Venezuela: a country divided in two

By Paula Planelles Manzanaro

The future of Venezuela, which faces an increase of the hyperinflation and the crime rates -among other problems-, was decided after voters went to the polls on Sunday 7. The electoral participation was described as “historic” by the National Electoral Council of Venezuela. The results gave the victory to Hugo Chávez, who will expand his term of office until 2019. However, it was the first time in decades that the voice of the opposition, Henrique Capriles, had a higher possibility to defeat his opponent. The elections have already taken place, marking the beginning of an uncertain future for the country.

The 2012 Venezuelan elections were on the spotlight of the world’s news. The victory of Hugo Chávez, who has held his position as president since 1999, was not clear until the end of the elections. Henrique Capriles, candidate for the party Mesa de la Unidad Democrática (MUD), achieved the 44.9 per cent of the votes. Although it was a tough voting process, the results were in favour of Hugo Chávez. With 54.4 per cent of the votes, the current president achieved his third consecutive reelection, for the period 2013-2019.

The presidential elections were characterized by a participation of 80.94 per cent, the highest in the previous decades, according to Tibisay Lucena, president of the National Electoral Council (NEC). A total of 18.9 million of Venezuelan citizens were called to elect their head of state. Millions of Venezuelans poured into the polling stations from the capital of Caracas to the

most remote regions of the Amazon. The Venezuelan enthusiasm to elect their president also arrived at the United Kingdom. Before dawn was already breaking, Venezuelan citizens residing in The United Kingdom and Ireland gathered in London to deposit their votes at the Bolivar Hall. Youths were one of the main characters of the elections, showing their critical awareness of the need to improve the country’s situation. “The atmosphere was nice and hopeful. People held a big flag and sang the national anthem”, a Venezuelan resident in London who went to the polls told London Glossy.

In the capital of the UK the voting system was manual, not automated like in Venezuela. Through tactile technology, voters select their candidate in sensitive screens or electronic ballot papers, pressing their preferential option for the machine to register the vote. This new system has caused a lot of controversy. Although the National Electoral Council affirms that this new system is safe, there are voices that talk about election fraud. In this regard Henrique Capriles stated in a conciliatory tone: “If there was something to doubt about the elections, I would have been the first one to say it”. The candidate for MUD added: “The government won, Venezuela did not”.

Nevertheless, different media such as the Venezuelan newspaper Tribuna de Periodistas inform that several schools where the polls were carried out declared that there were still people voting when the National Electoral Council proclaimed Hugo Chávez’s victory at 10:11pm [local hour]. Heilmar Rodríguez, member of one of the electoral committees, said: “Capriles won in all the electoral tables of the polling station where I was. Tibisay Lucena had already given the results but we did not have time to send the re-count”.

So much work to do

Venezuela is the country which has more oil than any other nation of the world. However, poverty is one of the main problems of the country. In addition, its inhabitants face a high hyperinflation rate of 23.2 per cent this year. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), this figure will increase up to 28.8 per cent in 2013. The report published by the IMF unveils that “these concerns are particularly serious regarding Venezuela, where policies are not tight enough and inflation is still high”. The IMF also stressed that for this oil exporting nation “risks revolve around the price of oil —which, on the downside, is predominantly tied to the possibility of an intensified crisis in Europe that spills over into slower growth in the rest of the world. Government expenditures have risen to such a degree that a relatively modest fall in the price of oil can lead to budget deficits”.

The country also faces a worrying homicide rate. According to official figures, the total of murders in the country was approximately 17,600 last year, which means 57 murders per 100,000 inhabitants and the highest homicide rate in South America. However, the Venezuela Violence Observatory (OVV), a No Governmental Organization (NGO) affirms this figure could increase up to at least 19.336 homicides. “We must inform the nation that 2011 ended as the most violent year in the nation’s history”, the OVV informed. This NGO points out that violent crime has risen steadily in Venezuela since Hugo Chávez took office in 1999, when 4,550 murders were registered. The problem worsens in Caracas, one of the most dangerous capitals in the world. Last year, 108 murders per 100,000 inhabitants were registered, according to a report carried out by several NGOs and the town hall.

Carlos Santos, president of the Metropolitan Observatory on Citizen Security, points out in the same direction. “The report carried out by our team unveils that Caracas is where more homicides are committed”, he stated. Mr. Santos also described thefts as the main cause of these crimes. Only in Caracas, 2,488 people were murdered in 2011, 64.7 per cent more compared with 2010. High levels of gun ownership and poverty, and corruption inside the Police have been described as the main causes of the public insecurity. “It is a pity that Venezuela goes through this difficult situation. Now the country will be sunk into anxiety”, a voter told London Glossy.

These are just an example of the problems which keep this country’s citizens concerned about their future. Change is what Venezuelans need. For this reason, the 2012 Venezuelan elections were a key moment in the country’s history. Only time will tell if the current government can give them back their hope.