NEWS: A Bolivarian-English dictionary

Illustration via The Economist.

Venezuelans are famously inventive with words. After 17 years of "chavismo", the left-wing-ish ideology of the late Hugo Chávez, they have plenty of new material. " Insults aimed at his “Bolivarian revolution” abound; the regime, now led by Nicolás Maduro, hurls its own ammunition. With parliamentary elections due on December 6th, The Economist offers a sample." Read them all in The Economist. E.T.P. 2'

NEWS: Few in Venezuela wants Bolívares, but no one can spare a dime

All the meat freezers were empty last month in a grocery store in Caracas, Venezuela, part of a long list of shortages. CreditMeridith Kohut for The New York Times via NYTimes.

"Pity the bolívar, Venezuela’s currency, named after its independence hero, Simón Bolívar. Even some thieves do not want it anymore.

When robbers carjacked Pedro Venero, an engineer, earlier this year, he expected they would drive him to his bank to cash his check for a hefty sum in bolívars — the sort of thing that crime-weary Venezuelans have long since gotten used to. But the robbers, armed with rifles and a grenade, and sure that he would have a stash of dollars at home, wanted nothing to do with the bolívars in his bank account.

“They told me straight up, ‘Don’t worry about that,’ ” Mr. Venero said. “Forget about it.”

The eagerness to dump bolívars or avoid them completely shows the extent to which Venezuelans have lost faith in their economy and in the ability of their government to find a way out of the mess.

A year ago, $1 bought about 100 bolívars on the black market. These days, it often fetches more than 700 bolívars, a sign of how thoroughly domestic confidence in the economy has crashed."

Read full article by William Neuman and Patricia Torres in The New York Times. E.T.P. 9'

NEWS: Human-Rights Abuses & No Sense of Humor

Photo via The Wall Street Journal.

"The Venezuelan government announced last week that it will hold parliamentary elections on Dec. 6. This news wouldn’t have attracted much attention if it weren’t the result of a 30-day hunger strike by imprisoned opposition leaders Leopoldo López and Daniel Ceballos. It is encouraging to see the Venezuelan government make motions toward respecting democracy—but a true election cannot be held when more than 75 political prisoners languish in jail.

Venezuela must be held accountable for its human-rights abuses. We can start by speaking out against the imprisonment of the numerous opposition figures. Unfortunately, important voices—namely, Venezuela’s neighbors in Latin America—have remained muted.

This reluctance to take a stand is startling. Venezuela’s economic and security situation is dismal, as is the government’s response to citizen frustration. Since the 2014 street demonstrations, during which hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans protested against the corruption and repression that plague the country, President Nicolás Maduro’s government and state-sponsored thugs have killed at least 43 people and arrested more than 3,000." Read the rest of Desmond Tutu's article in The Wall Street Journal. E.T.P. 3'

 

"Standup comics here say they have no shortage of material: the president claims to have talked to a bird, one political candidate said Tylenol grows on trees and, amid shortages of a key bathroom staple, the National Guard occupied a toilet paper factory.
But using such absurdities in comedy sketches is getting harder amid a government clampdown on political satirists.
Some humorists have been blacklisted by state-run theaters and hotels, and local governments in several towns won’t even allow them to perform. Comedy programs that poke fun at the government have disappeared from Venezuelan TV. A few humorists have given up and moved abroad.
“It is getting worse every day,” said Emilio Lovera, whose satirical TV program, “Misión Emilio,” was abruptly canceled last year. “I can no longer work on television.”
Comedians here aren't calling for an anti-government uprising. But their pointed barbs about rising crime, skyrocketing inflation and corruption invariably paint President Nicolás Maduro as bumbling and morally bankrupt at a time when his socialist government is showing less tolerance for dissent. His administration has jailed opposition politicians, violently put down street protests and pressured independent news outlets with lawsuits and fines." Read full article in The Wall Street Journal. E.T.P. 6'