Bolivia: Strikes Escalate After Government and Union Fair to reach Agreement

Strikes in Bolivia to Escalate after Government and Union Fail to Reach an Agreement BOLIVIA Bolivia Negotiations between Bolivia’s government and organized labor collapsed over the weekend, intensifying a two-week standoff over fuel subsidy cuts as unions warned of a “national revolution,” MercoPress reported. On Friday, talks between the administration of President Rodrigo Paz and the Bolivian Workers’ Union (COB) broke down after both sides accused each other of inflexibility over Supreme Decree 5503, which ended fuel subsidies and triggered major price hikes. Union leaders abandoned calls for limited roadblocks and said the country faced escalating unrest, with more than 50 blockades reported nationwide. COB Executive Secretary Mario Argollo said the government had refused to repeal what he called an unconstitutional decree that threatened workers’ rights. He accused the administration of betraying rural and labor voters and likened the measure to Bolivia’s 1985 Supreme Decree 21060, which ushered in sweeping neoliberal reforms. The government rejected that account, countering that COB made a U-turn on provisions previously agreed, including minimum wage increases and bonuses included in the decree. Officials claimed union leaders returned to talks with an “unacceptable” ultimatum to completely repeal the decree. They have asked the COB to submit objections in writing to avoid further “misinterpretations.” Paz and his officials have stressed that the subsidy cuts are necessary to restore public finances and correct fiscal distortions. Deputy Minister of Autonomies Andrea Barrientos said the government plans to amend 35 articles of the decree to add procedural clarifications, including constitutional safeguards and social oversight, but without restoring subsidies. The weekslong strikes have caused economic losses of up to $100 million a day, according to the government, citing disruptions to industry, commerce and transport. Meanwhile, the decree has also escalated a political confrontation between Paz and Vice President Edmand Lara, ... [Message clipped] View entire message

Venezuela: The Leadership Changes but Nothing Else

In Venezuela, the Leadership Changes But Little Else Does VENEZUELA Venezuela In the hours after the US removal of leader Nicolás Maduro, some Venezuelans allowed themselves to hope. A few laughed and cheered. Others cried in relief. Some even popped the champagne they were saving for a very special occasion. But a day later, that joy and relief were replaced by fear, dread and uncertainty as the country’s new leader escalated a crackdown on dissent. “It feels like it did after the presidential elections in 2024,” María, 55, told the Washington Post, referring to the vote that Maduro allegedly stole from the opposition. “We won, but we also lost.” On Jan. 3, the US attacked Venezuela and seized Maduro and his wife, transporting them to stand trial in the US for drug trafficking and other charges. Soon after, US President Donald Trump said Washington would “run” the country. But on the ground in the days since, there is little evidence of that, say Venezuelans. Instead, all the players of the old Maduro regime are still running the country. “There is no change at all,” Francys Machucas, a banking adviser in Caracas, told the Wall Street Journal. “We are going to remain in the same situation because it’s the same people.” What did change after the Jan. 5 swearing in of Vice President Delcy Rodríguez as acting president was the intensity of a long-running crackdown on free expression and dissent. Venezuelans say her administration has unleashed police and pro-government paramilitary units known as “colectivos” on the population. For the past week, these units have set up checkpoints and roamed the streets, looking for supporters of the US action and opponents of the regime. They have been doing so under a new decree, imposed immediately after Maduro’s ouster, which ordered police to arrest anyone “involved in promoting or supporting the armed attack by the United States of America.” The decree suspended the right to protest and authorized broad restrictions on movement and assembly. The government also detained more than a dozen journalists last week. Venezuelans say now, the atmosphere is tense and full of fear, with people afraid even to speak over the phone. “We’re all tapped,” one Venezuelan resident told El País. “It’s very difficult. You say something and they arrest you.” Venezuela is on pause now, said the Spanish newspaper. It described Venezuelans as “Afraid to go out into the street, to speak out, to run out of food, (to get) bombed again.” Maduro supporters, meanwhile, are furious, taking to the streets daily to protest since the president’s ouster. Rosa Contreras, a 57-year-old, says she felt “humiliated” by the US action but was determined to show her support for the former leader by attending a rally calling for Maduro’s release, especially after she saw an image of him waving after arriving in the US. “He had an attitude that sent us a message: If I’m standing here, you have to stand here, stand tall and keep going,” she told the BBC. Meanwhile, there has been no mention of elections by either Trump or the Venezuelan government, although the country’s constitution mandates that a vote must take place within 30 days of the presidency being permanently vacated, the Associated Press noted. Still, Rodríguez maintains that the rightful president of Venezuela is Maduro. At the same time, there has been little mention of the opposition or its leader, Nobel Laureate María Corina Machado, taking over as the country’s president, with Trump insisting that she “doesn’t have the support” within Venezuela, the Hill noted. Machado is the country’s most popular politician. In contrast, Machado praised the US action and told Fox News that “It’s a huge step toward a democratic transition.” The opposition leader, who was in hiding in Venezuela for nearly a year but escaped the country last month, is expected to meet with Trump next week after offering to “share” her Nobel Prize with him. Phil Gunson of the International Crisis Group told NPR that the current government will fight to the death to prevent a democratic transition. “The biggest threat is an outbreak of democracy,” he said. “This is kryptonite for these people. Democracy will see them thrown out.” Along with the political uncertainty, Venezuelans also wondered what would happen economically if the US took over the country’s oil production as Trump has promised to do. For the past decade, Venezuelans have endured hyperinflation in the triple digits, shortages of food and medicine and the collapse of public services. About one-quarter of the population has fled the country. The economy has collapsed, say analysts, likening it to countries that have been through a war. Alexandra Arismendi, who works in a mobile phone shop at the Sambil mall in one of Caracas’s busiest shopping districts, told Al Jazeera she was frustrated with the most recent spikes in the cost of daily essentials. “Prices are high,” she said. “A carton of eggs is selling for $10, which is beyond normal.” Still, some Venezuelans have hope that things will change after the fall of Maduro, and that they will be able to speak freely and choose their own leaders in free elections. “I can’t deny that the future makes me anxious,” Daniel, a gardener who lives just outside of the capital, Caracas, told NBC News. “But I do trust that change can happen from now on.”

US Intervention In Venezuela Sparks Concern Among Allies And Rivals

US Intervention in Venezuela Sparks Alarm, Among Allies and Rivals VENEZUELA Venezuela The United States’ move to remove Venezuela’s president and “run” the country until a “proper transition” takes place sparked mix reactions in Latin America over the weekend, with some celebrating the ouster and others fearing for the stability of the region, NPR reported. Early Saturday, the US military carried out airstrikes in Caracas and captured President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. The couple was taken aboard the USS Iwo Jima and later flown to New York, where they are expected to face federal charges, including drug trafficking, ties to narco-gangs designated as terrorist organizations, and weapons offenses, CBS News added. Following the capture, US President Donald Trump said Washington would govern Venezuela for the foreseeable future, without providing details on how or for how long. He added that the US would take control of Venezuela’s oil industry and said American energy companies would move into the country. Trump also claimed Maduro’s removal would allow hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans who fled to the US to return home. Meanwhile, Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez was sworn in as interim leader shortly after Maduro’s removal. While the US has claimed the interim president will do “whatever the US asks,” Rodriguez has publicly condemned the military operation and said Maduro is the “only president.” She rejected notions that Venezuela would become “a colony of an empire,” with officials describing the attack as an attempt to steal the country’s resources, according to the BBC. But on Sunday, Rodriguez said she hopes to have a “balanced and respectful” relationship with the US “based on sovereign equality and non-interference,” CBS added. At the same time, Trump dismissed placing opposition leader and Nobel Laureate María Corina Machado as the country’s next leader, insisting that she “doesn’t have the support” within Venezuela, the Hill noted. Still, analysts said questions remain over US governance in the aftermath of the president’s removal, as Maduro’s allies retain significant influence. Saturday’s operation marked the culmination of a long-running dispute between the Trump administration and Maduro’s regime, which has faced international criticism over human rights abuses, disputed elections, and economic mismanagement. Trump has accused Maduro’s administration of fueling migration to the US and facilitating drug trafficking, including fentanyl and cocaine – claims Caracas denies. Those tensions prompted earlier US strikes on alleged drug-trafficking vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. Analysts said the operation represents Washington’s first openly acknowledged military strike against a South American government, reviving memories of US interventions in the region during the 20th century. The move sparked concern across Latin America, particularly among leftist governments that have been critical of Washington, including Cuba and Colombia, who worry that they may be next, the Washington Post reported. Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel described the strikes as “state terrorism,” while his Colombian counterpart Gustavo Petro called them an “assault on sovereignty.” Petro and Trump have also traded barbs in the past over the US operations in the Caribbean. Brazilian and Mexican officials also criticized the US actions. Meanwhile, Argentina’s libertarian President Javier Milei – an ally of Trump – hailed the operation, writing “freedom moves forward” and “long live freedom” on social media. Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa also welcomed Maduro’s arrest, as did Bolivia’s new leadership. Venezuela’s allies, Russia, China, and Iran, condemned the action and called for Maduro’s release. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said he was deeply concerned that “the rules of international law have not been respected.” European allies offered more cautious reactions. British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said his government would “shed no tears” over Maduro’s arrest, while Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez warned that, despite Madrid’s refusal to recognize Maduro’s legitimacy, the US operation “violates international law and pushes the region toward uncertainty.”

President Maduro and His Wife Were Arrested By US Authorities And Removed To Face US Justice

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8QYuG8Qb44