Sunday, March 30, 2014

Venezuela: "No to Cubanization"

Protesters gather in the streets of Caracas, Venezuela, enraged at the Cuban government. Why? They contend that their government and leader, Raul Castro, leeched off Venezuela's oil wealth, united a brand of socialism onto their country, and choreographed a broad crackdown on dissent.
After the death of Hugo Chavez, Venezuela's longtime president and Fidel Castro's foreign ally, there has been a lot of fixation on Cuban influence in Venezuela's affairs, reflected by the similarity of the two countries' economic and political realities. The protesters feel strongly against "Cubanization" and the "Cuban invasion."
Venezuelans feel that Cubans control military intelligence, police intelligence, and the coordination of armed forces. However, there is very minimal evidence of the sort. Venezuelans claim this knowledge of the presence of Cubans involved in their forces from their distinct accents. The Cubans "direct the repression." The Cuban government has not responded to these assertions.
Venezuelans' high resentment toward the Cuban government is partially stemmed from the deal their country ships to Cuba each year: the $4 billion worth of oil. Cuba's return to Venezuela is paid through sending thousands of doctors, dentists, and technicians to work there. Although there are many critics against the Cubans' presence in Venezuela, a majority of the poor in Venezuela value the presence of Cuba's doctors especially. Eugenio Yanez, a Cuban commentator states, "There is a civil society in Venezuela. The Cuban opposition would love to be able to do what they're doing in Venezuela, but they can't."
Read more here.

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