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Bloomberg
Venezuelans are stockpiling scarce food and water as tensions mount ahead of a widely criticized Sunday vote that President Nicolas Maduro has called to elect an assembly of supporters to rewrite the constitution and strengthen his grip on power.
Maduro—who’s presided over an increasingly autocratic regime that has imperiled the country’s six-decade democracy and left the economy and society in shambles—is showing few signs of backing down despite growing pressure. He’s broadcast a deluge of propaganda supporting the assembly even as outraged opposition leaders called a general strike on Wednesday to forestall it. And opposition is international: The head of the Organization of American States has called for elections and Spain’s former prime minister is trying to broker a deal. This month, US President Donald Trump threatened “swift†actions should Maduro proceed.
The Venezuelan president has been vague about goals for the so-called constituyente, although he’s said the body will convene Aug. 3 and sit atop all other branches of government. It alone will determine how long it should stay in power. While some analysts speculated that Maduro called the convention as a negotiating tactic to quell opposition protests and violence that has claimed more than 100 lives, others say Maduro will use the body to delay indefinitely elections he can’t win.
Chavismo Revisited
“People tend to consistently underestimate Maduro,” said Raul Gallegos, an analyst at consultancy Control Risks. “What we’re seeing is now is a government showing its true colors.†“This is a government that has absolutely no incentive or intention to let power go,†he said.
In calling for a constituent assembly, Maduro is taking a page from his mentor and predecessor, the late socialist firebrand Hugo Chavez. But unlike Chavez’s assembly in 1999, which rewrote the constitution to the delight of millions of his supporters, Maduro’s initiative seemingly has little popular support. The opposition coalition, which this month drew 7.5 million supporters in a unofficial protest plebiscite, plans its 48-hour strike as a last-ditch effort to persuade Maduro to cancel the vote.