achieved years of undisputed economic and social successes. On the international stage, he openly challenged what he called the "domination of the United States", managing among other things to impose a higher price for sales of oil produced in Venezuela. He also launched a policy of strict control over industry, using revenues from crude oil sales to fund numerous social reforms in support of the population. This made it possible over time to sharply reduce poverty, eradicate illiteracy and guarantee universal access to medical care.
Venezuela was unable, however, to complete the job by diversifying its production system: its dependence on black gold remained too pronounced, and the collapse in the price of a barrel — from 107 dollars in July 2014 to 56 in 2015 and then 30 in 2016 — forced Maduro to cut many of the subsidies granted to citizens. Imports also quickly became extremely difficult, which last year led to severe shortages of numerous basic necessities, including food and medicines, making rationing necessary. The infant mortality rate thus rose by 45 per cent compared with 2013, the recession became unstoppable (-18 per cent in 2016 according to provisional figures released by the central bank) and inflation reached 150 per cent in 2015 (with peaks of 350 per cent for food). Price rises then became unsustainable in 2016 (+800 per cent) and appear set to increase further in 2017. The ratio of deficit to GDP also reached 20 per cent, and many observers now harbour doubts about the state's ability to service the public debt.
It is the economic crisis, then, that has been the driving force behind the unrest. Maduro saw the presidency's popularity — sky-high in the Chavez era — fall to 24 per cent in 2015. Crime and violence simultaneously surged sharply, to the point of making Venezuela the least safe country in the world after El Salvador. The opposition thus gained ground, eventually winning three-fifths of the seats in Parliament: enough to call a referendum aimed at removing Maduro from office. The required signatures were collected (1.8 million) and the vote was validated in August 2016, but it has still not been called: the electoral authority found certain irregularities and blocked the process. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5ZblQ36zvI
So, from the beginning of April, the opposition returned to the streets, demanding early elections ahead of the natural expiry of the government's mandate, scheduled for 2018. On 7 April, finally, opposition leader Henrique Capriles Radonski was stripped of his political rights for fifteen years, which inflamed tempers still further. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres therefore issued an appeal to avoid an escalation and resume dialogue.
For its part, Amnesty International denounced what it described as "illegal actions" carried out by the Venezuelan government: "Rather than persisting in silencing every dissenting voice, the Venezuelan authorities should focus on finding concrete and sustainable solutions to the deep crisis the country is facing," said the humanitarian organisation's director for the Americas, Erika Guevara Rosas. The NGO's finger is pointed in particular at certain "warrantless arrests" allegedly carried out by the intelligence services (the Sebin, Bolivarian National Intelligence Service), as well as at certain trials of civilians that are said to have been conducted by military courts.
