June 30, 2018

Maduro orders food producers to surrender 70% of their goods. OR ELSE.

The government requires entrepreneurs to deliver 70% of production
Carlos Larrazabal, president of Fedecamaras, assured that the distribution channels that are not with the State will not be left practically nothing and consumers will find empty shelves

By CARLOS SEIJAS MENESES | CSEIJAS@EL-NACIONAL.COM
JUNE 29, 2018 01:59 AM

On the first day of meetings with productive sectors, the government did not tremble. The Minister of Industry and National Production, Tareck el Aissami, said that the intention with the meetings was to "open up the cost structures" of 50 products and subsequently set new prices. However, the entrepreneurs were surprised: they were required to deliver 70% of their production to the Executive.



Carlos Larrazabal, president of Fedecamaras, said that the union rejects in a forceful way that they want to force the producers to deliver that percentage of their production to the government. "That is an interventionism, already at an extreme stage, which will continue to affect the producer and sharpen the supply and the crisis that all Venezuelans are experiencing."

The government did not report how they would pay employers the percentage of production they would be required to deliver. "There is no price certainty," he said.

The manager warned that for private distributors there will be practically nothing left and consumers will find empty shelves. "If the production is going to be destined mainly to the government so that they deliver it in a populist way and with ideological management to the people they consider, those who do not have access to those official distribution channels will not be able to obtain products in any way". He indicated that this measure will also feed the bachaqueo.

-snip-

http://www.el-nacional.com/noticias/economia/gobierno-exige-los-empresarios-entregar-produccion_241947

June 30, 2018

More doctors, nurses in 25 cities join Venezuela strike. Colectivos threaten them with death

25 health centers in Caracas joined the indefinite strike
Approximately 30 armed members of collectives threatened "with lead" the staff of the Maternidad Concepción Palacios to stop the protest for better salaries, which yesterday fulfilled its fifth day



By CRÍSTOFER GARCÍA | CRGARCIA@EL-NACIONAL.COM
JUNE 30, 2018 02:00 AM

Ana Rosario Contreras, president of the College of Nursing of the Capital District, reported yesterday that 25 health centers in the capital were attached to the indefinite work stoppage started on Monday 25. The number corresponds to 90% of the hospital network and part of the ambulatory . In addition, in other health centers in the country nurses have also been paralyzed. "This was a protest that began only in the capital, but has been replicated in 20 states of the country."

During the first report of the union said that the indefinite stoppage of activities will be maintained until the government does not meet to discuss salary tables. "Given the lack of response from the authorities our requests, we have decided to continue the indefinite strike until we proceed to incorporate our representative in the tables that are being made to review the salary tables," said Contreras.

The nurse said there is a group of community doctors who have met with the government to discuss the salary tables, but said that the only valid representation of the union is the Federation of Schools. "We are the nurses who must discuss our working conditions and salaries," he said...

...In the Maternidad Concepción Palacios the scenario was similar, although the staff of this medical center received threats from violent groups for expressing their disagreement. Approximately 30 members of a collective threatened "with lead" to the staff that was stationed on the outskirts of the maternal center.

"We hold the government accountable for what might happen to the leadership and workers of our hospital," denounced Mauro Zambrano, union leader, through his Twitter account, condemning the threats.

-snip-

http://www.el-nacional.com/noticias/sociedad/centros-salud-caracas-sumaron-paro-indefinido_242115

Colectivos are Chavismo's version of Hitler's "Brown Shirts" who do the bidding of the revolution. Well fed, paid handsomely and given guns and motorcycles... their one job is to "break arms" for Chavismo. The enforcers who do what the GNB and PNB cannot be seen doing.

June 30, 2018

Maduro: "Comply with the fixing of prices or the revolution will take radical measures"

Mature owners of supermarkets: "Comply with the fixing of prices or the revolution will take radical measures"

Madeleine Navas | June 27, 2018

Caracas- On Wednesday, at the National Prize for Journalism 2018, the President of the Republic, Nicolás Maduro, took the opportunity to warn the owners of supermarkets and wholesale distributors in Venezuela to comply with the pricing mechanisms or "the revolution will take radical measures".

The president indicated that he increased the minimum wage last week and what cost 1 million bolivars, on Friday and cost 3 million bolivars. "What is this? What is this called? Criminal economy, economic war. And how do we overcome it? How do the people defeat it every day?" He questioned.



Maduro doubted that the owners of the country's supermarkets and wholesalers would seek "the satisfaction of the people and the peace of the people." "What should our response be? We have given a very clear warning: to the owners of these distributors, wholesalers, supply systems and surpluses: put on rights, I give them the opportunity, " threatened the president.

He also urged them to comply with the price fixing or otherwise "the revolution will take radical measures and then do not complain or accuse us of dictators. I tell you because I have moral and because I protect the people, because you are true scoundrels who increase prices without commercial justification, or costs, " said Maduro.

https://elcooperante.com/maduro-a-duenos-de-supermercados-cumplan-con-la-fijacion-de-precios-o-la-revolucion-tomara-medidas-radicales/

Maduro's cunning and subtle plan, should supermarkets and retailers not follow his "dictates" about what he wants prices to be instead of what they are? Nationalization. Of course, there isn't a single entity that Chavismo hasn't nationalized that isn't in shambles... but then, that is NEVER Chavismo's fault. Even when they own the means of production. Always Curacao bankers or Portuguese pig farmers or the CIA or Colombian profiteers or the Illuminati.

Never mind that when his Chavista buddies sat down last week with producers and retailers and told them that there would be no unilateral "imposing of prices on anything"... and in the next breath warned them about the need to "impose prices". But, doublespeak is the language of choice in Chavismoland.

June 27, 2018

Belize praised for 'visionary' steps to save coral reef

Belize praised for 'visionary' steps to save coral reef



World heritage body Unesco has removed the Belize Barrier Reef from its list of endangered World Heritage Sites after nine years.

It said the government of the Central American country had taken "visionary" steps to preserve it.

The reef is the second largest in the world after Australia's Great Barrier Reef.

It is home to many threatened species including marine turtles, manatees and the American marine crocodile.

-snip-

Some good news for a change!

June 27, 2018

In Venezuela, if you need blood (or most meds), you pay for it in dollars

The crazy amount in dollars that you have to pay for a bag of blood for transfusions in the country
June 25, 2018

translated from Spanish

The research coordinator of the NGO Convite, Francelia Ruiz, revealed that a blood bag for transfusions can cost almost $ 300.

Alerted about a black market that has emerged in health as a result of the crisis in the sector.

During the presentation of the most recent monitoring on the health situation in Venezuela, he also considered that "the opening of a humanitarian channel is urgent".

http://reporteconfidencial.info/noticia/3313425/el-descabellado-monto-en-dolares-que-hay-que-pagar-por-una-bolsa-de-sangre-para-transfusiones-en-el-pais/

Actually, $300 is about what a bag of blood goes for in the United States. The problem in Venezuela is access to it (there is none, only blood smuggled in from Colombia), as the economy is augering into sub-despair levels, with 95% of the population living in poverty. The montly minimum wage is approximately $1.15.

Maduro, Diosdado and Delcy insist that there is no emergency. There is no crisis. All of the misery people hear about in Venezuela is made up. "Propaganda" courtesy of the CIA, the Illuminati and Colombia. Because if they declare a crisis, that invites foreign intervention and an admission of failure of Bolivarian Socialism.


See? Plenty of food!

June 27, 2018

Kidnappers planned to extort dollars from VZ woman's expat family. Killed, thrown in septic tank

They planned the kidnapping of their neighbor to ask for their children's rescue abroad
June 26, 2018

Babble Yeimberth Romero Sanchez, 22 years old , Germán Jesus Roth Gonzalez, 20, Miguel Angel Fereda Carrillo, 34, and Cesar Enrique Gil Garcia, 24, were arrested by the Scientific and Criminal Investigations (CICPC), Criminal who kidnapped, robbed and murdered a 70- year-old woman identified as Rosa Constanza Arvelaiz Reyes, 70 years old .

The criminals were neighbors of the woman who was murdered in her residence. The men planned the kidnapping to ask for ransom in foreign currency from their children residing abroad. "Once committed the fact they realize that Arvelaiz was not breathing, because the scare product suffered a heart attack. Then his murderers opted to throw the body into a septic tank located in the back of the house of Romero y Gil, "explained Douglas Rico, director of the police agency.

http://reporteconfidencial.info/noticia/3313456/planearon-el-secuestro-de-su-vecina-para-pedir-rescate-a-sus-hijos-en-el-exterior/

Venezuela has the worst violent crime rate in the world. Even the poorest people risk getting kidnapped if their assailants believe they have family abroad who will pay in real currency. The Bolivar has devalued over 300,000,000% since Chavismo and is worthless.

June 26, 2018

Union teachers join union nurses in striking in Venezuela.

Unexpo and UCLA call at zero hour and declare themselves unemployed for 24 hours
By Anderson Piña Pereira -June 25, 2018

Translated from Spanish

Once again the university workers expose the difficult economic reality they are experiencing. They explain that they receive hunger salaries and assure that experience and meritocracy are no longer valid in this country.
Faced with this situation and the Government's scant response, the employees decided to leave for twenty-four hours from tomorrow and for the second time in the month, which they called zero time, which could imply an indefinite stoppage of activities in all houses universities and a set of union actions that would radicalize the conflict.

Rubén Darío Albornoz, representative of the Trade Union of Administrative Workers of UCLA, asserted that their labor rights must be respected for what they demand from the national government to comply with wage increases and benefits to prevent Higher Education in Venezuela from deteriorating further.

For the teacher Deborah de Valecillos, president of the Association of Teachers of UCLA (Apuce), the exodus of teachers is already worrying, and the few who remain active "we are almost fulfilling an apostolate, we come by will and not by salary"

A full professor, with postgraduate and years of experience, does not earn more than five million bolivars, "we lost the ability to buy completely", and vacancies, no one wants to occupy them.

-snip-

http://www.caraotadigital.net/regionales/unexpo-y-ucla-llaman-a-la-hora-cero-y-se-declaran-en-paro-por-24-horas/

PdVSA and Corpoelec employees have threatened to strike, but they are down to unskilled skeleton crews of die-hard, jobsworth Chavistas who will show up if only to get their CLAP bag delivered next month. Nobody in Chavismo would notice.

June 26, 2018

Page from Cuban playbook: Venezuela government starts deep blocking of internet news

Venezuela's largest ISP blocks Tor
It has become a necessary tool to access blocked news sources online.

Venezuelans have been relying on tools like Tor to access news sources, including local outlets like El Nacional and international ones like CNN en Español, after the government banned them in the country. Unfortunately, they're going to have to work a little bit harder to circumvent government censorship -- according to a report by human rights non-profit group Access Now, the largest ISP in the country, which just happened to be owned by the government, has blocked the software. Previously, people could simply change their DNS to access censored information online, but using Tor or VPN has become a necessity to get around the most recent bans.

Venezuelan journalist Melanio Escobar told Access Now:

"It seems that the government of Venezuela has found out how to do a very sophisticated block for the Tor network. It's not only on the direct access channels, but also the bridges Tor provides to bypass that blocking. The government is moving forward to be as closed as China or Iran."

Since the troubled country has been squashing dissent by restricting people's access to information online, Tor has become a crucial tool for activists and journalists. They could use the browser to read up on current affairs and info from someone else other than the government, as well as to go on social media platforms like Twitter, which blocked a bunch of Venezuelan government accounts last year.

Javier Pallero, Latin America Policy Lead at Access Now, explained that "restricting access to information, and the tools necessary to access that information safely, is a flagrant violation of human rights..." The group is now calling on the Venezuelan government to "reverse course, refrain from imposing further censorship, and to restore the free and open communications that are vital to any healthy democracy."

https://www.engadget.com/2018/06/26/venezuela-largest-isp-blocks-tor/

June 26, 2018

Local officials in Venezuela will start offering houses to non-Chavistas

Government will remove houses of the Great Housing Mission Venezuela that are not occupied
The Cooperator | June 25, 2018

Caracas.- The president of the Legislative Council of the Vargas state, Roybert Sojo, said that within the legislative agenda is to "recover" the houses that are not inhabited by the citizens of the entity.

According to Venezuela Al Día , the legislator said that it is about the houses that have been granted by the Government and that are not occupied.

"We refer specifically to the houses that have been granted by the Great Housing Mission Venezuela, houses that have been granted by the Bolivarian Revolution that are not being occupied, and we have proposed the recovery of the same because things are those who need them. , and these houses that were granted to those people who are not occupying it for one reason or another are going to be recovered and given to the same people," he said.

Sojo's words prove " the oppression that Venezuelan citizens live " that have received benefits from the national and regional government.

https://elcooperante.com/gobierno-quitara-casas-de-la-gran-mision-vivienda-venezuela-que-no-esten-ocupadas/

Chavismo has this habit of buying the votes for their voters who prove themselves worthy of their largesse. At least until the money ran out. Now, these apartments sit empty, because not enough poor voters have proven themselves worthy (no Carnet de la Patria? No food, medicine or housing for you!) and are falling into disrepair. Most are just shells... unfinished over the last 6 years. The plumbing and wiring all stripped out and sold for scrap. Like most of Venezuelan infrastructure.

June 25, 2018

Venezuela nurses go on strike for living wages... say they can't survive on 30 cents per month

Venezuelan nurses go on strike for "unfortunate" pay increases
June 21, 2018

The chairman of the Caracas College of Nurses said she expected Maduro to receive the minimum salary for nurses to the same level as approved for police agents.

The chairman of the Nursing Association Caracas Ana Rosario Contreras announced on Thursday a strike of the health sector on June 25 in protest against "miserable" minimum wage increase approved by President Nicolás Maduro in the midst of hyperinflation.



"We are tired of doing a social workout. Maduro is talking today about the increase in minimum wage. We will react with an indefinite strike June 25th, and unless we hear, we will charge the fees for providing healthcare providers with free service. "

Maduro approved an increase of the national minimum wage tripling the former, from one million bolivars ($0.30 on the black market) to three million bolivars (just over one dollar).

-snip-

https://vaaju.com/colombiaeng/venezuelan-nurses-go-on-strike-for-unfortunate-pay-increases/

When Chavez came to power in 1999, the Bolivar was exchanging at 564 Bs to the dollar. It is now over 3 million "new/new" Bolivars to the dollar. (Chavez devalued the Bolivar 10 years ago by lopping off 3 zeros and called it the Fuerte Bolivar. Maduro just lopped off another 3 zeros and called it the Sovereign Bolivar. Everyone else calls it USELESS)

The local currency has devalued over 300,000,000% in less than 20 years. People wipe their ass with the currency and paste it on pictures of Chavez. Bolivarian Socialism for the win!