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Venezuela - Between Empire and Revolution

Update: Chavez won! On Sunday, August 15th, a national referendum is scheduled to take place in Venezuela to decide whether democratically-elected president Hugo Chávez should remain in office. The outcome of this referendum, while significant, is only a fragment of a much larger and longer tale of class struggle in Venezuela, where 80% of the population lives in poverty and the richest 20% control the majority of country's natural and human-produced resources. [ Chavez Supporters Gather in Venezuela's Capital for Largest Pro-Chavez Rally ] Chavez was first voted to office by an overwhelming majority after leading a coup attempt against the corrupt leader Carlos Andres Cardenas, who among other atrocities, brought the nation under the rule of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) 'austerity measures.' The popular movements of Venezuela view Chavez as a symbol of self-determination and hope, and the opposition's attempt to oust him as an attempt by the capitalist classes to reassert fascist rule over the country. This confrontation will not be decided solely by ballots, but by popular struggle in the streets and the countryside. Various popular revolutionary movements in Venezuela believe beyond doubt that Chávez is supported by the overwhelming majority of the Venezuelan population. Should the results of the referendum, official or otherwise, show a loss for Chávez, millions of Venezuelans will consider them fraudulent and immediately take to the streets--not waiting until the scheduled elections a month later. The intention of the popular movements who are preparing for an imminent uprising is not only to neutralize an opposition fraud, but to take the "Bolivarian revolution" to what they consider the next logical step: popular control of the means of production and communication through the exercise of direct democracy in assemblies. Independent media activists currently working in and around Caracas have outlined three possible scenarios for a fraudulent outcome of the national referendum: (The question posed in the referendum is about overriding Chávez´s government The Bolivarians vote for the "No" while the Opposition for the "Yes") 1) Apparent victory of the "yes" through official channels. 2) A technical tie between the "Yes" and "No," which would lead to negotiations between competing beauracracies and, many believe, a halt to revolutionary processes. 3) A unilateral announcement of victory of the "yes" by the opposition controlled media before official results are given. Then, once the Electoral Council recognizes Chávez´ victory, an aggressive media campaign will point to the "chavista fraud" to try to take the middle class to the streets. They would immediately deploy a plan of unprecedented violence (suggested by the presence of Colombian paramilitary elements all over Venezuela, in addition to the recent theft of explosives and weapons) in order to create chaos and provoke massacres that could justify a coup d`Ètat or multinational "peacekeeping" forces in Venezuela. There is a general consensus amongst the popular movements that no fraud will be accepted, even if legitimized by the "revolutionary" bureaucracies. If a fraud takes place, revolutionaries will immediately activate, autonomously, a radical offensive against the capitalist ruling class and invite President Chávez to command this process of insurgeny. Contingency action plans are being prepared across all of Pachamerica (all the countries of the Western hemisphere) as well as Europe, by autonomous affinity groups and Bolivarian circles in dozens of cities. Revolutionary activists in Venezuela are urging international vigilance as the referendum nears, and actions in front of embassies, petrol stations and other appropriate targets in solidarity with the Bolivarian struggle as the situation develops. Monday, August 16th has been declared an day of intercontinental solidarity with the Bolivarian revolution, and Global Day of Action, as decided upon by the Peoples Global Assembly, on October 12th. [ Discuss this story | Venezuela Analysis | UK-IMC ]

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