A new face for the U.S.
Rachel Morenz
Issue date: 11/13/08 Section: Opinions
Why would Obama bring hope to Venezuela? For one, his election highlights what can be achieved in a healthy democracy, a moving example for a country currently trying to build a strong participative democracy with their fairly new 1999 constitution but which is governed by a president with authoritarian tendencies.
Obama´s election also brings hope for the improvement of U.S.-Venezuelan relations. This summer, Chavez ordered the American ambassador out of Venezuela and pulled his ambassador from Washington.
But when Obama enters the White House, Chavez says he is willing to begin talks with the U.S. again, something that could benefit both countries´ governments and people of the "pueblo," ordinary citizens.
Still, just as the current socialist movement in Venezuela (the Bolivarian Revolution) was not responsible for Obama´s victory, "Yes we can," is by no means going to solve all of Venezuela´s problems.
Venezuela is its own sovereign nation, with internal problems difficult to understand unless one is a citizen of the country.
It is my hope that Obama´s foreign policy toward Venezuela will be one in which he listens, speaks and acts firmly, but lays big sticks aside. Or, as Chavez said shortly before Obama was elected, ¨We hope that he tunes into the frequency of the world and convinces the U.S. hawks that it is impossible to dominate the planet.¨
Obama´s election also brings hope for the improvement of U.S.-Venezuelan relations. This summer, Chavez ordered the American ambassador out of Venezuela and pulled his ambassador from Washington.
But when Obama enters the White House, Chavez says he is willing to begin talks with the U.S. again, something that could benefit both countries´ governments and people of the "pueblo," ordinary citizens.
Still, just as the current socialist movement in Venezuela (the Bolivarian Revolution) was not responsible for Obama´s victory, "Yes we can," is by no means going to solve all of Venezuela´s problems.
Venezuela is its own sovereign nation, with internal problems difficult to understand unless one is a citizen of the country.
It is my hope that Obama´s foreign policy toward Venezuela will be one in which he listens, speaks and acts firmly, but lays big sticks aside. Or, as Chavez said shortly before Obama was elected, ¨We hope that he tunes into the frequency of the world and convinces the U.S. hawks that it is impossible to dominate the planet.¨