THE (ir)REGULAR RANT
The minimum read for the maximum knowledge.
So... it's been a minute. My bad. Some of you noticed, and some of you asked! That made me very excited. So I thought that I should deliver on that excitement.
And with that, we're into the latest update. It's quite wordy and really only on one topic... sorry? I'm hoping that this means that I'll do them more regularly. One topic a week. Totes gonna happen.
If there's an event that is newsworthy and you'd like to understand more, let me know what it is. (I have quite the list at the moment!)
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1. What is going on in Venezuela?
Something is going on in Venezuela?
Boy, is it ever! It’s hard to explain the latest in Venezuelan politics without referring back a few years, as most of the issues now have come about since previous leader, and staunch socialist, Hugo Chávez passed away in 2013.
That’s not to allay Chávez with no responsibility however as several economic decisions he made during his rule – implemented with the intention to create a more equal society – backfired and set the country up for failure, but to go into those in one email would be traumatic for the both of us.
In 2013, Nicolás Maduro, Chávez’ protégé, assumed the presidency and through continual corruption, mismanagement and falling oil prices, the country’s economy crashed.
Ouch, but what does that look like exactly?
Well – the IMF predicts that inflation will reach 10M% this year. 10M%.
The inflation last year was 80,000%, which saw prices double every 19 or so days.
That means that the currency, the bolivar, is essentially useless – currently 1 USD is equal to 251,321,18 Venezuelan Bolivars.
In August 2018, the government created a new currency, replacing the ‘strong bolivar’ with the ‘sovereign bolivar’ to prevent people from carrying around wads of cash (that were essentially their life savings). It was ineffective, despite the minimum wage being increased x34 with its introduction.
The hyperinflation has made it impossible for people to afford food. In 2017 Venezuelans lost an average of 11.4kgs and 9 out of 10 could not afford their daily food (this was in 2017!)
Medicine has also become scarce as no one can afford to import it. That has resulted in an increase in malaria by over 50%, after Venezuela was the first nation in South America to have eliminated the disease in 1961.
Since 2014 over 3M Venezuelans have migrated to neighbouring countries - that's the equivalent of all of Brisbane and all of Adelaide up and leaving.
In August 2018, one roll of toilet paper cost 2,600,000 bolivars (Reuters)
In August 2018, one chicken cost 14,600,000 bolivars (Reuters)
Okay, that’s pretty shitty. But why are you telling me about this now?
Great question. Well, in May last year, Maduro was re-elected in a controversial election that saw opposition leaders jailed, low voter turnout and corruption on the ‘independent’ body that oversaw and administered the election. After that result, Maduro jubilantly stated that he would be sworn-in again in January 2019.
But! The Venezuelan constitution states that the leader of the National Assembly is the caretaker leader when there is no President… and thanks to the dodginess (my word) of the election last year, many believe that Maduro is not the real, democratic leader.
Enter Juan Guaidó.
Who is he?!
Well! He is the current leader of the opposition-held National Assembly, and on January 23rd, he declared himself the acting president of Venezuela until a new, fair and truly democratic election could be held. (He has yet to provide a date for said election).
Guaidó was voted as the head of the National Assembly on January 5th and is new to the big stage. He comes from one of the poorer areas of Venezuela and was motivated to enter politics when the Chávez government was slow to respond to a landslide in his home town while he was a teenager, causing 10,000s of deaths. He is a known protestor against the socialist government and has shrapnel in his neck from being wounded in a protest in 2017. He’s also a bit of a babe. (Although his mentor, Leopoldo Lopez, who is currently under house arrest, is more of a babe, but neither of these facts are particularly relevant to the story).
So, how did Maduro take all this?
Mmm. Not that well. He claims that Guaidó is a US puppet and this is coup orchestrated by Colombia and the US. He gave all US diplomats 72 hours to exit the country. Within minutes of Guaidó’s announcement, Trump tweeted his support of the interim President, a position that Australia and much of the world has agreed with. Countries supporting Maduro include Russia, China, Cuba, Nicaragua, Brazil, Iran, Syria and Turkey.
To be fair, the NYT last year reported that the US government had conversations with key members of the Venezuelan military about supporting a coup, but in the end, the US declined.
So since the end of Jan, have things improved?
In a word: no.
Maduro has given over 16,000 members of the military promotions for their ‘loyalty’, while Guaidó has no real ability to lead, but has called on the population to continue protesting. The US, Canada and several EU countries have imposed sanctions on individuals and industries that could result in money flowing to Maduro. This includes the US sanctioning of the government-owned oil company Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A., which locks about $7B USD of assets away from Maduro.
Maduro has refused to accept international aid and shipments of food, sending them to Colombia instead – with the exception of one recent delivery from the Red Cross after over a month of negotiation. Guaidó has helped organise the food and aid, but Maduro believes that it is an excuse for the US to topple him and has stated that they are not ‘beggars’ and do not need the assistance.
But that’s not the worst of it: incredibly, over 70% of the country suffered blackouts in March that lasted weeks – including hospitals. Maduro states that they were caused by US sabotage but provided no evidence for the claim. Since mid-March, electricity has been cut regularly and is yet to be fully restored.
The health system has collapsed, with infant and maternal mortality rates increasing, along with deaths caused by preventable diseases.
The Venezuelan military blocked the Tienditas Bridge on the Colombia-Venezulan border on February 6 2019 to prevent aid deliveries (AFP/Getty)
So, how does this end?
No one is really sure, except to say that the military are pretty much the ones holding the power, and at the moment they still (publicly) support Maduro. Russia has accused the US of orchestrating the blackouts and admitted that there are Russian troops in Venezuela, so it is unlikely that the military will abandon Maduro anytime soon.
The US is being opportunistic by trying to intervene, and they would not if Venezuela didn’t have the largest oil reserves in the world. Vice President Pence said last week that ‘all options’ were on the table – meaning that they have not ruled out a military intervention.
This is no longer a fight between two sides of belief in Venezuela: this is now the United States vs Russia and China. And make no mistake, whatever happens, it is the fate of the Venezuelan citizens that will be most harmed – and it is likely to get worse before it gets better.
2. Interesting Things
After that cheerful read, here are a few other things equally or (hopefully) more cheerful!
Read:
I am finally on the Sapiens bandwagon and talking to everyone I know about it. Wowee. Do yourself a favour.
Also, I went to Cambodia over Christmas/New Year and took a few snaps, you can see some here.
Watch:
Homecoming. Obviously.
Listen:
Some of you will know of my weird obsession with prison, after watching Shawshank Redemption when I was too young (I am convinced that I will end up in prison and therefore need to know everything I can to survive). Podcast series Ear Hustle is created in San Quentin State Prison in California and they are currently working on their fourth series. This episode legit made me laugh, and legit made me cry. Give it a listen.
Also! Ludovico Einaudi is releasing seven (SEVEN!) new albums this year in seven consecutive months. Get onboard.
Finally, Damien Rice performed in Melbourne for the first time in 12 years. This isn't from his performance here, but it is a live performance of one of my fave songs.
As of April 29th 2019, 17 women in Australia have been killed due to domestic violence.
That is one death every 6.9 days.