Venezuela

Fast Facts

Location: Latin America

Capital: Caracas

Population: 28.2 million (2022)

Government Type: Federal Republic

Language(s): Spanish, indigenous languages

Climate: Hot and humid, with more moderate temperatures in the highlands

Gross Domestic Product: USD $106.36 billion

Human Development Index Ranking: 0.711 (2019, Moderate-High)

Overview

Venezuela is Latin America’s most tumultuous and controversial country. It has the world’s highest crime rate, its highest inflation rate, and an extremely low democracy score. There has been only one transition of power between individuals in the past two decades, which took place within the same political party since 1999. Hyperinflation continues to be a serious issue as well - in 2018, it peaked at a jaw-dropping rise of 65,374% from the previous year, after several decades of already severe inflation rates ranging from 11% to 255%. The Human Rights Watch has issued an equally bleak report, stating that widespread oppression, torture, extrajudicial killings, and overwhelming humanitarian crises are present. It is extremely unclear what the long-term (or even short-term) future for Venezuela is, but with the exception of armed internal conflict, there are few things that would be more dire than its current state.

History

Mt. Roraima towers over the jungle in southeastern Venezuela. Credit: Wikipedia

As with every country in the Americas, Venezuela was and is home to a pre-European indigenous population. However, the now-extinct Arawaks of modern-day Venezuela had not established urban centers such as those in Peru or Mesoamerica, thus, their culture, history, and lifestyle is largely unknown. Spanish expeditions, which included Christopher Columbus himself, first reached modern-day Venezuela at the end of the 15th century. The country’s name comes from later expeditions by Amerigo Vespucci, who was reminded of Venice by the stilt housing occupied by natives (hence, Venezuela or “Little Venice”).

At the time of initial Spanish colonisation, Venezuela’s perceived advantage was more one of geography than of resource or wealth extraction, as its long coastline gave security from pirates and re-supply opportunities to Spanish naval infrastructure traveling between Panama and Cuba. Over the next two centuries, modern-day Venezuela would be increasingly absorbed into larger regional empires, such as The Kingdom of New Granada, the Viceroyalty of Granada, and eventually Gran Colombia. Under Simon Bolivar, Venezuela had secured independence in 1811 from Spain, a fading empire that had been further weakened by Napoleon’s invasions. But Bolivar was more skilled at warfare than politics, and was unable to hold Gran Colombia together - leading to regional rivalries and eventual fragmentation into Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, and Peru.

The decades following Venezuela’s independence from Gran Colombia were tumultuous at best. The Federal War broke out in the mid-1800s due to series of power struggles between pro-independence caudillos (similar to generals), serious economic decline, and the resentment of federalist leaders who had been exiled by the ruling Conservative party. The two most significant outcomes of this war were the creation of Venezuela’s federal government, and the reduction of the central government’s military power. In the late 1800s, approximately 30 years after the Federal War’s conclusion, Venezuela found itself involved in conflict again. Great Britain, which had acquired neighbouring Guyana, had not clearly defined a western border - concerning and angering Venezuela, who viewed their presence as an encroachment into sovereign territory. Venezuela found support from the United States, who declared that there would no longer be no tolerance for European activity or colonialism in the Americas - setting the very first foundation for the Monroe Doctrine, a policy which would later be upheld in the Cold War and modern era at large.

As with so many other states in the 1900s, Venezuela discovered - and quickly capitalised upon - its enormous oil reserves. From 1908 to 1935, Venezuela existed as the world’s largest exporter of oil, and although this title is no held, oil’s status as the backbone of the Venezuelan economy remains a trend which continues today. Due to high global demand, the mid-1900s were kind to Venezuela. In 1958, the downfall of the dictator Marcos Perez Jimenez led to the efforts of Wolfgang Larrazabal, a former naval officer, to promote nationwide democracy and a transition from military to civil rule. Although he lost in the following election, his ideas remained popular with Venezuelans. By the early 1970s, the golden age of Venezuela’s wealth had ended. The world found itself in a protracted oil crisis due to conflict in the Middle East, and Venezuela found itself unable to find buyers for their product that had experienced a price rise of approximately 350%. Mass dissatisfaction grew when, after 20 years, Venezuela was still unable to recover, two coup attempts were carried out, and the president had been impeached on corruption charges.

By 1998, a military colonel named Hugo Chavez (a leader of the aforementioned coup attempts) had successfully capitalised on public discontent and been elected president. Chavez’s promises to end corruption, redistribute oil wealth, and increase social spending made him exceptionally popular - and able to expand his personal power across Venezuela’s government. His increasingly radical agenda, public alignment with Castro and socialist Cuba, and alienation of international superpowers (such as the USA) saw his popularity decline fairly quickly in the 2000’s.

Nicolas Maduro’s succession of Chavez in 2012 has led to a more or less continuation of Chavez’s leadership. Maduro’s government - which remains in power today - indicates no imminent shift towards democracy or reduction in oppressive practices. The outcome of Venezuela’s 2018 election remains contested, with more than 50 countries declaring the results invalid.

Economy

Venezuela’s economy is in a tailspin. The national GDP has declined almost every year since 2015, and more than half of the households nationwide are estimated to be under extreme poverty - defined internationally as living on less than USD $1.90 per person, per day. In the national capital of Caracas, the richest district, this definition applied to nearly two-thirds of households, and in the state of Amazonas, this definition applied to a shocking 71% of households, or over 100,000 people. Few countries on Earth can claim the title “Petrostate” more than Venezuela can, given its dependence on oil revenues to generate 99% of export earnings and 25% of GDP. But the country’s central bank is reporting that in 2022, the economy grew by nearly 17% in the first quarter, and has been experiencing similar figures for approximately 2 to 3 years now. The most likely reasons for this initial growth include the relaxation of controls on the national economy, due to lower global oil production and sanctions from the United States. Such growth is doubtlessly significant - but will need to be sustained and properly managed, as well as shifted away from an overwhelming reliance on oil, to stabilise and become Venezuela’s norm.

The 2018 Election

Credit: Australian Institute of International Affairs

Venezuela’s most recent election caused international outcry from more than 50 nations. The then-American Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, referred to the elections as a “sham”, Chile threatened blockades and demanded free elections, and Japan expressed that it “deplores that the political, economic and social situations have been deteriorating in Venezuela”.

So what exactly occurred?

Before the election even took place, many opposition candidates found themselves jailed or fleeing to avoid imprisonment. Juan Requesens, an opposition lawmaker, was one of 18 people to be sentenced to 8 years in prison for alleged involvement in the detonation of explosives at a pro-Maduro event. Dozens of others have been arrested for suspected terrorism, conspiracy, and treason charges. As such, the remaining opposition leaders found themselves with no choice but to boycott what was widely perceived as an election that was neither free nor fair. Maduro’s response was to ban opposition parties from running at all. Furthermore, the use of the new Venezuelan “Fatherland Card” has many concerned. Maduro claims it will be used to build the new Venezuela, as it is used to access critical infrastructure such as healthcare, re-distributed food, and election systems. But critics of the card see it as a form of social control, as its use was required to vote in 2018 - and therefore could be used to pressure voters, track voting history, and identify supporters of Maduro’s opposition. Information stored on the card may even be cited as reasons to restrict state benefits from individuals.

This election, therefore, has not only further consolidated Maduro’s position, but has also tightened sociopolitical controls on Venezuelan society, using basic necessities as leverage, to keep it that way.

Trivia

-Lake Maracaibo is the world’s most active lightning strike site. During powerful storms in this area, lightning may strike up to 28 times per minute. There is an average of 260 storm days per year in this area.

-Venezuela was the first modern country to ban the death penalty for all crimes, doing so in 1863.

-Venezuela is the country with the second-highest rate of protected land, at about 54.1%. Only the French territory of New Caledonia has a higher rate (at 54.4%).

-Venezuelans often roller skate to Mass on Christmas Eve. This is especially popular in Caracas.