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The Chavista government of Venezuela forcibly closed the land borders between Colombia and Venezuela and forcibly removed over 1,000 Colombian nationals living in the Venezuela border region over a year ago to the cheers of many Venezuelan nationals. The reasoning; to stop the smuggling of products from Venezuela to Colombia blaming the scarcity of basic needs in Venezuela on this, the "paramilitary" Colombian smugglers.
In an embarrassing move for the Venezuelan government, they were forced by the pleas from their own citizens who couldn't find basic needs, to re-open the border. The government did so for non-vehicular traffic only at the end of 2016. Since then 25,000 to 35,000 Venezuelans cross the border daily to get basic supplies and medical treatment at the cost to the Colombian taxpayer. Unpaid medical bills for Venezuelans seeking treatment in Colombia have surpassed $1.2 million just in 2016 and is predicted to more than double in 2017 to over $3.5 million.
Although the situation is challenging it's yet to collapse. In May Colombian government ministers were in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey to learn how to prepare for a possible larger mass scale exodus. The UN has also began a review on Colombia's ability to handle a possible meltdown in Venezuela.
Brazil, once a staunch ally of Venezuela's Chavismo government and critic of Colombia, who together pushed for the isolation of Colombia on the continent, is also seen to be affected by the crisis as 6,000 Venezuelans cross into Brazil daily. Of those people, most return to Venezuela but with each passing day more are deciding to stay, even illegally, within their neighbours borders.
Panama, Aruba, Ecuador, USA, T&T, Peru and Chile have also seen a considerable influx of Venezuelan migrants. Peru previously gave out work permits to Venezuelans that made it to their soil, that offer was revoked in February of this year due to the increasing number of arrivals attracted by this policy.
Efforts from world leaders from Peru to Canada to mediate in mitigation of the crisis have fallen on deaf ears. Everything indicates this is not going to end well.
B...b...but, I thought that Western Europe and the US were the only places in the world that were forced to house refugees Are you telling us that this was a lie?!
The saddest thing for me is the lost generation that never voted for this. We're now running 18 years of Chavismo and true what there was before, (the Venezuelan banking/economic crisis of 1994-1999) wasn't great. It sure was better than quadruple digit inflation, double digit recession and lack of essential foods and medicine we have now. Young adults born when Chavez was voted in are facing a collapsed country and a failing education system plunging in international rankings.
It's so sad that the boom years of leftist governments, not just in Venezuela but across LatAm were generally squandered and mismanaged. What's the point of subsidising the poor for a few years when its unsustainable and eventually they will become even poorer than they were before?
I remember in the 2000's, early 2010's where Colombia was the pariah. The amount of hate spewing from the likes of young Venezuelan, Ecuadorian, Chilean (under the Bachelet years) towards Colombia on forums just like this was immense. The Brazilian and Argentine governments went out of their way to back Chavez and Correa against Colombia under pro-brazilian organisations such as UNASUR and refused to denote the FARC as a terrorist organisation despite the EU and US having done so.
In the end it looks like Colombia has come out the victor after the political isolation attempt from regional powers, however, it also looks like it's destined to carry the largest chunk of the burden from the fallout in Venezuela.
It's a nasty cycle in Latin America where the inequality causes people to root for far-left groups which bring crime, instability, and economic turmoil. Then right-wing groups come to power which improve the economy and lower crime rates, but usually cause even higher inequality and breed resentment and cause left-wing groups to have the power again. And then the cycle repeats
Just what on earth is going on in Venezuela? I've read conflicting reports. One, the Western media reports that the Maduro government has mismanaged the country with the socialist policies and drove the economy into hyper inflation and scarcity. The other reports from the government and leftist sources say the US is engaging in economic warfare and there are smugglers within the country smuggling products out of the country creating a shortage. Also that these culminate at the time of elections, and that they're same basic items. One video I saw had the economic minister insisting that there was international pressure to deny them loans and based on the false coverage of the media their credit has been devalued.
Just who is telling the truth here? I highly doubt it's one big conspiracy by the world elite to "make the economy scream."
Just what on earth is going on in Venezuela? I've read conflicting reports. One, the Western media reports that the Maduro government has mismanaged the country with the socialist policies and drove the economy into hyper inflation and scarcity. The other reports from the government and leftist sources say the US is engaging in economic warfare and there are smugglers within the country smuggling products out of the country creating a shortage. Also that these culminate at the time of elections, and that they're same basic items. One video I saw had the economic minister insisting that there was international pressure to deny them loans and based on the false coverage of the media their credit has been devalued.
Just who is telling the truth here? I highly doubt it's one big conspiracy by the world elite to "make the economy scream."
I never knew Al Jazeera was "western media"?
Economic warfare how? It's China whose buying all of Venezuela's debt, all of Venezuela's resources for the next 15 years will be in the hands of the Chinese.
Even if there was some sort of world order that was controlling oil prices, why are the likes of UAE, Saudi Arabia, Angola and Iran coping economically? Even Ecuador and Brazil who are in recession aren't going through anywhere near the same strife.
The fact of the matter is that Chavez squandered his petrodollars through an expansionist program, giving hoards of money to Argentina, to Cuba, to Ecuador, to Bolivia, to Nicaragua, to FARC, to Jamaica, to Antigua, to Dominica & other island nations (heard of the Caribbean life belt?). Even Haiti's Cap-Haïtien international airport is named the Hugo Chavez international airport. Squandered money trying to project power in the region; one of the reasons out of several why Cubans are the most hated people by the Venezuelan public. The Castros sucked so much money out of Venezuela its incredible. Subsidies were ridiculous and unsustainable, petrol has been cheaper than water for years, let's get real what questions are you actually asking?
Colombia didn't expropriate Venezuelan companies, it was Venezuela that expropriated Colombian companies and left owing billions of dollars to Colombian suppliers and companies. Colombia lost its second most important trading partner and the most active border in Latin America over a couple of months, an annual US$8 billion in cross border trade dropped into just millions and Venezuelans began to buy all food products from Brazil and now Mexico despite the fact Venezuelans have moaned about the quality of the products not being the same. At the end of the day Venezuelans have grown up with Colombian-Venezuelan food products. It won't be the same but it was just done out of spite. It's obvious Venezuelan economic policies where guided by ego and ideology and now the consequences are more than clear.
Last edited by Pueblofuerte; 07-07-2017 at 05:37 PM..
Economic warfare how? It's China whose buying all of Venezuela's debt, all of Venezuela's resources for the next 15 years will be in the hands of the Chinese.
Even if there was some sort of world order that was controlling oil prices, why are the likes of UAE, Saudi Arabia, Angola and Iran coping economically? Even Ecuador and Brazil who are in recession aren't going through anywhere near the same strife.
The fact of the matter is that Chavez squandered his petrodollars through an expansionist program, giving hoards of money to Argentina, to Cuba, to Ecuador, to Bolivia, to Nicaragua, to FARC, to Jamaica, to Antigua, to Dominica & other island nations (heard of the Caribbean life belt?). Even Haiti's Cap-Haïtien international airport is named the Hugo Chavez international airport. Squandered money trying to project power in the region; one of the reasons out of several why Cubans are the most hated people by the Venezuelan public. The Castros sucked so much money out of Venezuela its incredible. Subsidies were ridiculous and unsustainable, petrol has been cheaper than water for years, let's get real what questions are you actually asking?
I'm trying to get to the truth. I don't know what is going on but it seems as though it's just international market forces at play reacting to years of Chavismo and the Chavist government blaming it on an international conspiracy to undermine the Bolivarian revolution. They accuse the problems of the economy on black market loopholes selling their currency and buying goods they smuggle out of the country and sell for dollars. That's what they blame the shortage on. It's also caused inflation according to them.
I doubt it's the case but that's the case they're bringing forward. That they're the victims of an Allende style economic sabotage led by the US.
I'm trying to get to the truth. I don't know what is going on but it seems as though it's just international market forces at play reacting to years of Chavismo and the Chavist government blaming it on an international conspiracy to undermine the Bolivarian revolution. They accuse the problems of the economy on black market loopholes selling their currency and buying goods they smuggle out of the country and sell for dollars. That's what they blame the shortage on. It's also caused inflation according to them.
I doubt it's the case but that's the case they're bringing forward. That they're the victims of an Allende style economic sabotage led by the US.
It's very simple; Venezuela has only one cash cow which counts for 95% of export revenue and 90% of tax collection. Products subsidised by Venezuela to the point they're sold at a value of less than it takes to produce was just about sustainable when oil was over $80 dollars a barrel but not when it dropped to under $30. It also generated a culture of dependence. You're in trouble when the paper to print money on is more valuable than the largest Venezuelan bill itself.
The one saving grace is that it looks like oil prices are set to rise, they're already at $45 dollars a barrel so Venezuela might just get the lifeline it needs in 2018 but by then it might be too late for the Chavistas.
The saddest thing for me is the lost generation that never voted for this. We're now running 18 years of Chavismo and true what there was before, (the Venezuelan banking/economic crisis of 1994-1999) wasn't great. It sure was better than quadruple digit inflation, double digit recession and lack of essential foods and medicine we have now. Young adults born when Chavez was voted in are facing a collapsed country and a failing education system plunging in international rankings.
It's so sad that the boom years of leftist governments, not just in Venezuela but across LatAm were generally squandered and mismanaged. What's the point of subsidising the poor for a few years when its unsustainable and eventually they will become even poorer than they were before?
I remember in the 2000's, early 2010's where Colombia was the pariah. The amount of hate spewing from the likes of young Venezuelan, Ecuadorian, Chilean (under the Bachelet years) towards Colombia on forums just like this was immense. The Brazilian and Argentine governments went out of their way to back Chavez and Correa against Colombia under pro-brazilian organisations such as UNASUR and refused to denote the FARC as a terrorist organisation despite the EU and US having done so.
In the end it looks like Colombia has come out the victor after the political isolation attempt from regional powers, however, it also looks like it's destined to carry the largest chunk of the burden from the fallout in Venezuela.
Well on the economic sense Colombia has come out the victor. Ultimately in a political sense they will as well. Leftist governments are out in Brazil and Argentina, and I think the Chavistas are doomed.
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