Post by scumbuster on Dec 5, 2015 8:49:27 GMT -5
VenEconomy: A Look at the Events before the Parliamentary Election in Venezuela
Venezuelans entered the final stretch towards the parliamentary election to be held on Sunday.
During this process, 167 lawmakers will be elected for a seat in the Parliament (aka National Assembly): 1) 113 nominal posts elected by a simple majority of votes. 2) 51 lawmakers are elected by party-line vote, and whose victory is assigned through the D’Hondt method of proportional representation. 3) And three members and representatives of indigenous groups (these candidates are elected by roll-call vote.)
The final operation is in progress: The ban of the National Electoral Council (CNE) on the release of opinion polls. The ban on firearms, liquor and circulation of heavy-load vehicles. The suspension of classes in educational institutes to become voting centers. The distribution of the entirety or voting machines. And the activation of "Plan República" with more than 160,000 members of the National Armed Forces (FANB) throughout the country, to monitor and safeguard 14,515 polling centers across the country.
Nothing out of the ordinary or different from any previous week to an election of national interest so far.
Except a curious fact, redundant if the guarantees of the Constitution were respected in Venezuela: The Democratic Unity (MUD) opposition coalition reminded the Armed Forces of their "obligation to display an institutional behavior which contributes to Venezuelans voting in peace." We’ll see about that!
Apart from this "normality," does anyone still have doubts that this electoral campaign that ended on December 3 is one of the most virulent, indecent and corrupt ever made in all the history of Venezuela, including the Marcos Pérez Jiménez plebiscite?
On this occasion, every stage of the electoral process has been distorted and brutalized by the ruling elite. There has been a little bit of everything.
Manipulation of the electoral constituencies: first of all, the National Institute of Statistics (INE) determined (in a convenient manner) that municipalities usually deemed pro-opposition reduced their populations since 2010, while those loyal to the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) have grown. With that sleight of hand of the INE, the CNE reallocated 11 members throughout the country, thus favoring the PSUV option.
The Government strategically renewed the Supreme Court of Justice with individuals that will guarantee even greater loyalty to the "Bolivarian revolution."
It disqualified opposition candidates with the highest acceptance rate in their respective regions, such as María Corina Machado, who were left out of the electoral game.
It rejected independent international observation and replaced it for an "accompaniment group" whose opinions are not binding. Only 40 delegates of Unasur, who will tour 11 states of the country, will be attending this electoral process. The international guests of the MUD will have no formal credentials issued by the CNE, and will have to settle for sitting on the fence. All of them have been warned by Nicolás Maduro: "Anyone who wants to come is welcome to do so … if someone abuses the internal life of Venezuela and the Electoral Power dictates that must be expelled from the country, I shall do so. Whoever they are, no matter how big shot. I don’t care." This does not include his insults against Luis Almagro (OAS), Mariano Rajoy and Felipe González (Prime Minister and former Prime Minister of Spain, respectively.)
The voter’s card was designed in a way to confuse those who will be voting for the MUD: the card of MIN-UNIDAD (a party supporting Maduro) is right next to that of MUD-UNIDAD. Both display similar colors and designs, apart from radio spots touting itself as the "true opposition." The CNE turned a blind eye to this, only showing a weak reaction on November 20 without major consequences for the offenders.
A grotesque propaganda imbalance was exhibited. The vast State media was put at the service of the PSUV candidates, and these have been funded with public funds.
The censorship from the State and the restriction of freedom of the press and speech applied to the Venezuelan media now reveals the "selectivity" to issue credentials to press correspondents and international media, depending on how much these have criticized a government before.
Also, the Government has been giving away everything from home appliances, food, medicines, taxis, homes, pensions, laptops to a big long etcetera.
Violence and threats have been the leitmotif of this campaign. Added to the verbal threats by Maduro, Diosdado Cabello and other representatives of this corrupt "socialist homeland" is the physics that has prompted this speech of hatred and exclusion. Thus the mandate of winning the December 6 election "no matter what" and the warning that the people supporting the Government in the streets are to be taken seriously already took a life: that of Luis Manuel Díaz, the Secretary General of the Acción Democrática (AD) opposition party branch in Altagracia de Orituco (Guárico state), who entered the list of the more than 200,000 homicides in Venezuela over the past 16 years.
But by selecting the MUD card down on the left corner identified with an icon of a thumb up, the restoration of the democratic rights of a free society will start on Monday December 7.
VenEconomy has been a leading provider of consultancy on financial, political and economic data in Venezuela since 1982.
Venezuelans entered the final stretch towards the parliamentary election to be held on Sunday.
During this process, 167 lawmakers will be elected for a seat in the Parliament (aka National Assembly): 1) 113 nominal posts elected by a simple majority of votes. 2) 51 lawmakers are elected by party-line vote, and whose victory is assigned through the D’Hondt method of proportional representation. 3) And three members and representatives of indigenous groups (these candidates are elected by roll-call vote.)
The final operation is in progress: The ban of the National Electoral Council (CNE) on the release of opinion polls. The ban on firearms, liquor and circulation of heavy-load vehicles. The suspension of classes in educational institutes to become voting centers. The distribution of the entirety or voting machines. And the activation of "Plan República" with more than 160,000 members of the National Armed Forces (FANB) throughout the country, to monitor and safeguard 14,515 polling centers across the country.
Nothing out of the ordinary or different from any previous week to an election of national interest so far.
Except a curious fact, redundant if the guarantees of the Constitution were respected in Venezuela: The Democratic Unity (MUD) opposition coalition reminded the Armed Forces of their "obligation to display an institutional behavior which contributes to Venezuelans voting in peace." We’ll see about that!
Apart from this "normality," does anyone still have doubts that this electoral campaign that ended on December 3 is one of the most virulent, indecent and corrupt ever made in all the history of Venezuela, including the Marcos Pérez Jiménez plebiscite?
On this occasion, every stage of the electoral process has been distorted and brutalized by the ruling elite. There has been a little bit of everything.
Manipulation of the electoral constituencies: first of all, the National Institute of Statistics (INE) determined (in a convenient manner) that municipalities usually deemed pro-opposition reduced their populations since 2010, while those loyal to the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) have grown. With that sleight of hand of the INE, the CNE reallocated 11 members throughout the country, thus favoring the PSUV option.
The Government strategically renewed the Supreme Court of Justice with individuals that will guarantee even greater loyalty to the "Bolivarian revolution."
It disqualified opposition candidates with the highest acceptance rate in their respective regions, such as María Corina Machado, who were left out of the electoral game.
It rejected independent international observation and replaced it for an "accompaniment group" whose opinions are not binding. Only 40 delegates of Unasur, who will tour 11 states of the country, will be attending this electoral process. The international guests of the MUD will have no formal credentials issued by the CNE, and will have to settle for sitting on the fence. All of them have been warned by Nicolás Maduro: "Anyone who wants to come is welcome to do so … if someone abuses the internal life of Venezuela and the Electoral Power dictates that must be expelled from the country, I shall do so. Whoever they are, no matter how big shot. I don’t care." This does not include his insults against Luis Almagro (OAS), Mariano Rajoy and Felipe González (Prime Minister and former Prime Minister of Spain, respectively.)
The voter’s card was designed in a way to confuse those who will be voting for the MUD: the card of MIN-UNIDAD (a party supporting Maduro) is right next to that of MUD-UNIDAD. Both display similar colors and designs, apart from radio spots touting itself as the "true opposition." The CNE turned a blind eye to this, only showing a weak reaction on November 20 without major consequences for the offenders.
A grotesque propaganda imbalance was exhibited. The vast State media was put at the service of the PSUV candidates, and these have been funded with public funds.
The censorship from the State and the restriction of freedom of the press and speech applied to the Venezuelan media now reveals the "selectivity" to issue credentials to press correspondents and international media, depending on how much these have criticized a government before.
Also, the Government has been giving away everything from home appliances, food, medicines, taxis, homes, pensions, laptops to a big long etcetera.
Violence and threats have been the leitmotif of this campaign. Added to the verbal threats by Maduro, Diosdado Cabello and other representatives of this corrupt "socialist homeland" is the physics that has prompted this speech of hatred and exclusion. Thus the mandate of winning the December 6 election "no matter what" and the warning that the people supporting the Government in the streets are to be taken seriously already took a life: that of Luis Manuel Díaz, the Secretary General of the Acción Democrática (AD) opposition party branch in Altagracia de Orituco (Guárico state), who entered the list of the more than 200,000 homicides in Venezuela over the past 16 years.
But by selecting the MUD card down on the left corner identified with an icon of a thumb up, the restoration of the democratic rights of a free society will start on Monday December 7.
VenEconomy has been a leading provider of consultancy on financial, political and economic data in Venezuela since 1982.