Crisis in Chile: What has changed after a year of social protests ?

Social protests October 2019

Different experts estimated that the Chilean social outbreak was in a "pause" while the country was in quarantine, with the possibility that the protests would be reactivated if the political class did not openly condemn the episodes of violence.

  

It has been 12 months since one of the biggest political-social crises in the history of Chile began. On the political spectrum, the center-right government of Sebastián Piñera has sought to appease the demands of the citizenry with his proposals, including a reform of the Chilean pension system (the so-called AFPs, private system), to which a new Fund of Collective and Solidarity Savings would be added, of a state nature, among other novelties.

For their part, both the ruling party and the opposition continue to campaign for and against a new Constitution, which will be decided in a referendum to be held on October 25th. Despite the fact that an agreement was reached to draw up a new Magna Carta, both political sectors do not seem to have the support of the public, who are crying out for structural changes in the system.

There is no consensual diagnosis of the causes of this social outbreak, nor of its solutions.

La Moneda - Government Palace

Neither the government nor the opposition have a very clear understanding of this phenomenon. An attempt has been made to advance in this, the political world promoted a new Constitution, but the violence continued in the streets for several months before the pandemic, so it is not known if this will be solved.

On the other hand, the Government has tried to increase social spending, improve pensions, give aid bonds and that has not reassured the people either.

The president of Chile, Sebastián Piñera, as well as the Congress have a very poor approval of the citizenship according to the latest polls, mainly due to some corruption scandals, crisis of representation and a tiredness of the political parties that were one of the main reasons for this crossroads.

Although the Chilean social outbreak began with many adherents in the streets throughout the country, as the weeks went by, the protests lost intensity and this was reflected in a drop in the number of people attending the marches, as well as in the rejection of events of extreme violence.

* You might be interested in:

https://csachannel.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-riots-that-shook-chile.html

The Evolution of the Chilean Crisis (II)

No one can deny that after the events of October the constitutional protection of the Chilean economic model is seriously injured.

On October 18th, 2019, one of the strongest and most violent social outbreaks in its republican history took place in Chile. The demand for this movement was clear in its proposal -the improvement of the economic conditions of Chileans- but strongly undetermined in its solution.

The diagnosis, however, is shared. The wonderful macroeconomic results that placed Chile in a privileged position in Latin America have not, over time, relieved the weight of the cost of living of the poorest. While those with greater resources have been able to have a quality lifestyle and services close to any European country, the most dispossessed, on the contrary, fail to meet basic daily needs.

To the deep urban segregation that affects the country must be added the sustained segregation in the most important public services, such as health or education.

In educational matters -perhaps one of the most advanced sectors in the last decade- while the average educational achievement places Chile in a prominent position, that place of privilege falls when studies are made comparing the gap between the top 20% and lower income, showing a frequent mark in the Chilean reality: good average, but bad internal distribution.

The social outbreak has been the answer to all these results. From the hand of the most intense package of neoliberal reforms implemented in some country, the profound inequality that they have generated over time, has simply become intolerable.

The social movement, meanwhile, and quite similar to other European outbursts, is not articulated, denies political mediation quite intensely and does not react as expected to the measures announced. The Chilean panorama is, then, paradoxical: politicians who claim a certain primacy in the concretion of citizen demands, citizens who simply protest and a government that wants to resume normality knowing that things will never be as before.

With the passing of time, however, there was a way of giving a certain intellectual unity to citizen demands. To the questioning of the neoliberal economic model of the most extreme sectors, the rejection of all the political and legal forms that have given it protection was added. Among them, the one that gave it its most efficient and effective coverage during all this time: the 1980 Constitution.

Unfortunately, some sectors have used discontent to try to convince that the change of Constitution will be the automatic solution to all current problems.

This Constitution, created in the middle of the Military Government of Augusto Pinochet, entrusted to a group of lawyers related to the regime and approved by a plebiscite, has ruled the country for more than 30 years. That fundamental carta has been modified in countless opportunities, always with the permission of the political parties that have supported the ordoliberal agenda. They have been, therefore, reforms that have allowed us to live together, but not make structural changes in the successful economic model. When any of those changes were approved, even with the votes of the right, the Constitutional Court -one of the institutions questioned by some sectors of the left- managed to avoid it, ironically protecting the model.

The news of the opening to change the Constitution, and not only to modify it, agreed transversely by all the relevant political sectors of the country, has been received with high doses of joy, but also with some skepticism. Joy, thinking that finally a document will be written considering the needs of the people.

The negative point of this modification is that it would take at least a couple of years in its complete writing, unlike some sectors that propose to modify the existing carta to implement the necessary changes as soon as possible.

The Chilean social outbreak, on the other hand, has shown that the intensity of demand can only be satisfied with structural changes. The improvement of the current pension system -one of the clearest demands of the citizenry- must consider how it is possible to improve the current model of individual savings and move towards one that sees the old-age pension as a social right, for which it is intended to create a mixed system (individual capitalization and distribution).

The fate of the Chilean constitutional change process is still a half-told story.

In these convulsed days, one might think that neoliberalism -at least in the form disseminated by the so-called "Chicago School"- was born and could be improved in Chile.

The Evolution of the Chilean Crisis (I)

The string of mobilizations that began with the rise in the subway fare and that revealed various unresolved social demands, have been analyzed by different unions and companies in recent days.

But the mea culpa is shared. Much of the responsibility is attributed to the political class, who have kept the most relevant reforms in the congress locked or with little progress.

In terms of inequality, “There was a great growth of the middle class but it is a precarious middle class, which has low pensions, high levels of debt, that lives a lot on credit and has very low salaries. It is a situation where everyday life is precarious, living with uncertainty" (BBC World).

In relation to the expectations of social improvements, the Chilean political class has been promising improvements in the quality of life of people in Chile for years.

Educational, constitutional, tax and health reforms have been announced but many of them have failed to meet society's expectations.

Social unrest, then, has resulted in this outbreak that is ending with the destruction of a hundred public spaces in different cities in Chile.

The violent protests that have caused the closure of businesses, the paralysis of transport, the interruption of supplies of goods and the insecurity in the streets will affect employment, will have an impact on economic activity, on consumer prices and levels of population consumption. However, and considering that the manifestations have been decreasing economic activity should tend to normalize and not affect the projection of 2020.

* You could also read: The riots that shook Chile

Among the proposals of the entrepreneurial and social world to overcome the social conflict are:

- Demonstrate that companies are at the service of people and not just their shareholders.

- Generate greater flexibility in working conditions and improve social benefits within the company.

- Evaluate the possibility of offering minimum monthly salaries close to CL$ 500,000 (app USD 690).

- Access to credit for financing new ventures.

On the other hand and through a platform for citizen participation created by a small team of Chileans committed to democracy, other priorities have been obtained that they would like to see addressed.

"Chilecracia.org" does not use a traditional voting mechanism, but rather a system of ranking citizen preferences based on peer comparison. In this technique, two items are placed next to each other and people should choose the one they prefer.

There is a list of 90 proposals for which chilean citizens can vote. These are shown in random order in pairs of options, of which only one preference (vote) can be marked. After marking the preference, another pair of proposals appears for a next vote, and so on. There are a total of 4,005 possible pairs; Chilecracia keeps each vote, so that the participant can stop at any time.

The result of the selections is used to create a network of preferences that is used to establish priority rankings. These priority rankings can then be analyzed according to various variables (sex, age, region, political orientation).

Having registered 5,500,000 votes, the most relevant topics for Chilean citizens who have participated up to now are:

1) Minimum Pension Equal or Greater than Minimum Salary

2) Increase Minimum Salary

3) Set the salary of politicians as a proportion of the minimum wage

4) Water deprivatization

5) Effective jail for Collusion offenses

6) Free Public Transportation for Senior Citizens

7) Eliminate obstacles and punishments with pre-existing diseases in Isapre 

    and Fonasa (health systems)

8) Universal Health Insurance

9) Limit Price or Gain of Medicines

10) Reduction of salaries of high public officials

There is a coincidence that we must continue on the path of growth and development, but now a new social agenda is added that contributes to improve people's conditions.

La semana que cambió a Chile

La tercera semana de Octubre, parte de los chilenos se lanzo a las calles para reclamar por varias demandas económicas, llegando a reunir más de un millón de personas en la ciudad de Santiago, a lo cual el gobierno de Sebastian Piñera respondió con unas pocas medidas que la ciudadanía consideró insuficientes. 

Después de una semana de manifestaciones, la presión ha disminuido pero no lo suficiente como para asegurar la total normalidad. Hay sectores que intentarán seguir en la calle, como el PC, el Frente Amplio y la CUT, que convocaron a más  días de paro y protesta. A estas fuerzas parece haberse sumado el Partido Socialista, que escogió una de las dos veredas en las que se sitúa ahora mismo la oposición. 

En una de ellas están los tres partidos políticos que concurrieron a La Moneda para dialogar con el Presidente (DC, PPD, PR) y en la otra está el resto, básicamente comunistas, socialistas y frente amplistas. Estos últimos viven su propia crisis. Su mentor e ideólogo, Carlos Ruiz, les manda un severo «tirón de orejas». Les dice que deben dejar de actuar erráticamente y que «este no es momento de sacarse selfies en las marchas» sino que hay que irse para la casa a escribir propuestas y tratar de impulsarlas (La Tercera).

Pero, ¿quién esta detrás del caos generado en estos días? ¿Es casual el incendio simultáneo de varias estaciones de metro y el edificio ENEL? ¿Habrá grupos anárquicos o el narcotráfico detrás de estos atentados ?

Este es un remezón por habernos creído un país rico por mucho tiempo, dejando de lado a los que quedaban en el camino.

Si no nos ponemos de acuerdo corremos el riesgo de caer en populismos o extremismos. No debemos sacrificar todos los logros conseguidos por la premura de mejorar las cosas.

La salida real a esta crisis es la de un gobierno de unidad nacional. Para que eso ocurra, no sólo deben los opositores aceptar ser parte de este proyecto, sino que los que hoy están en el poder deben aceptar reducir el suyo. Se debe convocar a una agenda clara, garantizar el crecimiento económico para solventar mayores demandas. Regular las concentraciones de poder por sectores industriales fin incentivar la competencia. Fortalecer los municipios y las regiones. Modernizar la educación. Modernizar el Estado y rebajar la burocracia.

Sería un error politico pensar en cambiar el modelo económico, en vez de mejorarlo.

Debemos entender que un aumento del 4% al fondo de pensiones es insuficiente para obtener una buena tasa de reemplazo en el tema de las pensiones a largo plazo.

La rebaja de dieta de los parlamentarios debiera ser cercana o superior al 50% de su remuneración actual.

Como hemos podido apreciar, gran parte de la ciudadania está de acuerdo con las manifestaciones que piden cambios sociales mediante medios pacíficos lo que cambia radicalmente si se producen actos violentos o delictivos.

Por otro lado se percibe que el gobierno no ha reaccionado oportunamente en ofrecer soluciones a esta crisis.

Siendo las principales motivaciones que han generado estas manifestaciones los sueldos de los trabajadores, los precios de los servicios básicos (luz, agua, gas), las pensiones de los jubilados y la desigualdad económica entre los chilenos.

Dentro de las medidas propuestas por el Presidente Piñera, las mejor evaluadas son: La reducción de las dietas de los parlamentarios y altos sueldos de la administración pública y reducción en el número de los parlamentarios, el proyecto que crea el derecho a la Sala Cuna Universal a todos los niños de madres o padres que trabajen y el proyecto que establece la reducción de las contribuciones de los adultos mayores más vulnerables. Y a su vez los peor evaluados son: El Seguro que cubre parte del gasto en medicamentos, el aumento de Pensiones de Vejez y el Ingreso Mínimo Garantizado de CL$ 350.000.-

Las medidas que debiera tomar el gobierno para superar la crisis debiera ser: Escuchar las demandas ciudadanas y generar un plan de mejoras, reconocer los problemas de desigualdades en Chile y llamar a un acuerdo político con todos los partidos de Chile y entender en detalle los malestares de la ciudadanía. 

Y como medidas concretas que debiera tomar el gobierno para superar la crisis económica seria: Mejorar el sueldo mínimo, congelar el alza de los servicios básicos (luz, agua, gas), mejorar las pensiones en su pilar solidario, disminuir la Dieta Parlamentaria, reducir el número de Parlamentarios y la gratuidad en Transporte Público para los adultos mayores.

Es fundamental no perder el norte de las demandas de la ciudadanía que no contemplan dentro de sus prioridades la modificación a la actual Constitución o la creación de una Asamblea Constituyente que en algunos países ha obtenido un poder absoluto, por encima incluso de los tres poderes del Estado.

Fuente estadística: Activa Research

President Sebastián Piñera apologized and announced a series of measures to end the social crisis

Pensions, minimum wage and parliamentary reduction: Piñera delivers a series of measures amid crises in the country.

The President also apologized to the Chileans, for their "lack of vision", in a crisis that, according to him, had been coming for decades.

President Sebastián Piñera announced a series of measures to end the social crisis in the country.

First he indicated that this comes from decades ago, so he acknowledged a "lack of vision and I apologize to my countrymen." To then point out a series of measures that will make up his "Social Agenda" that will be proposed to Congress or directly implemented by the Government, as appropriate.

Pensions

On the issue of Pensions, he announced an "immediate increase of 20% of the Basic Solidarity Pension, which will benefit 590 thousand pensioners." Together with this, an "immediate 20% increase in the Solidarity Pension Contribution, which will benefit 945 thousand pensioners." An "additional increase in basic pensions and solidarity pension contributions, during the years 2021 and 2022, for pensioners over 75 years old."

While for the pension savings of the middle class and the women who work and contribute, they will be given a contribution of fiscal resources "to increase their pensions at the time of retirement, which will favor 500 thousand workers".

And finally, tax contributions to improve pensions for senior citizens.

Health and Medicines

Speaking about health, the President announced the creation of an Insurance, which will cover part of the cost of medicines in Chilean families. And in turn, the "extension of the FONASA agreement with pharmacies, to reduce the price of medicines, which will benefit more than 12 million people." 

In addition, he insisted on the urgency of "immediate discussion of the Bill sent by our Government to the Congress that creates the Catastrophic Diseases Insurance, in order to ensure a ceiling on family health spending." Whatever exceeds that ceiling, the insurance will cover it.

Guaranteed Minimum Income

On Salaries, a Minimum Guaranteed Income of CL$ 350,000 (USD 482) will be created, "for all full-time workers that complement the workers' salary, when it is less than CL$ 350,000." In the Guaranteed Minimum Income, the State is responsible for supplementing the salary, in case the worker does not reach CL$ 350,000.

Electric rates

Another of the announcements was a mechanism for stabilizing electricity rates, which would allow the recent increase of 9.2% of electricity to be canceled, which had been announced by January 2020.

Inequality

While in inequality, one of the measures he explained was higher taxes on the highest income sectors, with the creation of a new tranche in the 40% Complementary Global Tax for income over CL$ 8,000,000 per month (USD 11,016). This "would increase tax collection by USD 160 million." 

On the other hand, he pointed out greater equity between high and low income districts. This, strengthening the Municipal Common Fund, "establishing greater contributions from the higher-income districts, for the benefit of the lower-income districts."

He added that they propose, and therefore support, the reduction of parliamentary diets and high salaries of the public administration. In addition to reducing the number of parliamentarians and a limitation of re-elections.

Delinquency

To combat crime, he proposed the creation of the Victim Advocacy Office, which would facilitate access and strengthen legal defense and social and psychological support for victims of crime.

Reconstruction

In conjunction with this, in order to restore property that has been damaged in recent days, a "Reconstruction Plan for damages and destruction caused by violence and crime in recent days, which have caused serious damages to public infrastructure, especially in the Metro. 

The President evaluated that the plan "will take time" and will commit resources for more than 350 million dollars.

Urgency in projects sent

In addition, the President said that there are several projects of high social content that have been sent to Congress and are intended to accelerate their processing and approval. 

Among them the Pro-Childhood Project, which ends with the SENAME; The project that creates the Catastrophic Health Insurance; Project the right to the Universal Crib Room and the project that establishes the reduction of the contributions (housing tax) of the most vulnerable older adults.

Finally, President Piñera stressed that "this Social Agenda will not solve all the problems that afflict Chileans. But it will be a necessary and significant contribution to improve their quality of life."

Source: Emol

United Nations Report: Human Rights in Venezuela

Crisis in Venezuela: The devastating conclusions of Bachelet's report on the situation in Venezuela

📖 Complete UN Report: Human rights in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela

A report issued by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on the situation of Human Rights in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela was presented on July 04th 2019.

For her report, Michelle Bachelet, who visited the country between June 19th and 21st, interviewed more than 558 people, most of them victims of abuse and witnesses.

The government of Nicolás Maduro rejected Bachelet's conclusions as "not objective or impartial" and presents a "selective and openly biased view of the true situation of human rights" in the country.

"Corruption" in a country with 3.7 million malnourished

Bachelet concludes that in Venezuela the economic rights of citizens are also violated.

"The diversion of resources, corruption and lack of maintenance in public infrastructure, as well as underinvestment, have resulted in violations of the right to an adequate standard of living, among others, due to the deterioration of basic services such as public transportation and access to electricity, water and natural gas" says the report.

The right to food of Venezuelans is not going through its best, according to the conclusions of the report, which states that "the main food assistance program, known as 'CLAP boxes', does not cover the nutritional needs that are essential for people".

Content of CLAP Box - USD Cost in green

The government of Nicolás Maduro repeatedly denied that Venezuela suffered any humanitarian crisis.

In recent times it has begun to accept the help of organizations such as the Red Cross, but it maintains that the economic problems of the country are due to economic sanctions and "the criminal blockade" imposed by the United States.

The commission's report also addresses this issue and recalls that "the Venezuelan economy, especially its oil industry and food production systems, were already in crisis before any sectoral sanctions were imposed."

The figures it collects give an idea of ​​the magnitude of the problem. It estimates that between November 2018 and February 2019, "1,557 people died due to lack of supplies in hospitals."

Through a document released on July 4th, the government of Nicolás Maduro submitted 70 "observations" that account for what he considers to be errors contained in the Bachelet report.

The report includes the closure of dozens of print media, radio stations and television channels, as well as the increase in the arrests of journalists, including those of foreign journalists who ended up being expelled from the country.

When asked by journalists, Bachelet explained that there is no deadline to comply with the numerous recommendations made by his Office. This gives the government more time to try to overcome the countless problems it faces before the international community.

                           

                                Human Rights Watch: Torture of Presumed Conspirators (video)

Ten things you should know about the human rights crisis in Venezuela

Amnesty International - February 2019

The human rights crisis that has affected Venezuela for some years has destroyed the lives of millions of people. This is what you have to know:

1. Massive protests

The origin of most of the current disturbances in Venezuela can be traced back to March 29th 2017, when the Supreme Court of Justice, with the backing of President Nicolás Maduro, took control of the National Assembly, where the majority of the seats are of the opposition. That triggered massive protests between April and June that were suppressed by the Maduro government.

According to the Venezuelan Observatory of Social Conflict, in 2018 the record of 12,715 protests was reached throughout the country. These have continued in 2019, after the president of the National Assembly, Juan Guaidó, called mass demonstrations against Maduro. 

2. Excessive use of force

Between April and July 2017, more than 120 people died, some 1,958 were injured and more than 5,000 were arrested in mass protests. In the Amnesty report Nights of terror: Illegal attacks and raids on homes in Venezuela, the organization revealed how Venezuelan security forces and armed civilian groups endorsed by the government violently burst into people's homes to intimidate them and thus discourage them from participating in demonstrations or any other form of protest.

From January 21st to 25th, at least 41 people died in circumstances linked to the mass protests, all of them from bullet wounds. More than 900 people were arbitrarily detained.

3. A policy of repression

Although the state authorities have been applying a systematic policy of repression throughout the crisis, recent guidelines indicate that it is intensifying.

The recent investigation carried out by Amnesty International showed that Venezuelan security forces under Maduro had carried out targeted executions as their policy of repression had been extended. This situation especially affected impoverished areas of Caracas and other parts of the country, where the victims were later presented as "delinquents" killed in clashes with the authorities.

Of the 41 victims killed in the context of protests in early 2019, Amnesty International documented six extrajudicial executions by security forces backed by the State and excessive use of force by authorities under the command of Nicolás Maduro.


In the 2018 report This is not life: Citizen security and the right to life in Venezuela, Amnesty revealed that the security forces used lethal means, with the intention of killing, against the most vulnerable and socially excluded people in the country under the pretext of " fight crime. "

4. Youngers in custody

State authorities have been using the justice system to illegally harass those who think differently from them. According to the Venezuelan organization Foro Penal, between January 21st and 31st 2019, 988 people were arbitrarily arrested. Among them were 137 children and adolescents, of whom 10 are still in custody. Allegations of torture and other ill-treatment of detainees have also been received. As of January 31st 2019, Penal Forum estimated that there were 942 people detained for political reasons. Although many have been released, most of them still face trial.

5. Civilians tried in military courts

People detained for participating in protests are often tried by military courts, which is contrary to international law. The people prosecuted face, among others, charges related to association with the intention of instigating the rebellion and attack on a sentinel, designed expressly for military personnel, which is another proof of the authorities' determination to silence dissent. According to Foro Penal, 817 people were tried in military courts between April 2017 and January 2019.

6. Three million refugees and migrants

It is estimated that more than three million people have fled Venezuela since 2015, the equivalent of 10% of the population, according to UN figures. Most have sought refuge in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. Most mentions the denial of their rights to health and food as the main reason to leave the country. In other words, they flee to protect their life. Amnesty International has urged the governments of Latin America and the Caribbean to give Venezuelan refugees access to asylum procedures in their countries.

7. Repression of freedom of expression

There have been numerous reports of violations of the right to freedom of expression, such as the arbitrary detention and / or expulsion of at least 19 people working in the media, both Venezuelan and foreign. In January 2019, at least 11 journalists were detained in a single week, and many of them were expelled or deported from Venezuela, including Jorge Ramos and his team from the Univision TV network. Censorship and orders to close radio stations are widespread practice. The government closed 50 media outlets in 2017.

UNICEF / Santiago Arcos

8. The economic debacle

According to the National Assembly, in 2018 inflation was a shocking 1,698.488%. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) calculates that, in 2019, the annual inflation rate will reach 10,000,000%. Meanwhile, the official minimum wage in Venezuela is USD 6 per month. And these are the income of a large part of the population. The inevitable result is that many people can not afford basic products.

The shortage of basic supplies such as food and medicine has left millions of people living in alarming conditions that get worse every day. The measures adopted by the state authorities have affected salaries and the rights of working people. Until 2013, the Venezuelan authorities made great progress in the area of ​​economic and social rights, but this trend has been reversed categorically in recent years.

9. The government denies it

Nicolás Maduro has repeatedly denied that the country is experiencing a human rights crisis. What is more harmful, refuses to recognize the shortage of food and medicine. The few official public statistics on the welfare of the population contrast with the reports of independent agencies.

Given that the authorities deny that there is a shortage, they have not accepted the international humanitarian aid that has been repeatedly offered. This has a catastrophic effect, especially on the most vulnerable people.

10. Harmful US sanctions

On January 28th, the US government announced new measures that prevent the Venezuelan state oil company from exporting crude oil to the United States, while prohibiting US suppliers from selling the products Venezuela needs to process its heavy crudes. Given that the Venezuelan economy depends to a large extent on the export of oil and that the United States is one of the main trade partners of Venezuela, it is likely that these measures will make the life of the people living in the country even more difficult.

Source: United Nations, Amnesty International, BBC.

Jair Bolsonaro will consult Congress about Brazil role if there is an invasion to Venezuela

Brazilian President said that at the moment his country and the United States intend to create fissures in the Venezuelan Army to undermine the support of the military to the dictator Nicolás Maduro and evaluated that deepening the "economic embargo" can pressure the regime "to fall"

President Jair Bolsonaro said on Monday that if there is a military intervention in Venezuela led by the United States, he will consult the National Defense Council and Congress to decide how Brazil should proceed.

In an interview with local radio station Jovem Pan, Bolsonaro stated that a military action in Venezuela can lead to guerrilla actions and take too much time.

"In the weakness of Maduro is the strength of the dictatorship," the president said, referring to the Armed Forces, when asked about what he intends to do to resolve the deep crisis suffered by Venezuela.

Bolsonaro, who recognizes, like another fifty countries, the head of the Venezuelan Parliament, Juan Guaidó, as the legitimate president of that country, assessed that deepening the "economic embargo" may pressure the Maduro government "to fall".

"We can not let Venezuela become a new Cuba or even a North Korea," said the head of state, in power since January 1st.

He also reiterated that the United States is at the "vanguard" in relation to the measures that must be adopted in Venezuela and commented that the president of that country, Donald Trump, told him during his meeting in the White House that "all the possibilities are on the table", including that of a military intervention.

"What can Brazil do? Let's suppose there is a military invasion there, the decision (to support or not) will be mine, but I will listen to the National Defense Council and then the Brazilian Parliament to make a decision on that issue," he said.

However, the Brazilian president questioned that option because he would not know the duration of this operation, among other factors, and therefore, opted to deepen the "economic embargo" and expect a "fissure in the Army."

"The intention that exists in the US and ours is also that there is a split in the Venezuelan Army, there is no other way because who decides, as I said a long time ago and I was criticized, if a country is in a democracy or dictatorship are the Armed Forces, "he declared.

On the other hand, he affirmed that the plan to try to introduce humanitarian aid across the borders of Brazil and Colombia, "achieved a large part of the objective" because it caused the indigenous to turn against the Maduro Government last February, as well as "part of the population"

"Venezuela can not continue as it is, with the people suffering and with a large part of them fleeing for Colombia or Brazil, we must put an end to that," he said.

Source: Infobae - with information from Reuters and EFE.

Juan Guaidó willing to invoke foreign military missions in Venezuela

The opposition parliamentary leader Juan Guaidó, recognized as President in charge of Venezuela for more than fifty countries, said on Saturday that he could request military intervention in Venezuela in the presence of Russian and Cuban military without permission from Parliament.

The interim President of Venezuela, Juan Guaidó, announced on Saturday to be willing to invoke an article of the Constitution that allows to summon foreign military missions in the country. However, under the framework of cooperation, EFE reported.

The statements of the head of the Parliament were made in front of a group of followers gathered in the state of Miranda. In the present day simultaneous protests were developed throughout the country, called by the opposition and in rejection of the electric power cut suffered by a good part of the Bolivarian nation since last Monday.

"When we speak for example of 187 and we said, of course we are going to invoke it, now, in the framework of cooperation because it is also part of what our allies can do or not, not us," he said.

"We are going to insist on cooperation," he added.

According to news agency reports, the constitutional regulation "187.11" authorizes the use of "Venezuelan military missions abroad or foreign in the country." Some sectors of the opposition had asked, in the last days, to put into practice this legislature.

The Government of the United States has been, to date, the administration that has put in greater evidence its interest in supporting the Venezuelan opposition through a military intervention.

In a recent press conference, held after the meeting between the president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, and Donald Trump, the president of the White House said that "all options" were on the table regarding the political crisis in Venezuela.

On the other hand, the Brazilian representative has said that his country has no interest in carrying out an interference of this type in the Latin American nation.

This, however, contradicts the statements of his son, the federal deputy Eduardo Bolsonaro. In an interview with the Chilean media, La Tercera, the official warned that "in some way" the use of force "will be necessary against the regime of Nicolás Maduro.

Most Venezuelan cities have suffered power cuts

Last Wednesday, Guaidó announced the beginning of the preparatory phase of "Operation Libertad". The operation seeks to remove, definitively, Chavismo and Maduro from power.

This week the "Committees of Aid and Freedom" will be set up in different states, with a view to future mobilizations. These actions also seek to involve the officers of the Bolivarian Armed Forces (FANB), whom they requested to be attentive to the call of the National Assembly.

During his speech, the interim president once again encouraged Venezuelans to mount a protest whenever there are shortages of supplies, after a week of constant blackouts across the country.

At the same time, he asked those present to organize to express their dissatisfaction with the Maduro government, to which he once again took responsibility for the problems in the electricity grid.

"There are some people out there who are saying that this has gone off, do not laugh, the only thing that went out is a regime that left the streets of the country in darkness," he said. "Here we are not asking for patience, on the contrary, we are asking for organization and actions now."

                                    

Source:

Cybercuba

Potafolio