22 FEATURE. OVER THE EDGE NEWSPAPER. OCTOBER 11 , 2006 Coming To Terms With Hugo Chavez BRETT BUNDA THE MCGILL DAILY (MCGILL UNIVERSITY) He is the most popular and contro- versial leader to emerge from South America's growing number of socialist democracies. He is one of the few political figures willing to speak out against the capital- ist, imperialist, and neo-liberal views that consume global politics today. Who wouldn't admire Hugo Chavez, a president who speaks out against the Bush administration and American foreign policies — crippling to so many developing countries — and offers viable alternatives for a more fair and sustain- able world? Tt seems impossible to find fair and unbiased descriptions of Venezuela's situation under Chavez. Radio, news- papers, and television programs are — like the views of Venezuelans them- selves — completely polarized in their opinions of the-man. But not all middle-class Venezuelans drive SUVs, hate the poor, and spend all their free time in Miami criticizing Cha- vez and lameniting the nation's demise. And not all of Venezuela's poor want to abolish private'property and start grow- ing their own fruits and vegetables in cooperative gardens. The situation is laden with complex- ities. After spending several weeks in Venezuela, I arn unable to uncondition- ally support Chavez. But I'm also not willing to join the opposition in ¢riticiz- ing his policies and actiotis. A break with the past A few days before I left for Venezuela, I learned that the only bridge between Caracas and the airport was falling apart. On the news, I heard that the condition of the bridge had been deteriorating for several years. Having been ignored by several governments ~ Chavez's among them — the bridge was on the verge of collapse. Because of the long wait to cross the bridge, it could take several hours to get to Caracas — only one car was allowed to pass through at a time, As I left the Venezuelan airport, my pro-Chavez taxi driver explained that the bridge was being closely monitored. Anything else I heard, he said, was just the “criminal” capitalist media creating rumours and lies to discredit Chavez. Before leaving, I had read up on Venezuela's history of political instabil- ity, social struggle, and dictatorial rule. Although Venezuela has had demo- cratic civilian governments since the mid-1950s,.I learned that this has been accompanied by corruption and slow progress in combating poverty and so- cial injustice, And then Hugo Chavez, a military officer from a modest background, pre- sented himself as an alternative to the elite, fraudulent governments of the past. After leading a failed coup détat in 1992, Chavez quickly gained popularity as a fighter for Venezuela's marginalized poor, who are roughly 80 per cent of the country's population. Chavez founded the left-wing party Fifth Republic Move- ment (MVR) and was elected president in 1998, having never held a political post, with 56 per cent of the vote. Chavez quickly became a populist hero, creating a mass social and political Bolivarian revolution, named after his interpretation of Simon Bolivar's vision. © Driving around Caracas, I was stunned at the huge billboards lining the high- ways, plastered with pictures and quotes of the Caracas-born 19th-century gen- eral who liberated many South Amer- ican countries from Spanish rule. Upon arriving at the Venezuelan ait- port, I quickly realized that I was in Bolivarian territory. It was hard not to notice the populist politics and revo- lutionary rhetoric of Chavez and his Bolivarian revolution scrawled on walls, roads, banks, and buses. Slogans like, “Another world is possible,’ “Venezuela now belongs to everyone, and “Let's all go against imperialism’ set a tone of optimism and solidarity in the streets of Caracas, But how much of this is just the mass indoctrination of Chavez propaganda? How much has actually changed for the lower class since Chavez came into power? The power of Chavez Chavez's undeniable strength is his ability to address the concerns of the average, poor Venezuelan. Through Chavez-sponsored. programs of over $20-billion U.S., Venezuelans are be- ginning to have access to business loans, basic health care, subsidized education, and discounted food. I saw beautiful, lush mountains sur- rounding Venezuela's capital, But I also saw shantytowns, or barrios — extremely poor neighbourhoods built out of any materials residents can get their hands on. Tt makes for a colourful landscape — all the little houses are painted using bright blues, reds, and yellows. But poverty and crime are rampant, and this is where as- sistance is most deeply needed. Chavez has installed small stores in the barrios with shelves full of sugar, soap, pow- dered milk, and flour at significantly re- duced prices. No name-brand products are sold, The food from these discount stores comes in plastic bags printed with pro-government slogans, ‘The image of Chavez, which you can see throughout the barrios, has become a symbol of pride and victory for the poor. Chavez has also developed agrarian land reforms, which encourage squat- ters to take over private land. considered unproductive and underutilized. This attempt to balance the economic-power structure, reduce dependence on food imports, and promote rural livelihoods in a country rampant with poverty is laudable. But many Venezuelans I spoke to didn't understand why Chavez chooses to alienate private landowners instead of first distributing the government-owned agricultural lands — the largest percent- age of arable land in Venezuela — to peasant cooperatives and then develop- ing a fair plan to put privately-owned unproductive land into the hands of. those who most need it. Envisioning a united South America Chavez presents himself as the enemy of the Bush administration, and anyone with the most basic knowledge of U.S. foreign policy in the region can identify with his anti-imperialism. By opting to offer financial aid and oil to Latin Amer- ican and Caribbean countries, Chavez threatens Bushs plan for a hemisphere- wide pact, such as the Free Trade Area of the Americas. Such an arrangement would give rights to corporations at the expense of sovereignty and democracy and would lead to the privatization of services, a detriment to poor people across the region. Chavez's aim is to create an alterna- tive to the FTAA like the Alternativa Bolivariana para las Americas (ALBA), a countef-proposal to the FTAA, and PetroAmerica, a project to consolidate energy resources such as oil, natural gas, and electricity, guaranteeing Latin America all of its energy needs. Venezuela and Cuba have demon- strated an alternative relationship in the face of imperial states, multinational corporations, and economic governing bodies like the World Bank. The prefer- ential prices of oil for Cuba have been exchanged for educational materials and medical services, a refreshing alternative to the competitive and exploitative na- ture of “free” trade. The goals of some of the programs developed between Venezuela and Cuba include: a literacy campaign employ- ing a Cuban video literacy program, a hemisphere-wide program dedicated to providing free eye surgery to the poor, a television network providing viewpoints and voices from the South, and a pro- gram that brings medical assistance to the poor. Social democracy gone wrong? How do you achieve perceptible change in a country rampant with pov- erty? The attempt to rid the system of the corrupt elite has resulted in what can appear to be a corrupt left. Perhaps the better of two evils, but not the ideal socialist democracy Chavez attempts to convey. Many of those I spoke to ctiticized Chavez's method of spending and dis- tributing the country’s wealth, When Bolivia's first indigenous president, Evo Morales, was elected in January, Chavez made a $30-million U.S. contribution to’ the country. Bolivia is arguably the poorest country in South America and the show of solidarity and support is commendable. But, in conversation, Venezuelans tended to criticize how Chavez goes about spending public dollars. “Chavez treats the country like his farm. He goes on television and talks about how he has decided to give money here, spend money here, and says it all in what can seem to be a highly undemo- cratic fashion. Especially when he sug- gests projects like giving discounted fuel to poor neighbourhoods in the United States,” said one taxi driver. When I asked a Venezuelan doctor about the country's medical situation, I was surprised to learn that Vene- zuela offers free public clinics to all its citizens. The doctor, however, was not optimistic. She had studied medicine in Caracas, but is now working in Madrid and pursuing her medical studies there. She explained that an internship in a ‘public hospital in Caracas had left her traumatized. “People arrived every day with serious wounds or illnesses and there was noth- ing, absolutely nothing, that I could do, The hospital didnt have any needles to give people shots — there wasnt even enough gauze to dress a wound with. I felt completely helpless. “And, meanwhile, I hear about all these programs developed by Chavez... when hospitals still don't have the most basic resources to function.’ Power, I came to feel, was being given to the government, but not necessarily the public. And though Chavez does sound revolutionary, his rhetoric is of the type that can lead to dangerous populist fervour. The World Social Forum Unfortunately, I had to leave Caracas before the opening of the World So- cial Forum, an annual meeting held by members of the alternative globalization movement. But British reporter Alex Holland's description of the Forums closing ceremony leaves little doubt as to Chavez's agenda. The event began, Holland recounts, with the recorded sound of gunfire and bombs. People appeared carrying large black banners with corporate media images on them. Suddenly, a group of dancers dressed as peasants emerged with machetes and started to attack and chop the corporate people down. A large, white banner appeared. “For peace and against war and corporate greed,’ it read. As Chavez launched into one of his. notoriously long speeches, the night be- came surreal, “For a European like me, all of this was extremely strange and maybe magically real, It was also a bit disturbing at times. The setting, the numbers and the focus: reminded. me at times of some of the worst elements of my continent's past,’ recounts Holland. Between dogma- tism and heroism Though Chavez wants to sponsor a revolution across the region, downtown Caracas hosts some of the world’s worst poverty and crime. A few days before I left Caracas, I realized that I had still not seen the downtown inner-core. After numerous warnings about the danger, I decided to visit during the middle of the day. I was shocked at how many Venezuelans were squeezed into such a small area — penni- less vendors selling shoe strings or nail polish, fruit stands selling overly ripe oranges and avocados. Young children sold knickknacks, or sat on the filthy sidewalks begging for money. Attempting to find creative ways to make a few cents, some juggled at main intersections during the red lights. When Venezuelans living in this downtown squalor, or in the barrios, un- employed and poor, learn that Chavez is trying to subsidize fuel for people in Chicago and New York, they are filled with confusion and frustration. After studying the issues intensely and having direct contact with Vene- zuelan people and media, I still find it difficult to understand the subtleties of the situation, and continue to raise questions and concerns that unfortu- nately do not have simple answers. I find it exasperating that many foreign- ers unconditionally support the Chavez government merely because he presents himself as an alternative. Activists, intel- lectuals, and anyone concerned with so- cial justice and global inequalities must come to understand the intricacy of the country’s complex situation before mak- ing value judgments. The day before I left Venezuela, the bridge between Caracas and the airport was closed, having been deemed too dangerous to use. Along with everyone else, the chavistas, who had accused the capitalists of inventing criticisms to discredit the government, now had to endure the hours of traffic through the small, winding secondary road. Although I admire Chavez's ability to criticize the Bush administration, speak openly against poverty and social injus- tice, and his attempts to create a united South America, the violent vocabulary that permeates his speeches, his often dogmatic behaviour toward the running of government and spending of public money, as well as his alienation of many Venezuelan people, leaves me unable to express unreserved support.