[R-G] The Nation: Forum on Venezuela

[Anthony Fenton]

  article | posted December 7, 2007 (web only)
Forum on Venezuela

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20071224/forum

On December 2, by a slim 50.7 percent to 49.3 percent margin,  
Venezuelans rejected a slate of sixty-nine constitutional reforms  
championed by President Hugo Chávez. Fiercely debated in Venezuela,  
the referendum sparked a spirited discussion among our contributors.

Many of Chávez's proposals--lowering the voting age; prohibiting  
discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, race or  
disability; expanding social security; shortening the workweek; and  
requiring gender parity in candidates for elected office--were  
greatly admired. Other measures--such as the elimination of term  
limits on the presidency and the expansion of executive power to  
declare a state of emergency--were less well received.

In many mainstream media outlets, commentators worried about Chávez's  
emerging "dictatorship" and cheered the referendum's defeat as a  
triumph for democracy. Looking beyond such rhetoric, many of our  
contributors have different interpretations of the most controversial  
reforms, although some are critical of not only their substance but  
the manner in which they were presented to the Venezuelan people.

CONTINUED BELOW
What forces drove the opposition to Chávez's reforms? What does the  
referendum's defeat mean for the future of the Bolivarian revolution?  
And what did the majority of the US press get wrong (or right) about  
the vote in Venezuela? Our forum contributors, representing a range  
of perspectives, tackle these and other questions. They are:

Mark Weisbrot: Progressive Change in Venezuela:
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20071224/weisbrot

Sujatha Fernandes: What Does the 'No' Vote Mean?:
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20071224/fernandes

Chesa Boudin: A Silver Lining for the Bolivarian Revolution:
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20071224/boudin

Elisabeth Young-Bruehl: Behind the Student Movement's Victory:
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20071224/young-bruehl

Greg Grandin: Chavismo and Democracy:
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20071224/grandin