Chavez Outlines Proposed Social and Economic Structure for Venezuelan Socialism

October 9th 2007, by Chris Carlson – Venezuelanalysis.com

Venezuela President Hugo Chavez on his TV program Aló Presidente this Sunday (ABN)

Mérida, October 9, 2007 (venezuelanalysis.com)- On Sunday, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez outlined his conception of how his constitutional reform proposal change the political and territorial organization of the country and will provide more political power to community organizations. Chavez made his presentation during his weekly TV and radio program Aló Presidente.

"With the approval of the Constitutional Reform, with the power that it will give to the people, we will break from this straightjacket that the colonial model imposed upon us," said Chavez on Sunday from the Humboldt Hotel on the mountain above Caracas.

Chavez spent much of his show this week explaining what he calls "the new geometry of power," which will reorganize the political, territorial, and economic structure of the country. Chavez has said that these changes will be fundamental to the planned transition to a socialist system in the country.

The president explained the proposed territorial distribution, which will be made up of states, federal districts, municipalities, communes, federal territories, and island districts. Chavez has explained before that organized communities will unite to form communes throughout the country, which will basically be self-governing entities.

As for political organization, the communities will exercise power through the communal councils, workers councils, and farmer and producer councils. Chavez emphasized that in this way the communities will have increased decision-making power with regards to the administration of public resources and public works.

"It's not bringing power closer to the people, but rather giving power to the people," emphasized Chavez.

The national government will be assigning a total of Bs. 3.2 trillion (US$ 1.4 billion) to communal councils in 2008, according to Chavez. He said that the money would be progressively administered to the communities over the next year as they get organized.

"For next year, once we have popular power included in the constitution, the government will be ready to transfer resources, duties and responsibilities to the communes, starting in January of 2008," said Chavez.

He went on to explain the proposed economic configuration that will set up productive units under the management of communes and in the form of socialist enterprises and cooperatives. Chavez emphasized that the economy would be centered on satisfying the needs of the Venezuelan communities and decreasing inequality in the population so that "there are not such extreme differences among Venezuelans."

"Popular power is the essence of full democracy, of socialism, of socialist democracy. Only in socialism can we achieve it," he said.

Along these lines Chavez also proposed transferring the management of the national community health system Barrio Adentro to the communities. He said that with the changing of the constitution, an automatic 5 percent of the national budget will go directly to the communities, and along with this each community could manage the primary health clinics, the first tier of the Barrio Adentro health system.

He also proposed that with the constitutional reform the communities will be able to manage other programs, such as administrating money for educational scholarships in each community, as well as the maintenance of the public schools and other public services. Chavez assured that his constitutional reform proposal would be approved by 60 percent of the population.

Humanitarian Accord in Colombia

The Venezuelan president also made several references on Sunday to his efforts to mediate in the conflict between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). During his show he called on Colombian President Alvaro Uribe to help him in arranging a meeting with the leader of the FARC Manuel Marulanda.

A meeting between Chavez and the FARC leaders has been in the works for several weeks, and was eventually set for Saturday, October 8th, but had to be postponed for security reasons. Chavez insists that the meeting is essential to the efforts to reach a humanitarian exchange of hostages, but the Colombian government has not guaranteed secure conditions for the guerrillas in meeting with Chavez.

"I think the government of President Uribe needs to help us in that respect. The statements of the Colombian defense minister didn't help much, when once the meeting was announced he said that the FARC guerrillas would be moving at their own risk, and that they would continue carrying out operations to capture them. That, as they say in Colombia, seemed like a stick in the spokes," said Chavez.

Chavez assured that he would continue to work to arrange a meeting with the FARC leaders and to achieve a humanitarian agreement between the Colombian government and the guerrilla organization. He assured that he will work with patience, but will not stop efforts to mediate in the conflict.