Neoliberalism is both a political philosophy and a term used to signify the late-20th-century political reappearance of 19th-century ideas associated with free-market capitalism . The term has multiple, competing definitions, and is often used pejoratively. In scholarly use, the term is often left undefined or used to describe a multitude of phenomena. However, it is primarily employed to delineate the societal transformation resulting from market-based reforms.
210-526: The Caracazo is the name given to the wave of protests, riots, and looting that started on 27 February 1989 in the Venezuelan city of Guarenas , spreading to Caracas and surrounding towns following austerity measures from President Carlos Andrés Pérez . Weeklong clashes resulted in numerous deaths, with estimates ranging from hundreds to thousands, attributed largely to security forces and military involvement, according to various reports. The riots and
420-537: A continental landmass and many islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea . It comprises an area of 916,445 km (353,841 sq mi), and its population was estimated at 29 million in 2022. The capital and largest urban agglomeration is the city of Caracas . The continental territory is bordered on the north by the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean , on the west by Colombia , Brazil on
630-429: A recession , and in 2015, had the world's highest inflation, surpassing 100%. In 2017, Donald Trump 's administration imposed more economic sanctions against PDVSA and Venezuelan officials. Economic problems, as well as crime, were the causes of the 2014–present Venezuelan protests . Since 2014, roughly 5.6 million people have fled Venezuela . In January 2016, Maduro decreed an "economic emergency", revealing
840-477: A shock therapy , which rapidly transformed Chile from an economy with a protected market and strong government intervention into a liberalized, world-integrated economy, where market forces were left free to guide most of the economy's decisions. Inflation was tempered, falling from over 600% in 1974, to below 50% by 1979, to below 10% right before the economic crisis of 1982 ; GDP growth spiked (see chart) to 10%. however, inequality widened as wages and benefits to
1050-515: A "disproportionate use of force" was especially used in impoverished areas. Poor areas faced increased violence during the riots, with authorities firing indiscriminately throughout neighborhoods and dragging some individuals out of their homes for summary executions . It was common to see bodies spread throughout the streets for hours during the protests. Estimates from the Comité de Familiares de Víctimas del Caracazo state that 97% people who died during
1260-415: A "slowly unfolding economic disaster" and bequeathed to the world increased inequalities, societal divisions, economic misery and a lack of meaningful politics. The Great Depression in the 1930s, which severely decreased economic output throughout the world and produced high unemployment and widespread poverty , was widely regarded as a failure of economic liberalism . To renew the damaged ideology,
1470-561: A 1999 constituent assembly to write a new Constitution. The Revolution refers to a left-wing populism social movement and political process led by Chávez, who founded the Fifth Republic Movement in 1997 and the United Socialist Party of Venezuela in 2007. The "Bolivarian Revolution" is named after Simón Bolívar . According to Chávez and other supporters, the "Bolivarian Revolution" sought to build
1680-649: A US$ 450 million emergency loan. Pérez thanked Bush and asked him to support a change in debt policy toward Latin America, saying "I want to tell you if there is no change in [international] debt policy then whatever we may do here may be useless". Pérez told Bush that he had sent him a letter several days earlier and that he would appreciate it if he would read it. In the morning, troops entered homes to search for armed individuals. As tensions eased, troops began to sweep through neighborhoods collecting appliances and cash registers and informing citizens that if they provided
1890-471: A certificate of purchase, the items would be returned. Citizens began to be observed in the streets participating in daily life and some businesses reopened. At this time, cemeteries began to grow crowded as individuals gathered to bury their loved ones who were killed earlier in the week. The final documented death of the Caracazo was Napoleón Soto Vilera after being shot in the head from by an individual at
2100-514: A civilian-military regime. Shortly after the inauguration of Fujimori, his government received a $ 715 million grant from United States Agency for International Development (USAID) on 29 September 1990 for the Policy Analysis, Planning and Implementation Project (PAPI) that was developed "to support economic policy reform in the country". De Soto proved to be influential to Fujimori, who began to repeat de Soto's advocacy for deregulating
2310-419: A clean slate and his political rights reinstated, allowing Chávez to win and maintain the presidency continuously from 1999 until his death in 2013. Chávez won the elections of 1998, 2000, 2006 and 2012 and the presidential referendum of 2004. A collapse in confidence in the existing parties led to Hugo Chávez being elected president in 1998 and the subsequent launch of a "Bolivarian Revolution", beginning with
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#17327652649212520-407: A direct order to shoot to kill, but they did tell us that constitutional rights were suspended and that, if we needed to use our weapons to repress a looting, we were authorized to do so because nothing was going to happen to us. In other words, maybe they didn't explicitly order us to kill, but they did insinuate that if we needed to, it was within the rules of engagement to do so. The IACHR said that
2730-415: A drop in the real salary of the working class. They also liberalized trade policy so that foreign goods could freely enter the country. Argentina's industry, which had been on the rise for 20 years after the economic policies of former president Arturo Frondizi , rapidly declined as it was not able to compete with foreign goods. Following the measures, there was an increase in poverty from 9% in 1975 to 40% at
2940-487: A formula for an economic policy agenda and instead infuses it with a moral ethos that "aspires to be a complete way of life and a holistic worldview, in a way that previous models of capitalism did not." Neoliberalism is distinct from liberalism insofar as it does not advocate laissez-faire economic policy, but instead is highly constructivist and advocates a strong state to bring about market-like reforms in every aspect of society. Anthropologist Jason Hickel also rejects
3150-438: A government-appointed commission that ensured Pinochet would remain as president for a further eight years—with increased powers—after which he would face a re-election referendum. The Chicago Boys were given significant political influence within the military dictatorship , and they implemented sweeping economic reform . In contrast to the extensive nationalization and centrally planned economic programs supported by Allende,
3360-599: A group of 25 liberal intellectuals, including a number of prominent academics and journalists like Walter Lippmann , Friedrich Hayek , Ludwig von Mises , Wilhelm Röpke , Alexander Rüstow , and Louis Rougier , organized the Walter Lippmann Colloquium , named in honor of Lippmann to celebrate the publication of the French translation of Lippmann's pro- market book An Inquiry into the Principles of
3570-622: A heavy dependence on agricultural exports. It prompted a boom that lasted into the 1980s; by 1935, Venezuela's per capita gross domestic product was Latin America's highest. Gómez benefited handsomely from this, as corruption thrived, but at the same time, the new source of income helped him centralize the state and develop its authority. Gómez remained the most powerful man in Venezuela until his death in 1935. The gomecista dictatorship (1935–1945) system largely continued under Eleazar López Contreras , but from 1941, under Isaías Medina Angarita ,
3780-603: A large expeditionary force to come under general Pablo Morillo , with the goal to regain the lost territory in Venezuela and New Granada. As the war reached a stalemate on 1817, Bolívar reestablished the Third Republic of Venezuela on the territory still controlled by the patriots, mainly in the Guayana and Llanos regions. This republic was short-lived as only two years later, during the Congress of Angostura of 1819,
3990-462: A large quantity of fresh water being inside and in such close proximity to salt water; the very mild temperateness also corroborates this; and if the water of which I speak does not proceed from Paradise then it is an even greater marvel, because I do not believe such a large and deep river has ever been known to exist in this world. Spain's colonization of mainland Venezuela started in 1522, establishing its first permanent South American settlement in
4200-706: A longstanding dispute with Great Britain about the Essequibo territory, which Britain claimed as part of British Guiana and Venezuela saw as Venezuelan territory, erupted into the Venezuela Crisis of 1895 . The dispute became a diplomatic crisis when Venezuela's lobbyist, William L. Scruggs , sought to argue that British behavior over the issue violated the United States ' Monroe Doctrine of 1823, and used his influence in Washington, D.C., to pursue
4410-566: A mass movement to implement Bolivarianism — popular democracy , economic independence, equitable distribution of revenues, and an end to political corruption. They interpret Bolívar's ideas from a populist perspective, using socialist rhetoric. This led to formation of the Fifth Republic of Venezuela , commonly known as the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , that continues to the present day. Venezuela has been considered
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#17327652649214620-486: A mechanism of political innovation. Venezuela decentralized its political system and diversified its economy, reducing the size of the state. COPRE operated as an innovation mechanism, also by incorporating issues into the political agenda, that were excluded from public deliberation by the main actors of the democratic system. The most discussed topics were incorporated into the public agenda: decentralization, political participation, municipalization, judicial order reforms and
4830-512: A month after the rioting, Judith Ewell said that "foreign bankers ... forced on Venezuela the most stringent debt-repayment terms in Latin America." Strønen wrote that Pérez's reforms were the "last straw" for disenchanted groups and that, regarding the Caracazo, "The distance between the governing elites and the impoverished masses had become so wide that the authorities never saw it coming." Lower class citizens were affected by shortages at
5040-635: A new constitution to replace the Pinochet-era constitution, which entrenched certain neoliberal principles into the country's basic law, won with 78% of the vote. However, in September 2022 , the referendum to approve a rewritten the constitution was rejected with 61% of the vote. Peruvian economist Hernando de Soto , the founder of one of the first neoliberal organizations in Latin America, Institute for Liberty and Democracy (ILD), began to receive assistance from Ronald Reagan 's administration, with
5250-633: A philosophy that was more moderate than entirely Laissez-faire free-market capitalism and favored using state policy to temper social inequality and counter a tendency towards monopoly. In 1976, the military dictatorship 's economic plan led by José Alfredo Martínez de Hoz was the first attempt at establishing a neoliberal program in Argentina. They implemented a fiscal austerity plan that reduced money printing in an attempt to counter inflation. In order to achieve this, salaries were frozen; however, they were unable to reduce inflation, which led to
5460-628: A prominent critic of Carlos Andrés Pérez's government In 1998, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights condemned the government's action and referred the case to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights . In 1999, the Court heard the case and found that the government had committed violations of human rights , including extrajudicial killings. The Venezuelan government, by then headed by Chávez, did not contest
5670-702: A reduction in the rate of inflation , though Peru's poverty rate remained largely unchanged with over half of the population living in poverty in 1998. According to the Foundation for Economic Education , USAID, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Nippon Foundation also supported the sterilization efforts of the Fujimori government. E. Liagin reported that from 1993 to 1998, USAID "basically took charge of
5880-464: A report documented enforced disappearances that occurred in 2018–19. 724 enforced disappearances of political detainees were reported. The report stated that security forces subjected victims to torture . The report stated the government used enforced disappearances to silence opponents and other critical voices. Maduro ran for a third consecutive term in the 2024 presidential election , while former diplomat Edmundo González Urrutia represented
6090-467: A result of demonstrations by poor Chávez supporters and actions by the military. Chávez remained in power after an all-out national strike that lasted from December 2002 to February 2003 , including a strike/lockout in the state oil company PDVSA . Capital flight before and during the strike led to the reimposition of currency controls . In the subsequent decade, the government was forced into currency devaluations. These devaluations did not improve
6300-508: A result of inequality. Protests in other large cities besides Caracas had largely subsided. At 3:00pm, army reservist Carlos H. Cuñar was shot by troops while leaving the 23 de Enero neighborhood to buy groceries, later dying after he drove himself to a hospital. By nightfall, militants in Zona Central who had been clashing with troops, began to run out of ammunition. Pérez spoke with U.S. President George H. W. Bush , who offered Pérez
6510-699: A televised message in which the government attempted to announce that the situation was under control, but he was unable to conclude his speech, saying "I can't" and going off screen. Through the night, some working class areas participated in parties with alcohol looted earlier in the day, including whisky, champagne and other food supplies. Groups of hundreds of protesters began to spread throughout Caracas, writing messages on walls that said "The people are hungry" and "No more deception." There were reports of particularly vicious attacks on stores owned by foreigners, namely Chinese, Lebanese and Portuguese immigrants, accusing them of hoarding supplies and of being responsible for
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6720-545: A town in Miranda state about 30 kilometres (19 mi) east of Caracas, due to the increase in public transportation prices. A lack of timely intervention by authorities, as the rank and file of the Caracas Metropolitan Police [ es ] were on a labour strike . The protests spread from Guarenas to Caracas and other towns over the following hours/days, according to reports. Protests in
6930-484: A turning point in Venezuelan history" and that it "exposed a deep fissure in the social pact between political elites and the electorate established in the wake of the 1958 democratic revolution that ousted Pérez Jiménez ." Strønen makes a similar assessment, saying "El Caracazo made it clear that the illusion of a social contract between the poor and the rest of society was irrevocably compromised. From that moment on,
7140-422: Is a political philosophy which seeks to "liberate" the processes of capital accumulation . In contrast, Frances Fox Piven sees neoliberalism as essentially hyper- capitalism . Robert W. McChesney , while defining neoliberalism similarly as "capitalism with the gloves off", goes on to assert that the term was largely unknown by the general public in 1998, particularly in the United States . Lester Spence uses
7350-401: Is almost never defined but used in several senses to describe ideology, economic theory, development theory, or economic reform policy. It has become used largely as a term of abuse and/or to imply a laissez-faire market fundamentalism virtually identical to that of classical liberalism – rather than the ideas of those who attended the 1938 colloquium. As a result, there is controversy as to
7560-707: Is commonly used as a pejorative by critics, outpacing similar terms such as monetarism , neoconservatism , the Washington Consensus and "market reform" in much scholarly writing. The Handbook of Neoliberalism , for instance, posits that the term has "become a means of identifying a seemingly ubiquitous set of market-oriented policies as being largely responsible for a wide range of social, political, ecological and economic problems". Its use in this manner has been criticized by those who advocate for policies characterized as neoliberal. The Handbook , for example, further argues that "such lack of specificity [for
7770-466: Is contemporarily used to refer to market-oriented reform policies such as "eliminating price controls , deregulating capital markets , lowering trade barriers " and reducing, especially through privatization and austerity , state influence in the economy. It is also commonly associated with the economic policies introduced by Margaret Thatcher in the United Kingdom and Ronald Reagan in
7980-498: Is entirely located in the tropics over the Equator to around 12° N. Its climate varies from humid low-elevation plains, where average annual temperatures range as high as 35 °C (95.0 °F), to glaciers and highlands (the páramos ) with an average yearly temperature of 8 °C (46.4 °F). Annual rainfall varies from 430 mm (16.9 in) in the semiarid portions of the northwest to over 1,000 mm (39.4 in) in
8190-506: Is inherently political in nature, extending beyond mere economic considerations. The term is rarely used by proponents of free-market policies. When the term entered into common academic use during the 1980s in association with Augusto Pinochet 's economic reforms in Chile , it quickly acquired negative connotations and was employed principally by critics of market reform and laissez-faire capitalism . Scholars tended to associate it with
8400-739: Is near the Latin American average, Chile still has one of the highest Gini coefficients in the OECD , an organization of mostly developed countries that includes Chile but not most other Latin American countries. Furthermore, the Gini coefficient measures only income inequality ; Chile has more mixed inequality ratings in the OECD's Better Life Index , which includes indexes for more factors than only income, like housing and education . Additionally,
8610-404: Is not my problem, but neutralize it'." Some groups of troops allowed organized thefts to occur, letting people enter shops and take only essential items. In public statements, Pérez spoke of defending the property of the wealthy while making polarized statements that poor individuals protesting–who were the majority in the nation–were "committed to violence" and were " subversives ", resulting with
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8820-435: Is often associated with a set of economic liberalization policies, including privatization , deregulation , consumer choice , globalization , free trade , monetarism , austerity , and reductions in government spending . These policies are designed to increase the role of the private sector in the economy and society . Additionally, the neoliberal project is oriented towards the establishment of institutions and
9030-419: Is supported by his continuous denial of his policies being responsible for the unrest. Román Chalbaud 's 2005 homonymous film, El Caracazo , features an account of the events. The Venezuelan rock band La Vida Bohème also sings about the Caracazo. Venezuela Venezuela , officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a country on the northern coast of South America , consisting of
9240-461: The 1947 Venezuelan presidential election (the first free and fair elections in Venezuela). Gallegos governed until overthrown by a military junta led by the triumvirate Luis Felipe Llovera Páez [ es ] , Marcos Pérez Jiménez , and Gallegos' Defense Minister, Carlos Delgado Chalbaud , in the 1948 Venezuelan coup d'état . The most powerful man in the military junta (1948–58)
9450-589: The 1968 election for COPEI, the first time a party other than Democratic Action took the presidency through a democratic election. The new democratic order had its antagonists. Betancourt suffered an attack planned by the Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo in 1960, and the leftists excluded from the Pact initiated an insurgency by organizing themselves into the Armed Forces of National Liberation, sponsored by
9660-419: The 1988 election , which saw Carlos Andrés Pérez return for his second tenure as president. Pérez based his campaign on his legacy of abundance during his first presidential period , creating perceptions of being a populist leader as he promised that Venezuela would continue to modernize even though it was facing economic difficulties. During his campaign, he heavily rejected liberalization policies, describing
9870-702: The 2018 election with 68% of the vote. The result was challenged by Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, France and the US who deemed it fraudulent and recognized Juan Guaidó as president. Other countries continued to recognize Maduro, although China, facing financial pressure over its position, began hedging by decreasing loans, cancelling joint ventures, and signaling willingness to work with all parties. In August 2019, Trump imposed an economic embargo against Venezuela. In March 2020, Trump indicted Maduro and Venezuelan officials, on charges of drug trafficking, narcoterrorism , and corruption. In June 2020,
10080-675: The Asia-Pacific , the Middle East , and China implementing significant neoliberal reform. Additionally, the International Monetary Fund and World Bank encouraged neoliberal reforms in many developing countries by placing reform requirements on loans, in a process known as structural adjustment . Neoliberal ideas were first implemented in West Germany . The economists around Ludwig Erhard drew on
10290-492: The Colloque Walter Lippmann , the term neoliberalism was proposed, among other terms, and ultimately chosen to be used to describe a certain set of economic beliefs. The colloquium defined the concept of neoliberalism as involving "the priority of the price mechanism, free enterprise, the system of competition, and a strong and impartial state". According to attendees Louis Rougier and Friedrich Hayek ,
10500-594: The Essequibo area and with Colombia concerning the Gulf of Venezuela . In 1895, after years of diplomatic attempts to solve the border dispute, the dispute over the Essequibo River border flared up. It was submitted to a "neutral" commission (composed of British, American, and Russian representatives and without a direct Venezuelan representative), which in 1899 decided mostly against Venezuela's claim. Venezuela
10710-544: The Fifth Republic Movement , with Chávez winning the 1998 Venezuelan presidential election . Shortly after the Caracazo, the Minister of Defense said that 277 individuals were killed. A commission was established in the Venezuelan Congress to investigate the events during the Caracazo and voted for a report that concluded that 277 people were killed as well. The votes included that of José Vicente Rangel ,
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#173276526492110920-518: The Great Recession . In sum, the neoliberal policies of the 1980s and 1990s—initiated by a repressive authoritarian government —transformed the Chilean economy from a protected market with high barriers to trade and hefty government intervention into one of the world's most open free-market economies. Chile experienced the worst economic bust of any Latin American country during
11130-772: The Indigenous inhabitants . Native caciques (leaders) such as Guaicaipuro ( c. 1530–1568 ) and Tamanaco (died 1573) attempted to resist Spanish incursions, but the newcomers ultimately subdued them. In the 16th century, during the Spanish colonization, indigenous peoples such as the Mariches , themselves descendants of the Kalina, were converted to Roman Catholicism . Some resisting tribes or leaders are commemorated in place names, including Caracas, Chacao and Los Teques . The early colonial settlements focused on
11340-564: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) staff as "genocide workers in the pay of economic totalitarianism" and its policies as a "bomb that only kills people." Receiving 53% of the vote, Pérez demanded that Latin American debt be devalued by fifty percent and said that the region was a victim of international exploitation during celebrations after his inauguration. At the time of his election, Venezuela's international reserves were at $ 300 million USD ($ 708 million USD in 2022), its national debt stood at $ 34 billion USD ($ 80 billion USD in 2022) and
11550-631: The Lara state also started with students demonstrating against the increase in student fares and continued with public transport users in general. With no apparent authority presence or action, the crowd turned violent, the protest spread and turned into looting throughout the city. At midday Lara 's governor called for the National Guard to disperse protests in Barquisimeto due to the president's presence, resulting with limited demonstrations in
11760-597: The Latin American debt crisis (several years into neoliberal reform), but also had one of the most robust recoveries, rising from the poorest Latin American country in terms of GDP per capita in 1980 (along with Peru) to the richest in 2019. Average annual economic growth from the mid-1980s to the Asian crisis in 1997 was 7.2%, 3.5% between 1998 and 2005, and growth in per capita real income from 1985 to 1996 averaged 5%—all outpacing Latin American averages. Inflation
11970-631: The Maracaibo lowlands in the northwest, the northern mountains extending in a broad east–west arc from the Colombian border along the northern Caribbean coast, the wide plains in central Venezuela, and the Guiana Highlands in the southeast. The northern mountains are the extreme northeastern extensions of South America's Andes mountain range. Pico Bolívar , the nation's highest point at 4,979 m (16,335 ft), lies in this region. To
12180-467: The National Endowment for Democracy 's Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE) providing his ILD with funding. The economic policy of President Alan García distanced Peru from international markets, resulting in lower foreign investment in the country. Under García, Peru experienced hyperinflation and increased confrontations with the guerrilla group Shining Path , leading
12390-506: The Unitary Platform ( Spanish : Plataforma Unitaria Democrática ; PUD), the main opposition political alliance. Polls conducted before the election indicated that González would win by a wide margin. After the government-controlled National Electoral Council (CNE) announced partial results showing a narrow Maduro victory on 29 July, world leaders predominantly expressed skepticism of the claimed results and did not recognize
12600-479: The United States , the Chilean armed forces and national police overthrew the Allende government in a coup d'état . They established a repressive military junta , known for its violent suppression of opposition , and appointed army chief Augusto Pinochet Supreme Head of the nation. His rule was later given legal legitimacy through a controversial 1980 plebiscite , which approved a new constitution drafted by
12810-698: The Venezuela Crisis of 1902–1903 , in which Britain, Germany and Italy imposed a naval blockade before international arbitration at the new Permanent Court of Arbitration was agreed. In 1908, another dispute broke out with the Netherlands, which was resolved when Castro left for medical treatment in Germany and was promptly overthrown by Juan Vicente Gómez (1908–35). The discovery of massive oil deposits in Lake Maracaibo during World War I proved pivotal for Venezuela and transformed its economy from
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#173276526492113020-480: The aftermath of the announcement of results by the election authorities, protests broke out across the country . Venezuela is located in the north of South America; geologically, its mainland rests on the South American Plate . It has a total area of 916,445 km (353,841 sq mi) and a land area of 882,050 km (340,560 sq mi), making Venezuela the 33rd largest country in
13230-455: The arepa , a staple in Venezuelan cuisine . After the conquest, the population dropped markedly, mainly through the spread of infectious diseases from Europe. Two main north–south axes of pre-Columbian population were present, who cultivated maize in the west and manioc in the east. Large parts of the llanos were cultivated through a combination of slash and burn and permanent settled agriculture. In 1498, during his third voyage to
13440-508: The austerity reforms unveiled were the reduction of fuel subsidies and the increase in public transportation fares by 30 percent. He also took measures to decentralize and modernize the Venezuelan political system by the direct election of state governors, who had previously been appointed by the president. The most controversial part of the economic reform package was the reduction of the gasoline subsidies, which had long maintained domestic gasoline prices far beneath international levels and even
13650-585: The impeachment of a President for embezzlement of public funds charges in 1993. The collapse in confidence in the existing parties saw the 1998 Venezuelan presidential election , the catalyst for the Bolivarian Revolution , which began with a 1999 Constituent Assembly , where a new Constitution of Venezuela was imposed. The government's populist social welfare policies were bolstered by soaring oil prices, temporarily increasing social spending, and reducing economic inequality and poverty in
13860-583: The military rule under Augusto Pinochet (1973–1990) in Chile, opposition scholars took up the expression to describe the economic reforms implemented there and its proponents (the Chicago Boys ). Once this new meaning was established among Spanish-speaking scholars, it diffused into the English-language study of political economy. According to one study of 148 scholarly articles, neoliberalism
14070-487: The "Caracas smash" or "the big one in Caracas" based on Spanish dialect. During the presidency of Carlos Andrés Pérez from 1973 to 1979, the political elite in Venezuela believed that the nation faced a near-unlimited supply of cash flow due to high oil prices at the time and his administration racked on large amounts of debt. A fall in oil prices in the mid-1980s caused an economic crisis to take hold in Venezuela, and
14280-565: The "clearest repudiation of the country's establishment". In the 1960s, Latin American intellectuals began to notice the ideas of ordoliberalism ; they often used the Spanish term "neoliberalismo" to refer to this school of thought. They were particularly impressed by the social market economy and the Wirtschaftswunder ("economic miracle") in Germany and speculated about the possibility of accomplishing similar policies in their own countries. Neoliberalism in 1960s Argentina meant
14490-475: The 1950s and 1960s understood neoliberalism as referring to the social market economy and its principal economic theorists such as Walter Eucken , Wilhelm Röpke , Alexander Rüstow and Alfred Müller-Armack . Although Hayek had intellectual ties to the German neoliberals, his name was only occasionally mentioned in conjunction with neoliberalism during this period due to his more pro-free market stance. During
14700-489: The 1970s to "describe and decry a late twentieth-century effort by policymakers, think-tank experts, and industrialists to condemn social-democratic reforms and unapologetically implement free-market policies"; economic historian Phillip W. Magness notes its reemergence in academic literature in the mid-1980s, after French philosopher Michel Foucault brought attention to it. At a base level we can say that when we make reference to 'neoliberalism', we are generally referring to
14910-442: The 1980s, "have contributed to steady economic growth in Chile and have more than halved poverty rates," and some scholars have even called the period the " Miracle of Chile ". Other scholars have called it a failure that led to extreme inequalities in the distribution of income and resulted in severe socioeconomic damage. It is also contested how much these changes were the result of neoliberal economic policies and how much they were
15120-507: The 1990s, Chile maintained high growth, averaging 7.3% from 1990 to 1998. Eduardo Aninat, writing for the IMF journal Finance & Development , called the period from 1986 to 2000 "the longest, strongest, and most stable period of growth in [Chile's] history." In 1999, there was a brief recession brought about by the Asian financial crisis , with growth resuming in 2000 and remaining near 5% until
15330-523: The 1990s, MBR-200 participated in anti-austerity protests. In 1992, there were two attempted coups in February and November . Pérez was later accused of corruption and removed from the presidency. Chávez, an organiser of one of the coups, was found guilty of sedition and incarcerated, though he was subsequently pardoned by Pérez's successor, Rafael Caldera . MBR-200, Radical Cause and Movement Towards Socialism consolidated their political objectives into
15540-599: The Americas, Christopher Columbus sailed near the Orinoco Delta and landed in the Gulf of Paria . Amazed by the great offshore current of freshwater which deflected his course eastward, Columbus expressed in a letter to Isabella and Ferdinand that he must have reached Heaven on Earth (terrestrial paradise): Great signs are these of the Terrestrial Paradise... for I have never read or heard of such
15750-476: The Bolivarian Republic following the adoption of the new Constitution of 1999 . Following Chávez's election, Venezuela developed into a dominant-party system , dominated by the United Socialist Party of Venezuela . In April 2002, Chávez was briefly ousted from power in the 2002 Venezuelan coup d'état attempt following popular demonstrations by his opponents, but Chavez returned after two days as
15960-558: The CNE claims with only some exceptions. Both González and Maduro proclaimed themselves winners of the election. The results of the election were not recognized by the Carter Center and Organization of American States due to the lack of granular results, and disputed by the opposition, which claimed a landslide victory and released access to vote tallies collected by poll watchers from a majority of polling centers as proof. In
16170-470: The Caracazo were killed in their homes. In 23 de Enero , heavy repression was reported and bullet holes from the crackdowns were visible decades later in 2014. The initial official pronouncements stated that 276 people had died, though the Pérez administration attempted to block investigations. Of the deaths, two soldiers and one police officer were reported dead. After hundreds of unmarked graves were found in
16380-567: The Chicago Boys implemented rapid and extensive privatization of state enterprises, deregulation, and significant reductions in trade barriers during the latter half of the 1970s. In 1978, policies that would further reduce the role of the state and infuse competition and individualism into areas such as labor relations, pensions, health and education were introduced. > Additionally, the central bank raised interest rates from 49.9% to 178% to counter high inflation. These policies amounted to
16590-680: The Communist Party and Fidel Castro . In 1962 they tried to destabilize the military corps, with failed revolts. Betancourt promoted a foreign policy, the Betancourt Doctrine , in which he only recognized elected governments by popular vote. The 1973 Venezuelan presidential election of Carlos Andrés Pérez coincided with an oil crisis , in which Venezuela's income exploded as oil prices soared; oil industries were nationalized in 1976. This led to massive increases in public spending, but also increases in external debts, until
16800-633: The Democratic Party of the United States. The neoliberals coalesced around two magazines, The New Republic and the Washington Monthly , and often supported Third Way policies. The "godfather" of this version of neoliberalism was the journalist Charles Peters , who, in 1983, published "A Neoliberal's Manifesto". Historian Elizabeth Shermer argued that the term gained popularity largely among left-leaning academics in
17010-757: The Good Society . Meeting in Paris in August 1938, they called for a new liberal project, with "neoliberalism" one name floated for the fledgling movement. They further agreed to develop the Colloquium into a permanent think tank based in Paris called the Centre International d'Études pour la Rénovation du Libéralisme. While most agreed that the status quo liberalism promoting laissez-faire economics had failed, deep disagreements arose around
17220-525: The Granadian army; leading it, he liberated several countries and founded the Republic of Colombia ( Gran Colombia ). Sucre went on to liberate Ecuador and become the second president of Bolivia . Venezuela remained part of Gran Colombia until 1830, when a rebellion led by José Antonio Páez allowed the proclamation of a newly independent Venezuela, on 22 September; Páez became the first president of
17430-478: The Great Depression while Mises denounced the other faction, complaining that the ordoliberalism they advocated really meant "ordo-interventionism". Divided in opinion and short on funding, the Colloquium was mostly ineffectual; related attempts to further neoliberal ideas, such as the effort by Colloque-attendee Wilhelm Röpke to establish a journal of neoliberal ideas, mostly floundered. Fatefully,
17640-615: The Naval Observatory near Sierra Maestra. The observers have described the government response as massacre . Members of the National Directorate of Intelligence and Prevention Services (DISIP) were reported to have beaten protesters with baseball bats and pipes while they performed interrogations. One army lieutenant, Francisco Espinoza Guyón, said of orders received during the Caracazo: No one gave me
17850-550: The Orinoco Delta of the far east and the Amazonian Jungle in the south. The precipitation level is lower in the period from August through April. These periods are referred to as hot-humid and cold-dry seasons. Another characteristic of the climate is this variation throughout the country by the existence of a mountain range called "Cordillera de la Costa" which crosses the country from east to west. The majority of
18060-594: The Peruvian economy. Under Fujimori, de Soto served as "the President's personal representative", with The New York Times describing de Soto as an "overseas salesman", while others dubbed de Soto as the "informal president" for Fujimori. In a recommendation to Fujimori, de Soto called for a "shock" to Peru's economy. The policies included a 300% tax increase, unregulated prices and privatizing two-hundred and fifty state-owned entities. The policies of de Soto led to
18270-869: The Spanish conquest; it has been estimated at one million. In addition to Indigenous peoples known today, the population included groups such as the Kalina (Caribs), Auaké , Caquetio , Mariche , and Timoto–Cuicas . The Timoto–Cuica culture was the most complex society in Pre-Columbian Venezuela, with pre-planned permanent villages, surrounded by irrigated, terraced fields. Their houses were made of stone and wood with thatched roofs. They were peaceful and depended on growing crops. Regional crops included potatoes and ullucos . They left behind art, particularly anthropomorphic ceramics, but no major monuments. They spun vegetable fibers to weave into textiles and mats for housing. They are credited with having invented
18480-539: The United States. Some scholars note it has a number of distinct usages in different spheres: There is debate over the meaning of the term. Sociologists Fred L. Block and Margaret Somers claim there is a dispute over what to call the influence of free-market ideas which have been used to justify the retrenchment of New Deal programs and policies since the 1980s: neoliberalism, laissez-faire or "free market ideology". Other academics such as Susan Braedley, Med Luxton, and Robert W. McChesney, assert that neoliberalism
18690-677: The Vespucci and Ojeda crew, gave a different account. In his work Summa de geografía , he states that the crew found Indigenous peoples who called themselves the Veneciuela. Thus, the name "Venezuela" may have evolved from the native word. Previously, the official name was Estado de Venezuela (1830–1856), República de Venezuela (1856–1864), Estados Unidos de Venezuela (1864–1953), and again República de Venezuela (1953–1999). Evidence exists of human habitation in
18900-462: The Welsers the right to explore, rule and colonize the territory, as well as to seek the mythical golden town of El Dorado . The first expedition was led by Ambrosius Ehinger , who established Maracaibo in 1529. After the deaths of first Ehinger (1533), then Nikolaus Federmann , and Georg von Speyer (1540), Philipp von Hutten persisted in exploring the interior. In absence of von Hutten from
19110-481: The area now known as Venezuela from about 15,000 years ago. Tools have been found on the high riverine terraces of the Rio Pedregal in western Venezuela. Late Pleistocene hunting artifacts, including spear tips, have been found at a similar series of sites in northwestern Venezuela; according to radiocarbon dating , these date from 13,000 to 7,000 BC. It is unknown how many people lived in Venezuela before
19320-502: The area. Pérez flew to Barquisimeto for a meeting of the Venezuelan Executives Association. According to Pérez's executive secretary, Ignacio Betancourt, he dismissed the warnings from ministers and other officials throughout the day. After being shown footage of lootings and demonstrations, Pérez dismissed it saying that events had happened at noon and that the situation had calmed down. While meeting with
19530-461: The beginning of his Bolivarian Revolution . As part of the government's security forces, members of Chávez's MBR-200 allegedly participated in the crackdown; Chávez himself was sick that day with measles . The MBR-200, which in 1982 had promised to depose the bipartisanship governments, repudiated the Caracazo and accelerated its preparation for a coup d'état against the Perez government. Throughout
19740-651: The benefits are concentrated in Lima." In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic in Peru compounded these disparities, with political scientist Professor Farid Kahhat of the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru stating that, "market reforms in Peru have yielded positive results in terms of reducing poverty ... But what the pandemic has laid bare, particularly in Peru, is that poverty was reduced while leaving
19950-636: The bipartisanship governments, used the growing anger at economic austerity measures to justify a coup attempt in February 1992 ; a second coup d'état attempt occurred in November . President Carlos Andrés Pérez (re-elected in 1988) was impeached under embezzlement charges in 1993, leading to the interim presidency of Ramón José Velásquez (1993–1994). Coup leader Chávez was pardoned in March 1994 by president Rafael Caldera (1994–1999, his second term), with
20160-562: The business executives, Pérez told his audience, "There is nothing to be alarmed about (...) We are going to take advantage of the crisis to generate well-being." Pérez ordered to commence Plan Ávila , a military contingency plan in place since the 1960s. By noon, one delivery truck was reported to have been looted in central Caracas and protesters blocked the Francisco Fajardo Highway , which connected east to west Caracas. Students began to build barricades, which blocked
20370-530: The capital of the province, the crown of Spain claimed the right to appoint a governor. On Hutten's return to the capital, Santa Ana de Coro , in 1546, the Spanish governor Juan de Carvajal had Hutten and Bartholomeus VI. Welser executed. Subsequently, Charles V revoked Welser's concession. The Welsers transported German miners to the colony, in addition to 4,000 African slaves to plant sugar cane plantations. Many German colonists died from tropical diseases, to which they had no immunity , or through wars with
20580-543: The case covered by a statute of limitations . According to writers such as Elizabeth Burgos , Milagros Socorros [ es ] and Dámaso Jiménez, as well as Carlos Julio Peñaloza (a general at the time of the Caracazo), Cuban agents might have entered Venezuela during Carlos Andrés Pérez's inauguration ceremony, which was attended by Fidel Castro , and may have waited for unrest to occur in Venezuela so they could exacerbate political tensions. In Current History
20790-474: The classical liberal notion that competition drives economic prosperity. However, they argued that a laissez-faire state policy stifles competition, as the strong devour the weak since monopolies and cartels could pose a threat to freedom of competition. They supported the creation of a well-developed legal system and capable regulatory apparatus. While still opposed to full-scale Keynesian employment policies or an extensive welfare state , German neoliberal theory
21000-518: The collapse of oil prices during the 1980s crippled the economy. As the government started to devalue the currency in 1983 to face its financial obligations, standards of living fell dramatically. Failed economic policies and increasing corruption in government led to rising poverty and crime, worsening social indicators, and increased political instability. In the 1980s, the Presidential Commission for State Reform (COPRE) emerged as
21210-482: The competition of neoliberalism would establish an elite structure of successful individuals that would assume power in society, with these elites replacing the existing representative democracy acting on the behalf of the majority. To be neoliberal meant advocating a modern economic policy with state intervention . Neoliberal state interventionism brought a clash with the opposing laissez-faire camp of classical liberals, like Ludwig von Mises . Most scholars in
21420-470: The country had accrued significant levels of debt. Nevertheless, the administration of President Jaime Lusinchi was able to restructure the country's debt repayments and offset an economic crisis but allowed for the continuation of the government's policies of social spending and state-sponsored subsidies. Lusinchi's political party, the Democratic Action , was able to remain in power following
21630-483: The country towards high levels of instability. The Peruvian armed forces grew frustrated with the inability of the García administration to handle the nation's crises and began to draft an operation – Plan Verde – to overthrow his government. The military's Plan Verde involved the " total extermination " of impoverished and indigenous Peruvians perceived as a drain on the economy, the control or censorship of media in
21840-401: The crackdown by authorities, gunfights between radical groups and the army began on 1 March, with the former believing that they were responding to armed political repression of their neighborhoods. Ensuing firefights resulted in many bystanders being killed by "bullets from army troops and from sniping protesters". Photojournalist Douglas Blanco questioned the presence of sharpshooters, saying "I
22050-451: The developed world was under threat from collectivist trends, which they outlined in their statement of aims: The central values of civilization are in danger. Over large stretches of the Earth's surface the essential conditions of human dignity and freedom have already disappeared. In others, they are under constant menace from the development of current tendencies of policy. The position of
22260-683: The driver was asked to park the vehicle across the carriageway. When the Metropolitan Police arrived later, they said that they had orders to not interfere. At 1:00 pm, police fired upon an increasingly large and agitated crowd near the Parque Central Complex , killing student Yulimar Reyes, shooting her in the face with a shotgun at point-blank range . 65 civilians were reported dead by 6:00 pm, with no severe casualties reported among authorities. That afternoon, Interior Affairs Minister Alejandro Izaguirre delivered
22470-444: The earliest nations to implement neoliberal reform. Marxist economic geographer David Harvey has described the substantial neoliberal reforms in Chile beginning in the 1970s as "the first experiment with neoliberal state formation", which would provide "helpful evidence to support the subsequent turn to neoliberalism in both Britain... and the United States." Similarly, Vincent Bevins says that Chile under Augusto Pinochet "became
22680-419: The early 18th century, and was then reorganized as an autonomous Captaincy General starting in 1777. Caracas, founded in the central coastal region in 1567, was well-placed to become a key location, being near the coastal port of La Guaira and in a valley, in a mountain range, providing defensive strength against pirates and a more fertile and healthy climate. After unsuccessful uprisings, Venezuela, under
22890-550: The early 1970s. After several years of socialist economic policies under president Salvador Allende , a 1973 coup d'état , which established a military junta under dictator Augusto Pinochet , led to the implementation of a number of sweeping neoliberal economic reforms that had been proposed by the Chicago Boys , a group of Chilean economists educated under Milton Friedman . This "neoliberal project" served as "the first experiment with neoliberal state formation" and provided an example for neoliberal reforms elsewhere. Beginning in
23100-575: The early 1980s, the Reagan administration and Thatcher government implemented a series of neoliberal economic reforms to counter the chronic stagflation the United States and United Kingdom had each experienced throughout the 1970s. Neoliberal policies continued to dominate American and British politics until the Great Recession . Following British and American reform, neoliberal policies were exported abroad, with countries in Latin America ,
23310-413: The early years of the regime. However, poverty began to rapidly increase in the 2010s. The 2013 Venezuelan presidential election was widely disputed leading to widespread protest , which triggered another nationwide crisis that continues to this day. Venezuela has experienced democratic backsliding , shifting into an authoritarian state . It ranks low in international measurements of freedom of
23520-567: The economy. It would not be until a succession of economic downturns and crises in the 1970s that neoliberal policy proposals would be widely implemented. By this time, neoliberal thought had evolved. The early neoliberal ideas of the Mont Pelerin Society had sought to chart a middle way between the trend of increasing government intervention implemented after the Great Depression and the laissez-faire economics many in
23730-431: The efforts of the Colloquium would be overwhelmed by the outbreak of World War II and were largely forgotten. Nonetheless, the Colloquium served as the first meeting of the nascent neoliberal movement and would serve as the precursor to the Mont Pelerin Society , a far more successful effort created after the war by many of those who had been present at the Colloquium. Neoliberalism began accelerating in importance with
23940-445: The epicenter of the community as Europeans dominated the leadership roles. Established during a time when central planning was in the ascendancy worldwide and there were few avenues for neoliberals to influence policymakers, the society became a "rallying point" for neoliberals, as Milton Friedman phrased it, bringing together isolated advocates of liberalism and capitalism . They were united in their belief that individual freedom in
24150-477: The establishment of the Mont Pelerin Society in 1947, whose founding members included Friedrich Hayek , Milton Friedman , Karl Popper , George Stigler and Ludwig von Mises . Meeting annually, it became a "kind of international 'who's who' of the classical liberal and neo-liberal intellectuals." While the first conference in 1947 was almost half American, the Europeans dominated by 1951. Europe would remain
24360-581: The exportation of oil, with crude accounting for 86% of exports, and a high price per barrel to support social programs. Beginning in 2014 the price of oil plummeted from over $ 100 to $ 40. This placed pressure on the economy, which was no longer able to afford vast social programs. The Government began taking more money from PDVSA , the state oil company, resulting in a lack of reinvestment in fields and employees. Production decreased from its height of nearly 3 to 1 million barrels (480 to 160 thousand cubic metres ) per day. In 2014, Venezuela entered
24570-455: The extent of the crisis and expanding his powers. In July 2016, Colombian border crossings were temporarily opened to allow Venezuelans to purchase food and basic health items. In September 2016, a study indicated 15% of Venezuelans were eating " food waste discarded by commercial establishments". 200 prison riots had occurred by October 2016. The Maduro-aligned Supreme Tribunal , which had been overturning National Assembly decisions since
24780-654: The failure of the post-war consensus and neo-Keynesian economics to address the stagflation of the 1970s. The collapse of the USSR and the end of the Cold War also facilitated the rise of neoliberalism in the United States and around the world. The term neoliberalism has become increasingly prevalent in recent decades. It has been a significant factor in the proliferation of conservative and right-libertarian organizations, political parties , and think tanks , and predominantly advocated by them. Neoliberalism
24990-516: The findings of the case and accepted full responsibility for the government's actions. Venezuelan attorney general Luisa Ortega Díaz ordered Pérez's extradition from the United States in 2009 as a result of his government's violent response during the Caracazo. In August 2009, Defense Minister Italo del Valle Alliegro was charged in relation to the Caracazo. In July 2010, the Supreme Court overturned an appeal court ruling, which had declared
25200-412: The following months, many estimates put the number at above 2,000 and up to 5,000. Shortages of coffins were reported and morgues were so overfilled with dead that workers had to explain to family members searching for loved ones that bodies were simply discarded in trash bags. A mass grave was discovered a year later at El Cementerio de Sur where 68 bodies alone were found placed in plastic bags. During
25410-665: The former seeks to disrupt and overcome any institutions which stand in the way. Radhika Desai, director of the Geopolitical Economy Research Group at the University of Manitoba , argues that global capitalism reached its peak in 1914, just prior to the two great wars, anti-capitalist revolutions and Keynesian reforms, and the purpose of neoliberalism was to restore capitalism to the preeminence it once enjoyed. She argues that this process has failed as contemporary neoliberal capitalism has fostered
25620-429: The fringes of Chilean economic and political thought for a number of years, as the presidency of Salvador Allende (1970–1973) brought about a socialist reorientation of the economy. During the Allende presidency, Chile experienced a severe economic crisis, in which inflation peaked near 150%. Following an extended period of social unrest and political tension, as well as diplomatic, economic, and covert pressure from
25830-676: The government over how to manage the situation, a heavy-handed approach was implemented as a state of emergency and martial law were imposed. On February 28, a number of articles of the Constitution were suspended, including Article 60 (right to individual liberty and security), Article 62 (inviolability of the home), Article 66 (freedom of expression), Article 71 (right to gather publicly and privately), and Article 115 (right to peaceful protest). According to army lieutenant Jesús Manuel Zambrano, he received instructions that day, saying "The order was: 'Go and neutralize that looting, how you do it
26040-587: The government rationalizing a violent response to demonstrations. Despite the government blaming radical political groups for the rioting, such groups themselves were surprised by the escalation of unrest and some attempted to prevent looting. Middle-class citizens responded to the protests by creating their own self-defense groups while some upper-class fled the situation in private jets due to fears of their property being destroyed. According to reports, troops in Petare opened fire, resulting in twenty deaths. Following
26250-437: The government, which was received with disapproval by Fujimori. USAID would go on to assist the Fujimori government with rewriting the 1993 Peruvian constitution, with the agency concluding in 1997 that it helped with the "preparation of legislative texts" and "contributed to the emergence of a private sector advisory role". The policies promoted by de Soto and implemented by Fujimori eventually caused macroeconomic stability and
26460-438: The growth of a view of history which denies all absolute moral standards and by the growth of theories which question the desirability of the rule of law. It holds further that they have been fostered by a decline of belief in private property and the competitive market...[This group's] object is solely, by facilitating the exchange of views among minds inspired by certain ideals and broad conceptions held in common, to contribute to
26670-405: The high interest rates of the period which—while stabilizing inflation—hampered investment and contributed to widespread bankruptcy in the banking industry. Other scholars fault governmental departures from the neoliberal agenda ; for instance, the government pegged the Chilean peso to the US dollar, against the wishes of the Chicago Boys, which economists believe led to an overvalued peso. After
26880-421: The idea that the word is nothing more than a political slur, or a term without any analytic power". Gary Gerstle argues that neoliberalism is a legitimate term, and describes it as "a creed that calls explicitly for unleashing capitalism's power." He distinguishes neoliberalism from traditional conservatism, as the latter values respect for traditions and bolstering the institutions which reinforce them, whereas
27090-485: The immediate suffering of poor Peruvians who saw unregulated prices increase rapidly. Those living in poverty saw prices increase so much that they could no longer afford food. The New York Times wrote that de Soto advocated for the collapse of Peru's society, with the economist saying that a civil crisis was necessary to support the policies of Fujimori. Fujimori and de Soto would ultimately break their ties after de Soto recommended increased involvement of citizens within
27300-466: The increased economic freedom he believed the neoliberal reforms had brought had put pressure on the dictatorship over time, resulting in a gradual increase in political freedom and, ultimately, the restoration of democracy. The Chilean scholars Javier Martínez and Alvaro Díaz reject this argument, pointing to the long tradition of democracy in Chile. They assert that the defeat of the Pinochet regime and
27510-443: The incumbent government led to the collapse of Venezuela's entire economy. The country struggles with record hyperinflation , shortages of basic goods , unemployment, poverty, disease, high child mortality, malnutrition , environmental issues , severe crime and corruption. These factors have precipitated the Venezuelan refugee crisis in which more than 7.7 million people had fled the country by June 2024. By 2017, Venezuela
27720-495: The independentist forces, launched his Admirable Campaign in 1813 from New Granada , retaking most of the territory and being proclaimed as El Libertador ("The Liberator"). A Second Republic of Venezuela was proclaimed on 7 August 1813, but lasted only a few months before being crushed by royalist caudillo José Tomás Boves and his personal army of llaneros . The end of the French invasion of homeland Spain in 1814 allowed
27930-477: The individual and the voluntary group are progressively undermined by extensions of arbitrary power. Even that most precious possession of Western Man, freedom of thought and expression, is threatened by the spread of creeds which, claiming the privilege of tolerance when in the position of a minority, seek only to establish a position of power in which they can suppress and obliterate all views but their own...The group holds that these developments have been fostered by
28140-414: The interim, there was no official decree or resolution to define how government authority would be exercised in the absence of such rights. Insurance estimates of damage caused during the rioting were $ 90 million USD ($ 120 million CAD ) in 1989, or $ 212 million USD in 2022. The clearest consequence of the Caracazo was political instability. According to Velasco, the Caracazo is "[w]idely held as
28350-532: The interventionist excesses of the Erhard ministry and the ordoliberals, Mises wrote: "I have no illusions about the true character of the politics and politicians of the social market economy". According to Mises, Erhard's teacher Franz Oppenheimer "taught more or less the New Frontier line of" President Kennedy's "Harvard consultants ( Schlesinger , Galbraith , etc.)". In Germany, neoliberalism at first
28560-432: The label "neoliberalism", criticized that development tendency and pressed for a more limited welfare program. Hayek did not like the expression "social market economy", but stated in 1976 that some of his friends in Germany had succeeded in implementing the sort of social order for which he was pleading while using that phrase. In Hayek's view, the social market economy's aiming for both a market economy and social justice
28770-617: The largest and most important river system of the country; it originates in one of the largest watersheds in Latin America. The Caroní and the Apure are other major rivers. Venezuela borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south. Caribbean islands such as Trinidad and Tobago , Grenada , Curaçao , Aruba , and the Leeward Antilles lie near the Venezuelan coast. Venezuela has territorial disputes with Guyana, formerly United Kingdom, largely concerning
28980-594: The leadership of Francisco de Miranda , a Venezuelan marshal who had fought in the American and French Revolutions , declared independence as the First Republic of Venezuela on 5 July 1811. This began the Venezuelan War of Independence . A devastating 1812 Caracas earthquake , together with the rebellion of the Venezuelan llaneros , helped bring down the republic. Simón Bolívar , new leader of
29190-482: The liberal focus on individualism and economic freedom must not be abandoned to collectivism. For decades after the formation of the Mont Pelerin Society , the ideas of the society would remain largely on the fringes of political policy, confined to a number of think-tanks and universities and achieving only measured success with the ordoliberals in Germany , who maintained the need for strong state influence in
29400-497: The main thoroughfares in Caracas, and students of the Central University of Venezuela began to organize large protests against Pérez's new policies. Branches, empty bottle crates and other obstacles were placed at each of the highway intersections to block traffic. Lorries thought to be transporting food were stopped by the crowd, the driver was non-violently detained and the cargo was unloaded and distributed, after which
29610-683: The matter. Then, U.S. president Grover Cleveland adopted a broad interpretation of the doctrine that declared an American interest in any matter within the hemisphere. Britain ultimately accepted arbitration, but in negotiations over its terms was able to persuade the U.S. on many details. A tribunal convened in Paris in 1898 to decide the issue and in 1899 awarded the bulk of the disputed territory to British Guiana. In 1899, Cipriano Castro , assisted by his friend Juan Vicente Gómez , seized power in Caracas. Castro defaulted on Venezuela's considerable foreign debts and declined to pay compensation to foreigners caught up in Venezuela's civil wars . This led to
29820-404: The mid-20th century. From 1958, the country had a series of democratic governments, as an exception where most of the region was ruled by military dictatorships, and the period was characterized by economic prosperity. Economic shocks in the 1980s and 1990s led to major political crises and widespread social unrest, including the deadly Caracazo riots of 1989, two attempted coups in 1992 , and
30030-427: The miserable state of public services unaltered – most clearly in the case of health services." The candidacy of Pedro Castillo in the 2021 Peruvian general election brought attention to the disparities between urban and rural Peruvians, with much of his support being earned in the exterior portions of the country. Castillo ultimately won the election, with The New York Times reporting his victory as
30240-405: The morning, following the second night of curfew, those who descended from the barrios to go to work tripped over bodies shot up during the curfew." Before curfew, José Calixto Blanco was shot in the face by troops at 2:00pm. That day, President Pérez flew in a helicopter from Miraflores Palace with the protection of a second attack helicopter to observe scenes of the Caracazo and upon his return to
30450-420: The most important old age income source for a majority of the German population, therefore despite liberal rhetoric the 1950s witnessed what has been called a "reluctant expansion of the welfare state". To end widespread poverty among the elderly the pension reform of 1957 brought a significant extension of the German welfare state which already had been established under Otto von Bismarck . Rüstow, who had coined
30660-462: The most popular and accepted version, in 1499, an expedition led by Alonso de Ojeda visited the Venezuelan coast. The stilt houses in the area of Lake Maracaibo reminded the Italian navigator, Amerigo Vespucci , of the city of Venice , Italy, so he named the region Veneziola , or "Little Venice". The Spanish version of Veneziola is Venezuela . Martín Fernández de Enciso , a member of
30870-469: The nation and the establishment of a neoliberal economy in Peru. During his campaigning for the 1990 Peruvian general election , Alberto Fujimori initially expressed concern against the proposed neoliberal policies of his opponent Mario Vargas Llosa . Peruvian magazine Oiga reported that, following the election, the armed forces were unsure of Fujimori's willingness to fulfill the plan's objectives, though they planned to convince Fujimori to agree to
31080-577: The national health system of Peru" during the period of forced sterilizations. At least 300,000 Peruvians were victims of forced sterilization by the Fujimori government in the 1990s, with the majority being affected by the PNSRPF . The policy of sterilizations resulted in a generational shift that included a smaller younger generation that could not provide economic stimulation to rural areas, making such regions more impoverished. Though economic statistics show improved economic data in Peru in recent decades,
31290-623: The neoliberal policies of the Chicago boys. Some scholars attribute the successes to the re-regulation of the banking industry and a number of targeted social programs designed to alleviate poverty. Others say that while the economy had stabilized and was growing by the late 1980s, inequality widened: nearly 45% of the population had fallen into poverty while the wealthiest 10% had seen their incomes rise by 83%. According to Chilean economist Alejandro Foxley , when Pinochet finished his 17-year term by 1990, around 44% of Chilean families were living below
31500-554: The new State of Venezuela . Between one-quarter and one-third of Venezuela's population was lost during these two decades of war (including about half the Venezuelans of European descent ), which by 1830, was estimated at 800,000. In the Flag of Venezuela , the yellow stands for land wealth, the blue for the sea that separates Venezuela from Spain, and the red for the blood shed by the heroes of independence. Slavery in Venezuela
31710-405: The new political, economic and social arrangements within society that emphasize market relations, re-tasking the role of the state, and individual responsibility . Most scholars tend to agree that neoliberalism is broadly defined as the extension of competitive markets into all areas of life, including the economy , politics and society . The Handbook of Neoliberalism Neoliberalism
31920-640: The northern coast, but in the mid-18th century, the Spanish pushed farther inland along the Orinoco River . Here, the Ye'kuana organized resistance in 1775–76. Spain's eastern Venezuelan settlements were incorporated into New Andalusia Province . Administered by the Royal Audiencia of Santo Domingo from the early 16th century, most of Venezuela became part of the Viceroyalty of New Granada in
32130-546: The notable exception of the Communist Party of Venezuela ), signed the Puntofijo Pact power-sharing agreement. AD and COPEI dominated the political landscape for four decades. During the presidencies of Rómulo Betancourt (1959–64, his second term) and Raúl Leoni (1964–69), substantial guerilla movements occurred. Most laid down their arms under Rafael Caldera 's first presidency (1969–74). Caldera had won
32340-510: The notion that neoliberalism necessitates the retreat of the state in favor of totally free markets, arguing that the spread of neoliberalism required substantial state intervention to establish a global 'free market'. Naomi Klein states that the three policy pillars of neoliberalism are " privatization of the public sphere, deregulation of the corporate sector, and the lowering of income and corporate taxes , paid for with cuts to public spending ". According to some scholars, neoliberalism
32550-470: The operation prior to his inauguration. After taking office, Fujimori abandoned his campaign's economic platform, adopting more aggressive neoliberal policies than those espoused by his election competitor Vargas Llosa. With Fujimori's compliance, plans for a coup as designed in Plan Verde were prepared for two years and finally executed during the 1992 Peruvian coup d'état , which ultimately established
32760-525: The opposition took control, took over the functions of the assembly, creating the 2017 Venezuelan constitutional crisis . In August 2017, the 2017 Constituent National Assembly was elected and stripped the National Assembly of its powers. The election raised concerns of an emerging dictatorship. In December 2017, Maduro declared opposition parties barred from the following year's presidential vote after they boycotted mayoral polls. Maduro won
32970-409: The palace, he publicly declared "There's normalcy in the city. I return very satisfied with the flyover I have made. All of the city, all the barrios are in complete normalcy." Reporters noted that he made this statement as gunfire could be heard within the palace from nearby neighborhoods. During his first appearance among the foreign press, Pérez described the Caracazo as actions "against the rich" as
33180-433: The percentage of the Chilean population living in poverty rose from 17% in 1969 to 45% in 1985 at the same time government budgets for education, health and housing dropped by over 20% on average. The era was also marked by economic instability. Overall, scholars have mixed opinions on the effects of the neoliberal reforms. The CIA World Factbook states that Chile's "sound economic policies", maintained consistently since
33390-431: The poor. Poverty began to increase into the 2010s. Nicolás Maduro was picked by Chavez as his successor, appointing him vice president in 2013. Maduro has been president of Venezuela since 14 April 2013, when he won the presidential election after Chavez' death, with 51% of the vote, against Henrique Capriles on 49%. The Democratic Unity Roundtable contested Maduro's election as fraud, but an audit of 56% of
33600-476: The poorest. Hugo Chávez's socioeconomic policies of relying on oil sales and importing goods resulted in large amounts of debt, no change to corruption in Venezuela and culminated into a crisis in Venezuela . As a result, the Venezuelan refugee crisis , the largest emigration of people in Latin America's history, occurred, with over 7 million – about 20% of the country's population – emigrating. Chávez initiated Bolivarian missions , programs aimed at helping
33810-514: The popular sectors become increasingly radicalized, which explains the massive support for the attempted coup led by Chávez." In February 1990, the army was called to contain similar riots in Puerto La Cruz and Barcelona and again in June, when rising of transportation costs ended in riots in Maracaibo and other cities. The reforms were modified. Hugo Chávez recognized the Caracazo as
34020-451: The population lives in these mountains. Neoliberalism Neoliberalism is an economic philosophy that originated among European liberal scholars during the 1930s. It emerged as a response to the perceived decline in popularity of classical liberalism , which was seen as giving way to a social liberal desire to control markets. This shift in thinking was shaped by the Great Depression and manifested in policies designed to counter
34230-588: The poverty line. Despite years of suppression by the Pinochet junta, a presidential election was held in 1988, as dictated by the 1980 constitution (though not without Pinochet first holding another plebiscite in an attempt to amend the constitution). In 1990, Patricio Aylwin was democratically elected, bringing an end to the military dictatorship. The reasons cited for Pinochet's acceptance of democratic transition are numerous. Hayek, echoing arguments he had made years earlier in The Road to Serfdom , argued that
34440-582: The poverty rate was at 70%. Pérez reversed from his campaign rhetoric condemning the IMF and decided to respond to the debt, public spending, economic restrictions, and the rentier state by liberalizing the economy upon taking office on 2 February 1989. He announced on 16 February a technocratic cabinet and a group of shock therapy economic policies recommended by the IMF to fix macroeconomic imbalances known as El Gran Viraje [ es ] (English: The Great Turn ), called by detractors as El Paquetazo Económico (English: The Economic Package ). Among
34650-511: The precise meaning of the term and its usefulness as a descriptor in the social sciences , especially as the number of different kinds of market economies have proliferated in recent years. Unrelated to the economic philosophy described in this article, the term "neoliberalism" is also used to describe a centrist political movement from modern American liberalism in the 1970s. According to political commentator David Brooks , prominent neoliberal politicians included Al Gore and Bill Clinton of
34860-643: The present-day city of Cumaná . In the 16th century, the king of Spain granted a concession to the German Welser family . Klein-Venedig became the most extensive initiative in the German colonization of the Americas from 1528 to 1546. The Welsers were bankers to the Habsburgs and financiers of Charles V , Holy Roman Emperor , who was King of Spain and had borrowed heavily from them to pay bribes for his Imperial election . In 1528, Charles V granted
35070-624: The preservation and improvement of the free society. The society set out to develop a neoliberal alternative to, on the one hand, the laissez-faire economic consensus that had collapsed with the Great Depression and, on the other, New Deal liberalism and British social democracy , collectivist trends which they believed posed a threat to individual freedom. They believed that classical liberalism had failed because of crippling conceptual flaws which could only be diagnosed and rectified by withdrawing into an intensive discussion group of similarly minded intellectuals; however, they were determined that
35280-431: The press and civil liberties and has high levels of perceived corruption . Venezuela is a developing country having the world's largest known oil reserves and has been one of the world's leading exporters of oil . Previously, the country was an underdeveloped exporter of agricultural commodities such as coffee and cocoa, but oil quickly came to dominate exports and government revenues. The excesses and poor policies of
35490-424: The production costs. Pérez's package was rejected by all political parties, including his own, though he ignored their declinations. On the weekend of 25–26 February 1989, gasoline prices rose 100 per cent and the fuel price increase in turn needed an increase in public transportation fares of 30 per cent officially, and more in practice as some carriers refused to limit their prices to the official rate. The increase
35700-413: The proper role of the state . A group of "true (third way) neoliberals" centered around Rüstow and Lippmann advocated for strong state supervision of the economy while a group of old school liberals centered around Mises and Hayek continued to insist that the only legitimate role for the state was to abolish barriers to market entry. Rüstow wrote that Hayek and Mises were relics of the liberalism that caused
35910-567: The protests began mainly in response to the government's economic reforms and the resulting increase in the price of gasoline and transportation The term "Caracazo", stems from the city's name, Caracas , and "-azo", which stems from another historic event, the Bogotazo , was a massive riot in Bogotá , recognized as having a crucial role in Colombia's history. "Caracazo" is technically defined as
36120-433: The protests, citizens in poor areas destroyed their own local commercial facilities, with food markets so damaged that their food distribution system was ruined. Rioters destroyed properties indiscriminately, with no motives related to initial protests, and many had to line up at government food distribution centers since markets were destroyed by rioters. Constitutional rights were not completely restored until March 22, and in
36330-404: The recession, Chilean economic growth rose quickly, eventually hovering between 5% and 10% and significantly outpacing the Latin American average (see chart). Additionally, unemployment decreased and the percent of the population below the poverty line declined from 50% in 1984 to 34% by 1989. This led Milton Friedman to call the period the " Miracle of Chile ", and he attributed the successes to
36540-445: The result of other factors; in particular, some scholars argue that after the Crisis of 1982 the "pure" neoliberalism of the late 1970s was replaced by a focus on fostering a social market economy that mixed neoliberal and social welfare policies. As a response to the 2019–20 Chilean protests , a national plebiscite was held in October 2020 to decide whether the Chilean constitution would be rewritten. The "approve" option for
36750-525: The return of democracy came primarily from large-scale mass rebellion that eventually forced party elites to use existing institutional mechanisms to restore democracy. In the 1990s, neoliberal economic policies broadened and deepened, including unilateral tariff reductions and the adoption of free trade agreements with a number of Latin American countries and Canada. At the same time, the decade brought increases in government expenditure on social programs to tackle poverty and poor quality housing. Throughout
36960-459: The role of the state in a new economic strategy. The social reality made the changes difficult to apply. Economic crises in the 1980s and 1990s led to a political crisis. Hundreds of people were killed by security forces and the military in the Caracazo riots of 1989, during the second presidential term of Carlos Andrés Pérez (1989–1993) and after the implementation of economic austerity measures. Hugo Chávez , who in 1982 had promised to depose
37170-437: The shortages. The demonstrations grew into an open revolt where nearly all social groups participated in the rioting. At this time, Central Bank of Venezuela president Pedro Tinoco, Minister of Economy Eglée Iturbe de Blanco and Minister of Planning Miguel Rodríguez were at the IMF headquarters in Washington, D.C. signing a letter of intent to abide by the organization's economic prescriptions. Despite initial debate within
37380-430: The situation of the people who rely on imported products or locally produced products that depend on imported inputs, while dollar-denominated oil sales account for the majority of exports. The profits of the oil industry have been lost to "social engineering" and corruption, instead of investments needed to maintain oil production. Chávez survived further political tests, including an August 2004 recall referendum . He
37590-445: The society believed had produced the Great Depression. Milton Friedman , wrote in his early essay "Neo-liberalism and Its Prospects" that "Neo-liberalism would accept the nineteenth-century liberal emphasis on the fundamental importance of the individual, but it would substitute for the nineteenth century goal of laissez-faire as a means to this end, the goal of the competitive order", which requires limited state intervention to "police
37800-416: The south, Trinidad and Tobago to the north-east and on the east by Guyana . Venezuela is a presidential republic consisting of 23 states , the Capital District and federal dependencies covering Venezuela's offshore islands. Venezuela is among the most urbanized countries in Latin America; the vast majority of Venezuelans live in the cities of the north and in the capital. The territory of Venezuela
38010-423: The south, the dissected Guiana Highlands contain the northern fringes of the Amazon Basin and Angel Falls , the world's highest waterfall, as well as tepuis , large table-like mountains. The country's center is characterized by the llanos , which are extensive plains that stretch from the Colombian border in the far west to the Orinoco River delta in the east. The Orinoco, with its rich alluvial soils , binds
38220-480: The system, establish conditions favorable to competition and prevent monopoly , provide a stable monetary framework , and relieve acute misery and distress." By the 1970s, neoliberal thought—including Friedman's—focused almost exclusively on market liberalization and was adamant in its opposition to nearly all forms of state interference in the economy. One of the earliest and most influential turns to neoliberal reform occurred in Chile after an economic crisis in
38430-464: The term "neoliberal" as an insult or slur used by leftists against liberals and varieties of liberalism that leftists disagree with. British journalist Will Hutton called neoliberal "an unthinking leftist insult" that "stifle[s] debate." On the other hand, many scholars believe it retains a meaningful definition. Writing in The Guardian , Stephen Metcalf posits that the publication of the 2016 IMF paper "Neoliberalism: Oversold?" helps "put to rest
38640-496: The term entered global circulation and scholarship about it has grown over the last few decades. An early use of the term in English was in 1898 by the French economist Charles Gide to describe the economic beliefs of the Italian economist Maffeo Pantaleoni , with the term néo-libéralisme previously existing in French; the term was later used by others, including the classical liberal economist Milton Friedman in his 1951 essay "Neo-Liberalism and its Prospects". In 1938 at
38850-495: The term to critique trends in Black politics, defining neoliberalism as "the general idea that society works best when the people and the institutions within it work or are shaped to work according to market principles". According to Philip Mirowski , neoliberalism views the market as the greatest information processor, superior to any human being. It is hence considered as the arbiter of truth. Adam Kotsko describes neoliberalism as political theology , as it goes beyond simply being
39060-430: The term] reduces its capacity as an analytic frame. If neoliberalism is to serve as a way of understanding the transformation of society over the last few decades, then the concept is in need of unpacking". Historian Daniel Stedman Jones has similarly said that the term "is too often used as a catch-all shorthand for the horrors associated with globalization and recurring financial crises". Several writers have criticized
39270-455: The theories of economists working with the Mont Pelerin Society , including Friedrich Hayek , Milton Friedman , Ludwig von Mises , and James M. Buchanan , along with politicians and policy-makers such as Margaret Thatcher , Ronald Reagan , and Alan Greenspan . Once the new meaning of neoliberalism became established as common usage among Spanish-speaking scholars, it diffused into the English-language study of political economy . By 1994
39480-421: The theories they had developed in the 1930s and 1940s and contributed to West Germany's reconstruction after the Second World War. Erhard was a member of the Mont Pelerin Society and in constant contact with other neoliberals. He pointed out that he is commonly classified as neoliberal and that he accepted this classification. The ordoliberal Freiburg School was more pragmatic. The German neoliberals accepted
39690-442: The time, with many basic good missing from store shelves while people had to wait in lines outside of stores. Economist Héctor Silva Michelena, who had described Venezuela's democracy in the 1970s as an "illusion" based on oil dependency, warned shortly after Pérez's announcement that social conditions for a "grave social explosion" were likely. López Maya writes that Pérez performed "a serious political miscalculation", saying that this
39900-404: The union of Venezuela with New Granada was decreed to form the Republic of Colombia. The war continued until full victory and sovereignty was attained after the Battle of Carabobo on 24 June 1821. On 24 July 1823, José Prudencio Padilla and Rafael Urdaneta helped seal Venezuelan independence with their victory in the Battle of Lake Maracaibo . New Granada's congress gave Bolívar control of
40110-511: The unrest between Chavistas and opposition protesters and opposition leaders, including Leopoldo López and Antonio Ledezma were arrested. Human rights groups condemned the arrest of López. In the 2015 Venezuelan parliamentary election , the opposition gained a majority. Venezuela devalued its currency in February 2013 due to rising shortages, which included milk and other necessities. This led to an increase in malnutrition, especially among children. The economy had become dependent on
40320-423: The volatility of free markets . One motivation for the development of policies designed to mitigate the volatility of capitalist free markets was a desire to avoid repeating the economic failures of the early 1930s, which have been attributed, in part, to the economic policy of classical liberalism. In the context of policymaking, the term neoliberalism is often used to describe a paradigm shift that followed
40530-467: The vote showed no discrepancies, and the Supreme Court of Venezuela ruled Maduro was the legitimate president. Opposition leaders and some international media consider Maduro's government a dictatorship. Since February 2014, hundreds of thousands have protested over high levels of criminal violence, corruption, hyperinflation, and chronic scarcity of basic goods due to government policies. Demonstrations and riots have resulted in over 40 fatalities in
40740-401: The wealth earned between 1990 and 2020 was not distributed throughout the country; living standards showed disparities between the more-developed capital city of Lima and similar coastal regions while rural provinces remained impoverished. Sociologist Maritza Paredes of the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru stated, "People see that all the natural resources are in the countryside but all
40950-506: The working class were reduced. In 1982, Chile again experienced a severe economic recession . The cause of this is contested but most scholars believe the Latin American debt crisis —which swept nearly all of Latin America into financial crisis—was a primary cause. Some scholars argue the neoliberal policies of the Chicago boys heightened the crisis (for instance, percent GDP decrease was higher than in any other Latin American country) or even caused it; for instance, some scholars criticize
41160-415: The world . The territory it controls lies between latitudes 0° and 16°N and longitudes 59° and 74°W . Shaped roughly like a triangle, the country has a 2,800 km (1,700 mi) coastline in the north, which includes numerous islands in the Caribbean and the northeast borders the northern Atlantic Ocean. Most observers describe Venezuela in terms of four fairly well defined topographical regions:
41370-648: The world's first test case for 'neoliberal' economics." The turn to neoliberal policies in Chile originated with the Chicago Boys , a select group of Chilean students who, beginning in 1955, were invited to the University of Chicago to pursue postgraduate studies in economics. They studied directly under Milton Friedman and his disciple, Arnold Harberger , and were exposed to Friedrich Hayek . Upon their return to Chile, their neoliberal policy proposals—which centered on widespread deregulation , privatization , reductions to government spending to counter high inflation, and other free-market policies —would remain largely on
41580-445: Was colonized by Spain in 1522 amid resistance from Indigenous peoples. In 1811, it became one of the first Spanish-American territories to declare independence from the Spanish and to form part of the first federal Republic of Colombia ( Gran Colombia ). It separated as a full sovereign country in 1830. During the 19th century, Venezuela suffered political turmoil and autocracy, remaining dominated by regional military dictators until
41790-458: Was Pérez Jiménez and he was suspected of being behind the death of Chalbaud, who died in a bungled kidnapping in 1950. When the junta unexpectedly lost the 1952 presidential election , it ignored the results and Jiménez was installed as president Jiménez was forced out on 23 January 1958. In an effort to consolidate a young democracy, the three major political parties ( Acción Democrática (AD), COPEI and Unión Republicana Democrática (URD), with
42000-436: Was a muddle of inconsistent aims. Despite his controversies with the German neoliberals at the Mont Pelerin Society, Ludwig von Mises stated that Erhard and Müller-Armack accomplished a great act of liberalism to restore the German economy and called this "a lesson for the US". According to different research Mises believed that the ordoliberals were hardly better than socialists. As an answer to Hans Hellwig's complaints about
42210-480: Was abolished in 1854. Much of Venezuela's 19th-century history was characterized by political turmoil and dictatorial rule, including the Independence leader José Antonio Páez, who gained the presidency three times and served 11 years between 1830 and 1863. This culminated in the Federal War (1859–63). In the latter half of the century, Antonio Guzmán Blanco , another caudillo , served 13 years, between 1870 and 1887, with three other presidents interspersed. In 1895,
42420-455: Was brought under control. Between 1970 and 1985 the infant mortality rate in Chile fell from 76.1 per 1000 to 22.6 per 1000, the lowest in Latin America. Unemployment from 1980 to 1990 decreased, but remained higher than the South American average (which was stagnant). And despite public perception among Chileans that economic inequality has increased, Chile's Gini coefficient has in fact dropped from 56.2 in 1987 to 46.6 in 2017. While this
42630-422: Was declared to be in default regarding debt payments by credit rating agencies . The crisis in Venezuela has contributed to a rapidly deteriorating human rights situation. The 2024 presidential election were not recognized by the Carter Center and Organization of American States due to the lack of granular results, and disputed by the opposition, leading to protests across the country . According to
42840-441: Was elected for another term in December 2006 and for a third term in October 2012. However, he was never sworn in due to medical complications; he died in March 2013. The presidential election that took place in April 2013, was the first since Chávez took office in 1999 in which his name did not appear on the ballot. Under the Bolivarian government, Venezuela went from being one of the richest countries in Latin America to one of
43050-707: Was in the parts of El Valle and the 23 de Enero where supposedly there were sharpshooters, but that business sounds strange to me. You can't justify the shape in which those buildings in the 23 de Enero were left with the machine gunning by military and police. Do you have to destroy a building to eliminate a supposed sharpshooter?" Velasco states that gunfights between radical militants and army troops did occur, though that engagements were not equal in intensity. López Maya says that troops who entered 23 de Enero were young, inexperienced soldiers who fired automatic firearms indiscriminately at apartment blocks, killing unarmed residents inside. On 2 March, reporter Fabricio Ojeda wrote "In
43260-413: Was inherently social and did not need to be made so. He hoped that growing prosperity would enable the population to manage much of their social security by self-reliance and end the necessity for a widespread welfare state. By the name of Volkskapitalismus , there were some efforts to foster private savings. Although average contributions to the public old age insurance were quite small, it remained by far
43470-407: Was marked by the willingness to place humanistic and social values on par with economic efficiency. Alfred Müller-Armack coined the phrase "social market economy" to emphasize the egalitarian and humanistic bent of the idea. According to Boas and Gans-Morse, Walter Eucken stated that "social security and social justice are the greatest concerns of our time". Erhard emphasized that the market
43680-470: Was relaxed. Angarita granted a range of reforms, including the legalization of all political parties. After World War II, immigration from Southern Europe and poorer Latin American countries markedly diversified Venezuelan society. In 1945, a civilian-military coup overthrew Medina Angarita and ushered in a period of democratic rule (1945–1948) under the mass membership party Democratic Action , initially under Rómulo Betancourt , until Rómulo Gallegos won
43890-443: Was supposed to be implemented on 1 March 1989, but bus drivers decided to apply the price rise on 27 February, a day before payday in Venezuela. In the days prior to more intense protests, student demonstrations against neoliberalism began in Mérida and later spread to Caracas, where other social groups then began to protest against Pérez's policies. Larger protests and rioting began on the morning of 27 February 1989 in Guarenas ,
44100-399: Was synonymous with both ordoliberalism and social market economy. But over time the original term neoliberalism gradually disappeared since social market economy was a much more positive term and fit better into the Wirtschaftswunder (economic miracle) mentality of the 1950s and 1960s. In the 1980s, numerous governments in Latin America adopted neoliberal policies. Chile was among
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