The Lasting Effects of the Hugo Chávez Regime Essay

Venezuela, located in the Latin American region, is a country that has been characterized by its abundance of oil reserve. A natural resource that has shaped the history and development of the country, affecting its economic, social and most important is political spheres. For many years Venezuela was controlled by authoritarian regimes. The country, being very important in the sense of geo-politics due to its abundance of oil, has been a key player in the international arena and most important, to those that for many years kept the country under their regime. It was not until 1958 that Venezuela experienced the change to democracy and a stable democracy was kept between the two main political parties of the time, Accion Democratica (AD)

When Venezuela elected Hugo Chavez, they wished to change their situation. But with his dependence on rich oil and Maduro’s unwillingness to give up power, the people’s lives took a turn for the worse. The economy took a downfall and the government no longer supports the people. They have lost their jobs and faith in their government. They can only hope that when they reach the line, there’s food on the other

Venezuela underwent a rollercoaster of economic and political reforms, “the exhaustion of the ISI model and the application of neoliberal policies opened the way for two decades of economic disorientation and social decomposition. This contributed to a political and institutional crisis that, at the end of the 20th century, appeared to be irreversible” (Lopez Maya, pg 235). The Chavez regime can be split into two parts before 2006 and after. In 1999 he attempted to strengthen democracy and search for social justice. As time passed the government suffered barriers but they were fueled by the idea a of a participatory democracy, entailing the need of a mixed economic model. After 2006 unfortunately a new chapter began, centralizing the power

Out of nowhere there was a change. My parents were suddenly happy and they said Hugo Chavez was out hero. The big business changed owners, prices were lower, my parents were employed and we could

El Comandante! El Comandante! If you scream that in the streets of Venezuela, there is only one person you could possibly be referring to – Hugo Chávez. The current president of the South American country, Venezuela, has been in power for the past four years. His time in office has been criticized by most and glorified by some. He has had the backing of other countries such as Cuba, Colombia, Brazil, Libya and Iraq. On the other hand, the United States has had a continuous growth of confusion for Chávez’s actions. The leader’s intentions have been surrounded by a circle of uncertainty. Chávez’s life as president or even before those days has been far from interesting. Hugo Chávez has been a leader, a commander and

Venezuela’s economic development began long ago when Christopher Columbus discovered it on one of his voyages to the new world. The development started with the colonial experience led by the Spanish. In the 1500s word had spread that there were pearls and rare precious metals to be found in Venezuela. With the newly found pearls, the Spanish colonizers started developing extractive policies to harvest these pearls and metals to the point where new ways and resources had to be found. In the 1520’s, instead of extracting resources and treasures from Venezuela, the Spanish began extracting their native people, taking the people for slavery. The slaves that were extracted from Venezuela were used to supply the growing need for labor in the Caribbean

The coup in Chile on September 11, 1973 was a military action carried out by the Armed Forces of Chile formed by the Navy, Air Force and Army together with Carabineros de Chile to overthrow the socialist president Salvador Allende and the Popular Unity government.

In a brief summary of what Venezuela 's economy has been in recent years, we must first introduce Venezuela 's economic model throughout the twentieth century, to understand perhaps, the anomalies that exist today. The mix between different economic systems and proposals approaches a socialism similar to the absence of private ownership of the means of production and the state monopoly of the entire economy, from the most basic needs and agricultural production to the domestic banking system leading Venezuelan’s to flee the country in search for a better life.

A nation’s sovereignty and self sufficiency is all dependent on said nation 's economy, a nation with a doomed economy is bound to fall and fail its people. Such is the case with the South American country Chile, in 1973 under President Allende’s socialist regime. Salvador Allende was the short-lived president of Chile ruling from 1970 to 1973. During Allende’s reign, socialist destruction ensued, with crime breaking out frequently, complete totalitarian rule with all forms of media being regulated and controlled by a marxist government, a grief-stricken economy, as well as the abolition of all free trade, with tariffs up to 100%, extremely crippling the Chilean society and economy. As Chile was in shambles, it was inevitable a revolution

Over recent decades, much of South America has seen economic hardship, decline, and even crisis. However, the ongoing economic crisis in Venezuela is an especially notable case which requires pragmatic and feasible solutions. Many assert that the current crisis, which has its roots in corruption and over-dependency on oil, is best solved by economic diversification. Others have argued that the best solution is to request foreign aid, such as that from the International Monetary Fund. In spite of this, a combination of history, economics, and logic would indicate that the best solution is to curb the government’s excessive control of the economy.

As a result, military strongmen and dictators ruled Venezuela until about half way through the twentieth century, at the same time, there were some social reforms and the country began to transition from predominantly agricultural exports into petroleum upon the discovery of oil during the 1930’s. Venezuela’s political life changed drastically after the democratic election and the inauguration of Romulo Betancourt, which clearly marked a new era for the country. Since 1959 to the present day, Venezuela’s government remains under constitutional

In Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, most of the protests take place. People of all ages go on the streets screaming, holding signs, or even promoting violence were there on a daily basis. The people demanded for a new president and for food. The police were ordered by the government to release gas into the air and shoot. The air was filled with smoke as people were running around crazy, screaming, and attacking police officers. Recently in May, over 200,000 people marched in protest to Maduro. It was a deadly scene full of violence. The gas tank of a police motorbike exploded leading flames erupting. Protesters threw rocks at the police and the police responded with tear gas. Thousands of people were injured and over 47 people died. One woman was even mowed down by a car. The riots are getting out of hand and nothing has changed due to the

Former Venezuela President Chavez consolidated government control over the economy and nationalized its oil, and sized foreign business and improved poverty and the trend set by him is continuing when it comes to international trade and operation of foreign companies in Venezuela soil. Venezuela withdrew from the World Bank's International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) in 2012, citing bias in favor of transnational corporations. His successor Nicola Maduro reinforced Hugo Chavez reforms such as land law, expropriate idle and foreign companies, which is legislation and concrete actions in an effort to counter deteriorating economy with less intensity, (Ellner, 2014).

Venezuela is a country on the northern coast of South America, which is seated along the beautiful Caribbean coast. The capitol of Venezuela is at the northern most point of the country, pleasantly seated along its coast, making it a wonderful location. Following the collapse of the Gran Columbian, three countries emerged: Ecuador, New Granada, present day Columbia and lastly, Venezuela. In fact, the CIA (2015) indicated “for most of the first half of the 20th century, Venezuela was ruled by generally benevolent military strongmen, who promoted the oil industry and allowed for some social reforms. Democratically elected governments have held sway since 1959” (para. 2). The present leader of Venezuela is President Nicolas

With an economy dominated by the production of oil, Venezuela has enjoyed the highest standard of living in Latin America. In spite of its success in the oil industry, agriculture and manufacturing also play important roles in Venezuela’s economy. With this in mind, it would seem as though Venezuela’s economic state has flourished. Rather, it has suffered from the effects of political influence, corruption, and poor economic management. The distribution of wealth across Venezuela has caused the elite to benefit at the cost of the working people. This is mainly due to the economic and political structure of the country. Even with the plentiful resources Venezuela possesses, it is constantly being threatened by political instability,