Papers by Margarita Lopez-Maya
Venezuela: Elecciones 1988
Cuadernos Del Cendes, 1988
Crisis en el sistema político venezolano
Cuadernos Del Cendes, 1989
Temas y Debates, 2013
En diciembre de 1998, con el triunfo electoral de Hugo Chávez Frías y su alianza, el Polo Patriót... more En diciembre de 1998, con el triunfo electoral de Hugo Chávez Frías y su alianza, el Polo Patriótico, comenzó en Venezuela un proceso de cambios que dura hasta hoy y se inició también en América latina, lo que algunos denominan el giro a la izquierda de la región. Chávez se impuso durante la campaña presidencial mediante un fuerte discurso polarizador y anti-neoliberal, que prometió desplazar defnitivamente a las elites políticas, que dominaban el Estado desde hacía décadas, acabar con la corrupción administrativa y encontrar a través de una democracia participativa, un nuevo modelo económico y político para el país. En este artículo pasamos revista a las gestiones gubernamentales de Hugo Chávez hasta hoy distinguiendo dos períodos de características diferenciadas: su primer gobierno orientado por la democracia participativa y protagónica; y el segundo período actualmente en curso, orientado por un proyecto denominado Socialismo del siglo XXI.
Revista Venezolana de Gerencia, 2009
Revista Venezolana de Gerencia, 2009
En este articulo se analiza la accion gubernamental del presidente Hugo Chavez Frias, centrando e... more En este articulo se analiza la accion gubernamental del presidente Hugo Chavez Frias, centrando el foco en la dimension social de esa accion. Se argumenta sobre el caracter de ";democracia sustantiva"; que propone el proyecto politico ";bolivariano"; elaborado en los años 90 por fuerzas sociales y politicas de izquierda lideradas por Chavez y su materializacion en la Constitucion de 1999 y en las Lineas Generales del Desarrollo Economico y Social de la Nacion, 2001-2007. Se exponen los ejes del ";equilibrio social"; que orientan la accion estatal actual y entre otras politicas sociales medulares, se examinan algunas ";misiones que se han venido desarrollando desde que se supero el paro-sabotaje petrolero de diciembre 2002 -febrero 2003, proporcionando cifras principalmente oficiales, que son hasta ahora las disponibles.
The Rise of Causa Я A Workers’ Party Shakes Up the Old Politics
NACLA Report on the Americas, 1994
Revista Venezolana De Economia Y Ciencias Sociales, 2003
Proyecto académico sin fines de lucro, desarrollado bajo la iniciativa de acceso abierto
Venezuela post-referendo
Nueva Sociedad, 2008
El ajustado triunfo del «No» en el referendum constitucional del 2 de diciembre de 2007 obligo a ... more El ajustado triunfo del «No» en el referendum constitucional del 2 de diciembre de 2007 obligo a Hugo Chavez a ensayar algunos gestos de apertura y moderacion. En su discurso ante la Asamblea Nacional, el presidente admitio graves deficits de gestion, sobre todo en areas sensibles como la seguridad y el abastecimiento alimentario, y dispuso un cambio de gabinete que parece orientado a inyectarle eficiencia a su gobierno. Sin embargo, no ha abandonado su estilo confrontativo, tanto con la oposicion interna como en materia de politica internacional, y tampoco parece decidido a que el Partido Socialista Unido de Venezuela se convierta en una fuerza pluralista y democratica. En suma, algunos cambios y rectificaciones que no alteran en esencia su plan de avanzar hacia el «socialismo del siglo xxi».
Caracas The State and Peoples’ Power in the Barrio
Participation and Democracy in the Twenty-First Century City, 2010
The new opportunities opened up by the Chavez government since 1999 for promoting popular partici... more The new opportunities opened up by the Chavez government since 1999 for promoting popular participation in the management of public affairs undoubtedly constitute a central element in its overall national revolutionary project. Between 1999 and 2007, during the first presidential period, they were seen as part of what was identified as the ‘Bolivarian’ project or the creation of a ‘participatory and protagonistic’ democracy. Subsequently, they have been seen as part of the project of a ‘twentieth-century socialism’, identified as the central orientation of the president’s second government.
Socialist Register, Mar 19, 2009
Venezuela: The Political Crisis of Post-Chavismo
Social Justice, Dec 22, 2014
During the two years of PRESIDENT HUGO CHAVEZ'S ILLNESS, THE VARIOUS imbalances that had char... more During the two years of PRESIDENT HUGO CHAVEZ'S ILLNESS, THE VARIOUS imbalances that had characterized Venezuelan society since the beginning of his first term in 1999 deepened. His death, on March 5,2013, left an immense political vacuum. During the 14 years of his rule, political power and decision making were concentrated in the presidency. On December 8,2012, before leaving for Havana to undergo a last surgery from which he would never recover, Chavez announced that his successor would be Vice President and Chancellor Nicolas Maduro. Following the guidelines stipulated in the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (CRB V), upon declaration of his death presidential elections were immediately convened and took place on April 14. Maduro won, but the results were closer than the polls and analysts had anticipated. As had become the norm in the Chavez era, the electoral competition was characterized by the use of state resources for the campaign of the ruling party. State media and employees were also involved in the campaigns, further demonstrating the elimination of boundaries between state, government, and ruling party, with state powers subordinated to the "Revolution" (Lopez Maya and Lander 2013; see also www.oevenezolano.org). The situation turned combative when the National Electoral Council (CNE) published its first bulletin reporting data from 90 percent of the polling places. The report showed only a 1.7 percent advantage for Maduro over Henrique Capriles Radonski of the Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD). (1) Maduro's triumphant discourse that night sounded awkward because it was out of proportion to the very slim lead he had. Six months earlier, candidate Hugo Chavez had won the presidential elections with an advantage of 11 percent. This noticeable weakening of power put Maduro and the ruling party in a difficult political position vis-a-vis the opposition and the Chavista base. In the following days, the president, his government, and his party opted to harden the polarizing discourse, denouncing a potential coup d'etat from the extreme Right--whose head would be Capriles Radonski. They gave signs of condoning acts of violence against opposition leaders and supporters. This deepened the political crisis even more. The Political Context (2) The political crisis developing in Venezuela is marked by extensive political imbalances. These result from the dismantling of the liberal democratic institutions established in the CRB V and their being replaced with a new state of direct democracy, led "from above," during the second term of President Chavez (2007-2013). The new emerging regime has characteristics of authoritarian populism. The CRBV state has been replaced by a non-liberal "communal state." Chavista Populism Although scholars have not yet reached a consensus about the nature of populism, the definition proposed by Ernesto Laclau (2005) describes it as a universal form of doing politics characterized by an aggressive and polarizing political discourse that divides society into "the people" (the good, the poor, the powerless) and "the oligarchy" (the bad, the elite, the powerful). Populist politics centers on a charismatic leader who establishes direct relationships with his followers, without mediation. Because of this, authors such as de la Torre (2008) and Peruzzotti (2008) consider it to be a form of direct democracy: it simplifies the political discourse, generates a powerful potential for mobilizing that facilitates political cohesion among movement participants, and transforms the relationship between society and the state. On the one hand, these authors assert that in countries where populism has recently gained momentum (Bolivia, Ecuador, Argentina, Venezuela), processes of justice and social inclusion have occurred. On the other hand, sustaining this form of politics over time results in the weakening and/or destroying of mediating institutions and political representation, creating the conditions for anomie and authoritarianism. …
Venezuela: el impacto de sus reformas políticas durante el lapso de 1989-1993
Cuadernos Del Cendes, 1994
El populismo y sus tendencias
Vanguardia Dossier, 2013
Venezuela: Hugo Chávez and Bolivarianism
Revista Venezolana De Economia Y Ciencias Sociales, Dec 1, 2008
Los Estados Unidos ante la "revolución" del 18 de octubre de 1945 en Venezuela
Cuadernos Del Cendes, 1993
Cuadernos Del Cendes, Aug 1, 2004
Proyecto académico sin fines de lucro, desarrollado bajo la iniciativa de acceso abierto
Sociedad Y Economia, Sep 17, 2011
La participación civil en el golpe y el contragolpe de abril de 2002 son la clave para comprender... more La participación civil en el golpe y el contragolpe de abril de 2002 son la clave para comprender la situación venezolana. Después de dos decenios de receción económica y empobrecimiento social se ha producido una aguda polarización en la sociedad. Dicha polarización encontró formas de expresión política en los años noventa a través de proyectos renuentes a reconocerse uno a otro, porque estaban en juego las propias reglas del juego político. Esto hace que, aunque se haya superado el golpe de Estado de abril, la crisis siga abierta, igual que las tentaciones conspirativas y autoritarias.
Politeia, 2003
A comparative analysis mass action in two periods in time: the first government of Rafael Caldera... more A comparative analysis mass action in two periods in time: the first government of Rafael Caldera (1969-1974) and the first years in the government of Hugo Chávez Frías (1999-2002). In spite of marked differences, specifically regarding their complexity, protests in Venezuela during these two time periods hold significant similarities. The number, modalities and nature are quite similar though the protest during the first timeframe is less diverse and complex yet more violent than that of the second period in time. Why the similarities? What processes explain the differences? What ideas or hypotheses on sociopolitical processes of society may be derived from them? This article is structured as follows: the first part addresses protests in the first term of Caldera. Part two does the same regarding the first years of Chávez's term. Parts three and four identify the factors giving rise to mass actions in both governments. The article ends with comparative conclusions aimed at answering the above questions.
Populismo e inclusión en el proyecto bolivariano
Cabemos Todos Los Desafios De La Inclusion 2004 Isbn 980 12 0646 2 Pags 129 140, 2004
Espacio Abierto, 2006
In this article we analyze three representative actors in Venezuelan popular protest: retired wor... more In this article we analyze three representative actors in Venezuelan popular protest: retired workers, university students and street vendors in reference to the issue of their identities. We use the collective action frame approach and support the analysis with empirical data obtained from interviews held at ten protest events that took place in Caracas in 1999. We describe the most important images that these actors construct in order to awaken sympathy and solidarity on the part of authorities and general public in order to achieve their goals.
Uploads
Papers by Margarita Lopez-Maya