Share

Why This Election In Venezuela Is So Important

By Amanda Trejos

"The government of Venezuela has been very good at saying what it is going to do and then doing it," said Eric Farnsworth on the July 30 vote to rewrite the country’s 1999 constitution.

President Nicolás Maduro's push to rewrite Venezuela's constitution to strengthen his powers threatens to send the country hurtling even faster toward Cuban-style authoritarianism, critics and Latin American experts warn.  

The socialist leader, facing a steadily deteriorating economy and rising political opposition, has called for a public vote Sunday to elect a 545-member National Constituent Assembly that would rewrite the 1999 constitution. That document first started Venezuela down the road toward a socialist state under populist leader Hugo Chávez…

…Experts believe protests and public discontent will not be enough to stop changes from going forward.

"The government of Venezuela has been very good at saying what it is going to do and then doing it," said Eric Farnsworth, vice president of the Council of the Americas and the Americas Society. "You have to believe that what they say they are going to do, is what they are going to do"...

Read the full article here.

Related

Explore