Caught up in protests for a year and a half FRANCISCO OLIVARES EL UNIVERSAL June 21, 2014
While most protests have been held by students so far this year, other sectors are rising up over major grievances. A total 8,526 is the number of reported protest events in 18 months
Social unrest has significantly escalated during Nicolás Maduro's term in office, with 8,526 reported protest events as of March 30, 2014.
There is a perception that protests against the government in the last four months have been concentrated mainly in the students' sector, without other groups resolutely joining in the demand for profound changes in the way the country is being run. Opposition leader Henrique Capriles pointed out to that failure when wondering aloud: where are the poor neighborhoods? by which he signified that there is a lack of connection between the students' demands and those of low-income sectors.
After examining several studies on social unrest in Venezuela conducted by different ONGs, one can conclude that protests have extended to virtually all sectors of society, but each sector acts in isolation, staying within their own niches of interest.
Most protests during the first quarter of 2014 were indeed staged by students, triggering social unrest by 550% as compared with the same period in 2013. The first quarter of 2014 ranked as the one with the highest reported protest events in the last 10 years, according to the Venezuelan Observatory of Social Conflict (OVCS).
As per OVCS, of the 4,116 protest events during the first quarter of 2014, 3,348 were staged by the students' sector. The workers' sector is lagging well behind, with 303 events.
During the first quarter of 2014 3,483 more protest events were held than in the same period in 2013, and almost as many as the total 4,410 reported protest events throughout that year (4,410 as per OVCS).
Social conflict in 2013
Protests in 2013 remained above the average of the past seven years, but slightly below those in 2012, when 5,483 protest events were reported, as compared with 2013 (4,410 events as per OVCS).
Human rights group PROVEA's 2013 report ascribes this 20% drop in protest events in 2013 to the void produced by the physical absence of Hugo Chávez during January and February, his demise in March, and the ensuing April election.
Despite the economic crisis that led to a first devaluation to VEB 6.3 to the dollar, the new scenario raised the prospects of change, thus resulting in a "truce" of social unrest.
But the disputed electoral result and the display of electoral opportunism by the government triggered a major outbreak of protests. Events were focalized in Caracas, Barquisimeto, Mérida, and Maracaibo, and met with the government's violent crackdown, resulting in 13 protester deaths.
Military repression included excessive use of force against unarmed protesters and shooting them at point blank range, arbitrary arrests and torture, and the criminalization of protest, on which all human rights ONGs concur. During the demonstrations, 355 protesters were detained and 316 victims alleged torture and cruel and inhuman treatment at the hands of the Bolivarian National Guard during custody.
Furthermore, civilian armed groups openly supported by the government -known as "colectivos"-reappeared, joining in the repressive actions of the security forces against demonstrators. It is worth noting that protesters were mostly youth and students.
Looking at social unrest throughout 2013 we find that 1,791 protest events (40.61%) were driven by issues related to labor grievances; 1,044 (23.67%) were over issues related to citizen security, the rights of persons deprived of their liberty, political participation, the right to justice (held by youth and students). There were 996 (22.58%) protest events on issues related to the right to housing, and 579 (13.12%) over educational claims.
The criminalization of protests
The Nicolás Maduro-led government has deepened its crackdown on protests using the armed forces and the courts as a means of control. According to human rights group Provea (Venezuelan Program for Education and Action on Human Rights), crackdown increased by 485% in the first quarter of 2014, with 3,127 arrested protesters and 157 documented cases of torture. But crackdown was not restricted solely to students' politically-motivated protests; it was unleashed on workers' labor-oriented protests as well.
During 2013, the Guayana region in the south of the country became the hotbed of strikes demanding workers' rights. A strike held by workers at the state-owned iron ore company Ferrominera del Orinoco epitomizes this.
In June 2013, workers staged a strike for over 10 days to demand the payment of the monies owed to employees and the reinstatement of workers dismissed. The national government responded to the workers' action by sending the military to occupy the site. It is worth noting that in September 2009, union leader, Rubén González, general secretary of Sintraferrominera (the union representing the workers of Ferrominera) was arrested and sentenced for leading worker protests in the state-owned company. Provea cites him as saying that the facilities were occupied by hundreds of National Guard troops "in full riot gear to intimidate workers."
Marches and rallies, work stoppages and strikes, permanent assemblies and street blockings were all expressions of rising outrage and discontent during 2013. Prominent among them were strikes staged in state-owned companies, and the strike launched by professors at Venezuela's most important public universities. The figure of 996 protest events on issues related to the right to housing was reported. Some were staged by people still living in shelters, other to protest crime in the new government-built housing complexes, or the shoddy workmanship of housing. According to Provea's report, basic goods shortages frequently sparked protests across the country, especially around grocery stores, supermarkets and food supply centers.
In 2013, 59 union leaders were killed in union conflict-related events, accounting to 5 murders a month. Of those killed, 49 were in the construction sector, 5 were in the oil sector, 2 in the transport sector and the remaining 3 were respectively in the power, food and administrative sectors. Bolívar state (south) accounted for the highest number of union leaders' killings.
A workerist government
Maduro has strived to sell the image of a workerist president based on the fact that he once worked as a bus driver. But, facing the workers' unrest in the country, he has disavowed traditional workers' organizations. This explains why many workers' organization and union leaders that once supported Chavezism are now opposing the government.
Translated by Sancho Araujo
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