Venezuela: Politicians & Trade Unions Demand Changes in Government

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2-11-1992 Venezuela: Politicians & Trade Unions Demand Changes In Government Economic Policy Barbara Khol

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Recommended Citation Khol, Barbara. "Venezuela: Politicians & Trade Unions Demand Changes In Government Economic Policy." (1992). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/notisur/8389

This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Latin America Digital Beat (LADB) at UNM Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in NotiSur by an authorized administrator of UNM Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. LADB Article Id: 062744 ISSN: 1060-4189 Venezuela: Politicians & Trade Unions Demand Changes In Government Economic Policy by Barbara Khol Category/Department: General Published: Tuesday, February 11, 1992

According to a Feb. 9 report by the Agence France-Presse, after the attempted coup on Feb. 4, politicians of all stripes have called on President Carlos Andres Perez to "suspend" or at least scale down his economic austerity policy under threat of another "Caracazo." On Feb. 27, 1989, a wave of looting and street violence resulted in the deaths of between 250 (official count) and 1,000 (independent count) persons. Most of the dead were individuals involved in looting and shot by soldiers. In Maracaibo on Feb. 6, Venezuela's second-largest city (600 km. west of Caracas), demonstrations were quashed by the army. The government's economic team acknowledges that purchasing power of the middle class has been squeezed since 1989. Labor union sources say workers' real wages and salaries have been reduced by nearly half over the past three years. Humberto Celli, president of the ruling social democrat party, Accion Democratica, and of the Latin American Parliament, said the cabinet should be "broadened" to include representatives of other political tendencies, including the left. Former presidents Rafael Caldera (1969-1974) and Luis Herrera Campins (1979-1984); Eduardo Fernandez, secretary general of the Christian Democrat party (COPEI); and several trade union leaders have publicly called on the government to immediately adopt economic policies oriented to meeting workers' needs. President Perez requested that the national congress accelerate appropriation of US$700 million obtained through privatization of state-run companies to spend on health, education, and water distribution programs. Within 24 hours of the attempted coup, Perez approved payment of back salaries to public school teachers from the 1991 school year. A few days before the Feb. 4 "incident," the president had rejected the teachers' demand on the ground the government could not afford it. (Basic data from Agence France-Presse, 02/09/92)

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