While
Venezuela’s government and the Chavista movement proclaimed victory
over the worst blackouts to plague the country, Washington’s coup
masters have promised more darkness until their goals are complete.
by
Misión Verdad
Part
7 - Solidarity and communal strength: the people pool together
The
magnitude of the electric attack would have resulted in a total
collapse of Venezuela and its society, realizing the “failed state”
label that Washington evokes constantly to justify direct military
aggression.But
throughout Venezuela, the population rejected impulses to surrender
to anguish, relying on family and community structures to address
their needs. Resistance and community are constant themes in the
culture of Chavismo, however, it is notable that despite calls to
turn to violent protest, most opposition supporters stayed home – a
tactic rejection of Guaidó’s divisive appeals.In
the barrios and countryside across the country, firewood was used to
cook food, while neighbors scouted nearby areas for drinking water.
Using cars only to make emergency trips and charge cellphones,
communities were able to stay in touch and keep their members
informed about the progress with respect to the restoration of the
power supply.The
previous work of the Committees of Local Supply and Production (CLAP)
was also a highlight. This organization was established to provide
food at low cost to over six million citizens. In some states the
distribution of food and domestic gas continued even with all
communications cut off.The
CLAP program has complete records of the populations they support. It
has served as a support network with a comprehensive map of the
strongest and weakest areas, allowing each community to act according
to its needs. Thanks to CLAP, government was able to maximize its
effectiveness during the blackout by targeting the communities with
the greatest needs.Other
organized groups accompanied the state with the smaller tasks to
support the most vulnerable. One example took place at the JM de los
Ríos Hospital, where in addition to guaranteeing medical attention
to the hospitalized children. There, they were visited by artists who
provided hours of healthy entertainment in the midst of the
uncertainty and helping stave off fear.The
civic-military union that forms the linchpin of the Bolivarian
Revolution was also at the heart of the counterattack. Minister of
Defense Vladimir Padrino López highlighted the deployment of
different elements of the Bolivarian National Armed Force to restore
basic services and protect the Venezuelan population.Instead
of intimidating citizens accustomed to being locked in their homes
lit with televisions and computers, the blackout served as an
opportunity to improvise community activities, exchange ideas to
protect food, and share information about medical care locations,
commercial options and functional pharmacies.Each
community’s story of persisting through the blackout paints a
broader portrait of a society that has been shaped by the culture of
Chavismo, where popular participation is seen as the most precious
feature of the Venezuelan identity.It
was this feature of Venezuelan society that enabled it to effectively
resist the most prolonged and massive attack on its infrastructure
since the dawn of the Bolivarian Revolution. And it contrasted
sharply with the negative solutions spun out of the
“entrepreneurship” sector, which chose to privatize services
during such a critical time, exploiting citizens in need by selling
ice, water, candles and electricity supply in foreign currency.
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