The recent CNE fire begs questions not only about the fairness of upcoming elections in Venezuela, but about the possibility of holding elections at all. Just how damaged the whole system is and what can be done to truly fix it?
With a combination of exceptional powers, harassment, jail, and exile, the Maduro government became a dictatorship by ignoring all its obligations to submit the Executive to the control of a Legislative controlled by the opposition since 2015. The Supreme Tribunal has been the main tool to void the legitimate National Assembly of people and functions.
The third item in Caretaker President Guaidó’s plan, organizing free and fair elections, would take three months at the very minimum. And it's not just about getting rid of the chavista die-hards on the electoral board.
The company that produces nearly all of Venezuela’s export earnings looks like a store the day after it’s been looted. How chavismo took an oil giant from world class to bankrupt-in-all-but-name in just two decades.
Taking a few pages from the Cuban playbook, the Network of Articulation and Sociopolitical Action (Raas), picks up where the Ley Sapo left off. Big Brother and your next-door neighbors are watching.
Since they control most of the media and Venezuelans don’t have access to the news or different points of view, the regime can fabricate and spread a convenient narrative. This is how poorly informed citizens answered questions about the economic measures.
Just three years after the MUD’s largest electoral victory during the chavista era, only one of its political parties remains legal and has been able to keep its official status as a political party, according to the CNE.
We’ve been able to hang on for 21 years in one of the craziest media landscapes in the world. We’ve seen different media outlets in Venezuela (and abroad) closing shop, something we’re looking to avoid at all costs. Your collaboration goes a long way in helping us weather the storm.
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