Shades of Zimbabwe in Chavez' latest initiative ...
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Venezuela's Chavez Vows Tougher Land Reform
by Patrick Markey
(Reuters)
CARACAS -- Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez, emboldened by a recent referendum victory, on Sunday promised tougher land redistribution as he pressed ahead with the "revolutionary" reforms at the heart of the nation's political conflict.
Chavez, a populist ex-army officer elected in 1998, ordered his military commanders to investigate "latifundios" or large rural estates and report idle land not in productive use as his government stepped up its drive for agrarian reform.
"In this new stage of the revolution, I demand strict application of the constitution and the land law," Chavez said on "Hello, Mr. President," his weekly Sunday television program. "I want a report on the estates under each military command... We going after the idle land to put it to work."
Land reform was one of a raft of new laws introduced in 2001 that sparked fierce campaigning by opponents who feared left-winger Chavez would copy Cuba-style communism in Venezuela. He says the reforms aimed to reverse years of neglect by previous governments.
Ranchers say the agrarian reforms threaten private property and have denounced hundreds of illegal land invasions by impoverished rural peasants who they say have been spurred on by the president's fiery rhetoric.
Chavez won an Aug. 15 referendum that international observers hoped would end the bitter confrontation over his presidency in the world's No. 5 oil exporter. He has since promised to deepen his social reforms, but opposition leaders have rejected the vote as a massive fraud.
The agrarian law defines a "latifundio" as a rural property larger than 12,355 acres of good, but idle land. The law calls for punitive taxes on farmers not using the territory, after which the state may intervene. Critics say the law is vulnerable to political interpretation.
The land redistribution program calls for parcels of land to be handed over to peasant cooperatives who will farm with the help of cheap state credits.
Last year, the government said it planned to hand out 3.7 million acres in land to rural workers in the intial stage of its agrarian reform program.
President Urges Talks
Chavez, who survived a coup in 2002 and months of street protests and strikes, dismissed fears of expropriation and urged land owners to enter into talks with the government.
"We are not the enemy of rural estates, we are not going to burn them, we are not going to invade land. No, here we have a constitution and a land law," he said. "I call on all those who own lots of idle land, let's talk."
Since his referendum victory, the tough-talking nationalist has called for dialogue with business leaders to revive an economy battered by political conflict. But critics say his reforms have increased state control over the economy and made investors wary of Venezuela.
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Phaedrus
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>
Venezuela's Chavez Vows Tougher Land Reform
by Patrick Markey
(Reuters)
CARACAS -- Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez, emboldened by a recent referendum victory, on Sunday promised tougher land redistribution as he pressed ahead with the "revolutionary" reforms at the heart of the nation's political conflict.
Chavez, a populist ex-army officer elected in 1998, ordered his military commanders to investigate "latifundios" or large rural estates and report idle land not in productive use as his government stepped up its drive for agrarian reform.
"In this new stage of the revolution, I demand strict application of the constitution and the land law," Chavez said on "Hello, Mr. President," his weekly Sunday television program. "I want a report on the estates under each military command... We going after the idle land to put it to work."
Land reform was one of a raft of new laws introduced in 2001 that sparked fierce campaigning by opponents who feared left-winger Chavez would copy Cuba-style communism in Venezuela. He says the reforms aimed to reverse years of neglect by previous governments.
Ranchers say the agrarian reforms threaten private property and have denounced hundreds of illegal land invasions by impoverished rural peasants who they say have been spurred on by the president's fiery rhetoric.
Chavez won an Aug. 15 referendum that international observers hoped would end the bitter confrontation over his presidency in the world's No. 5 oil exporter. He has since promised to deepen his social reforms, but opposition leaders have rejected the vote as a massive fraud.
The agrarian law defines a "latifundio" as a rural property larger than 12,355 acres of good, but idle land. The law calls for punitive taxes on farmers not using the territory, after which the state may intervene. Critics say the law is vulnerable to political interpretation.
The land redistribution program calls for parcels of land to be handed over to peasant cooperatives who will farm with the help of cheap state credits.
Last year, the government said it planned to hand out 3.7 million acres in land to rural workers in the intial stage of its agrarian reform program.
President Urges Talks
Chavez, who survived a coup in 2002 and months of street protests and strikes, dismissed fears of expropriation and urged land owners to enter into talks with the government.
"We are not the enemy of rural estates, we are not going to burn them, we are not going to invade land. No, here we have a constitution and a land law," he said. "I call on all those who own lots of idle land, let's talk."
Since his referendum victory, the tough-talking nationalist has called for dialogue with business leaders to revive an economy battered by political conflict. But critics say his reforms have increased state control over the economy and made investors wary of Venezuela.
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Phaedrus
