Venezuela: Introduction to the Political Environment

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Venezuela Introduction to the Political
Environment
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Nineteenth Century Independence the Federal
Wars

• Simón Bolívar and South American Independence
• Venezuela splits from Gran Colombia (1830)
• Jose Antonio Paez Conservative Ascendency
• The Federal Wars 1858-63
• Desire for a more democratic society
• Anti-clericalism
• Personalism
• Caracas vs. Interior

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Dawn of Liberal Hegemony?

• Victorious Liberals
• fail to restore order
• Instability leads to rule of Guzmán Blanco Blanco
  
• Liberal Enlightenment (1870 1888)
• Centralization of power in Caracas
• Economic development
• Modernization

• Antonio Guzmán Blanco

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Characteristics of the Liberal Enlightenment
(1870 1888)

• Guzmán Blanco
• Hands on rule initially
• Exercised power behind the scenes subsequently
• Holiday in Paris (1884-1886Accomplishments
• Centralization of power in Caracas
• Economic development
• Infrastructure construction
• Modernization of Caracas

• Arch of the Federation

• Dictatorship light

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Political Chaos Ends Liberal Era

• 1890 Guzmán Blancos heirs divide into factions
• 1899 clash among political factions leads to
  violence
• Return of revolutionary chaos opens the way for
  Andean domination.

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THE ANDEAN DICTATORSHIPS BEGIN

• Cipriano Castro and the Táchira Revolutionaries
• October 22, 1899 Victorious Andeans enter
  Caracas
• Castro in power 1899-1908
• Four years of intermittant fighting
• Default on foreign debts leads to blockade (1902)
• U.S. role as negotiator
• Castro becomes nationalist hero by resisting
  demands for debt payment by North Atlantic
  nations
• November 1908 to Europe for an operation

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Juan Vicente Gómez (1908-1935

• Style of governing
• Political unification
• Economic transformation
• Runs Venezuela like his ranch
• Cattle deals used to build the state
• Force and economic incentives ensure loyalty of
  the inner circle

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December 1935Outburst of hatred against Gómez
clan upon the passing of the dictator
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Heirs of Gomez Modernization and Oligarchic
Democracy (1935-1945

• López Contraras
• Medina Angarita (1940-45)
• Continuing modernization
• Nationalism and petroleum
• Politics of the aborted 1945 presidential
  election campaign
• Revolution of October 18, 1945

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A DECADE OF REVOLUTIONARY MODERNIZATION BEGINS

• Trienio (1945-48)
• Rapid modernization of peasants
• AD takes control of organized labor
• Marxist cast of AD governments antagonizes the
  church
• Incorporation of provincial middle class
• Constitution of 1947
• Universal suffrage
• Representative democracy

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Elections of December, 1947

• ADs Rómulo Gallegos wins more than 2/3 of vote
• Opposition parties frustrated
• COPEI (Christian Democrats)
• PCV (Communists)
• URD (Democratic Republican Union)

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Coup November 28, 1948

• AD divided paralyzed
• Opposition believes they have been treated
  unfairly
• Church fears Marxist impact on Catholic education
• Military succumbs to pressure from opponents of
  the government

• Provisional President Gen. Carlos Delgado Chalbaud

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General Pérez Jiménez and the New National Ideal

• Andean militarism with a new twist
• Populism
• Physical development
• Reliance on petroleum income
• Nationalism
• Infrastructure development

• Loved by the U.S. business community?

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Decay of the military regime (1956-57)

• Increasing persecution of opponents
• Fall in oil prices
• Corruption
• All work and no play makes Marcos a dull boy

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Fall of the Pérez Jiménez Dictatorship (1957-58)

• Mid 1957
• Democratic Forces - meet in New York City to
  coordinate efforts against the dictatorship
• November 1957
• Plebiscite on another term for the dictator
• January 23 1958 Democratic Revolution
• Return of exiles
• Pact of Punto Fijo (shares power)

• Much of territory remains under-populated

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CARACAS ( late 1950s)
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TRANSITION TO REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY

• National Elections December 1958
• Results (Presidential)
• AD Rómulo Betancourt (49)
• URD, PCV Admiral Wolfgang Larrazabal (35)
• COPEI Rafael Caldera (16)
• January 1, 1959
• Punto Fijo democracy begins