Today I read an article that offers some very interesting views about last December's referendum in Venezuela. Following the foiled attempt to introduce a new constitution, many individuals asserted that this symbolised the beginning of the end for Chavez. This article, however, makes it very clear that even though a battle was lost, the effort to construct socialism in Venezuela is far from over.
At one point, the article touched upon the issue of democracy. More specifically, it stated: "The proposed new Venezuelan constitution recognised that real democracy is not just a question of voting in elections; it is a question of ordinary people having real control over decisions that affect their lives and livelihoods. It is also a question of being able to influence what work they do and the conditions in which they do it. This is real democracy, which unleashes the creative powers of masses of people – a democracy that scarcely exists in any capitalist country. Under socialism, however, workers are liberated from the master-servant relationship in which they worked under both feudalism and capitalism, and no longer therefore have to accept that only the master, the owner of the means of production, can issue orders. Instead, they are able to participate in the process of determining what the orders should be so as to achieve the common aim of maximising production for the benefit of the people while at the same time protecting workers’ quality of life.One of the most important provisions of the new constitution in this regard was the reduction of the working week from 42 hours to 36. This has been presented as a bribe to the working masses to get them to vote for the constitution. In actual fact, the reduction of the working week is essential for democracy, in that it would provide workers with the free time that would enable them to participate in the decision-making processes both at work and in their communities." Very interesting!!!
At the end of the day, even though good leadership is fundamental, it is the masses who have to transform a country. To implement all the desired changes. Educating them might be a slow and painstaking task, but once they understand the importance of building and of defending the gains of socialism, huge positive difference will be witnessed in Venezuela and, hopefully, in the rest of the world.
2 comments:
I as you know Red, am a great admirer of Hugo Chavez and his 21st century Socialism Concept. I believe that after all the power is in the hands of the masses, and that is why I believe that an intelligent leader has to educate the people insted of using his force against them. Chavez can be the begining of a world change, and his 21st century Socialism concept, maybe used by other countries in the near future.
Interesting to know.
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