Staying Informed: What's Going on in Venezuela?
By Mary Kaitlin Enright
It’s often difficult to sift through headlines that come at you through television, social media, the Wall Street Journal, or however else you access your news. No matter where and how often you are seeing the news, it is important to know what is really going on, and form opinions about what matters. So, take a minute to learn a little more about some news that is taking over many headlines, coming from the Latin American country of Venezuela.
To give you the forefront: hunger, child malnutrition, violence, and more humanitarian crises are rampant in Venezuela due to recent political and economic unrest. With people dying and fleeing across the country, Venezuela has seen a dramatic population drop as approximately 4 million Venezuelans have left since 2014. Furthermore, the economy is in ruins with hyperinflation having gone through the roof, up to over 1.3 million percent, nearing the highest level of inflation in recent history.
So, what is going on? And how did Venezuela get here?
On the backend: Venezuela has been under political and economic pressure for some time, led by a socialist regime for over 20 years. In 2013, however, Venezuela’s president Hugo Chavez, died, and his predecessor, Nicolás Maduro, took on his position. He was then re-elected in May 2018. However there was a large amount of skepticism and controversy surrounding his election, and whether or not it was conducted fairly.
In reaction, a man named Juan Guiadó was named the leader of the National Assembly, which opposes the socialist party. Building an argument based on the unfairness of the 2018 election, the National Assembly declared, with basis in their constitution, that the head of the National Assembly is acting president.
And with that, Venezuela’s political system went head to head, with some considering that Maduro is president, and others Guiadó. The country erupted into protests against Maduro’s unlawful hold of the presidency, and over the course of a few months, the economy collapsed under the pressure. With a largely corrupt political leader in place, Venezuela fell, and fell fast.
With Maduro in charge of the military (and therefore in charge of their paychecks), armed men have been on the opposite side of the protesters trying to stand up to Maduro, fighting back. Multitudes of Venezuelan protesters have been detained, injured, and many have died in the clashes that have resulted from this turmoil. Poverty struck the nation quickly.
And suddenly the news went dark.
“I used to keep up with it, especially when tensions were high. But it seemed like the world grew accustomed to Venezuela’s situation, and stopped paying attention. I now have to rely on my family’s texts to tell me what’s going on,” says Alejandra Aristeguieta, an international student at Boston University who is originally from Venezuela.
Since around the summer of this year, there has been significantly less coverage in the news on the situation in Venezuela. What once was in the headlines has seemed to become old news. It can be difficult to stay informed when there is no one to inform you.
What does the rest of the world think?
Meanwhile, the U.S., and a number of its allies, including Canada, Brazil, and Colombia, have recognized Guiadó as president, and have backed opposition-led actions to remove the corrupt Maduro from power.
With the rest of the world acting as sitting ducks uninvolved, it is up for question as to how Venezuela will get the help it needs. As Villanovans, we are meant to ignite change wherever we go and in everything we do. Do you think this is a place where change needs ignition? Do you think the world should get more involved? Do we have a duty to take further action and aid in this humanitarian crisis?
