I apologize for not posting about this sooner. Nonetheless, make sure you read The Guardian’s scorching takedown of El Sistema. British academic and musician Geoffrey Baker did what few people have been able to do: go to Venezuela and take a careful look at El Sistema’s claims of being a flagship model of social integration.…
Turns out Cuban doctors sent to work in Venezuela are defecting to the U.S. in huge and fast-growing numbers. Chris Kraul gifts us a rivetting read over on the LA Times: Nelia, a 29-year-old general practitioner from Santiago de Cuba, arrived in Bogota last month after what she said was a nightmarish year working in Venezuela’s…
When Nicolás Maduro said that he “proposed reaching zero misery levels by the year 2018”, he was sounding magnanimous to the untrained ear, but actually he was just reciclyng another clichéd promise of Hugo Chávez. As an example, goal II-2.1 of the “General Lines for the Social and Economic Development Plan for the Nation 2007-2013” was…
Now that we are done with the introductions and the sappy posts, let us get down to business. I came across this viral article from the Washington Post that describes the hardships endured by sports journalists in their hotels while covering the Sochi Olympics. The tweets and pictures show unfinished facilities, incompetent personnel, pictures of Putin on…
In the last few days, mutiple press reports indicate that some public sector workers have been fired and others have suffered harassment because of their political stance after the presidential election. Audio clips of several heads of public bodies (like the Zulia Sports Director or the Director of Bolipuertos in Puerto Cabello) have been leaked…
On paper, all Venezuelan electoral campaigns are funded through private donations, as the Constitution bans the use of public money for political parties. But the law is one thing and reality on the ground is quite another. With each new election we’ve witnessed how the State is the real political party and the PSUV and…
A fire broke out last week in the improvised shelter for displaced people located in La Rinconada, Caracas’s racetrack. After the fire was put out, the shelter spent two days without any electricity. Many families are still living in the racetrack’s main stands more than two years after they lost their homes by floodings in…
Even after the home-buidling boom of the year ahead of the 2012 presidential vote, chavismo still hasn’t caught up with the puntofijo years’ pace… [Hat tip: Transparencia Venezuela.]
Last month, after two years of waiting in shelters, 96 displaced families were given the keys of their brand new apartments in a new tower built in Western Caracas, as part of the Gran Misión Vivienda Venezuela program. What could possibly go wrong? Well… the 16-story building has no elevator, the electrical system is faulty,…
The Misiones, Hugo Chávez’s trademark social programs, have become the proverbial third rail in Venezuelan politics – nobody dares touch them because they are so damn popular. But since we are unelectable, it’s about time we speak the truth and come out of the closet: “I’m Juan, and I hate the Misiones.”
And so it begins. The Chávez government started to cut back on unsustainable social spending in the construction sector not years after the election, or months, or weeks even, but three days after: En un recorrido realizado en edificios en construcción por El Universal, trabajadores señalaron que el nivel previo a las elecciones ha bajado desde el…
Finally had a chance to meet Gustavo Hernández Acevedo, our Barquisimeto Bureau Chief, in person. We went off on a bit of an appliance bargain hunt, looking for Mi Casa Bien Equipada washing machines. They’re still around, even with the election over, but we finally understood the catch. You can buy them cash, of course,…
A different post-mortem, this one focusing on the President, the nation that loves him, and the challenges he faces. Over at Americas Quarterly.
Following on from GEHA’s post, some GMVV houses are collapsing before they’re even assigned! Update: Needless to say, this one got chigüired in an instant.
The Chavernment’s housing program, Gran Mision Vivienda Venezuela is still going full throttle, but its path has been rocky: damage to the enviroment, workplace accidents and workers mad as hell about pay that’s always two months late. Now, another complication: the quality of many of the buildings may be deficient, according to the head of…
Caracas Chronicles 