I'm having difficulty finding information in the US media on the vote in Venezuela yesterday (see this earlier post). Chavez will have taken complete control of the congress. But El Universal, a largely opposition paper, is reporting 75% abstention. I read somewhere that voting places in some of the poor neighborhoods were very busy, while in the wealthy opposition districts they were empty. Careful of interpreting any photos that might appear in the American media -- El Universal has a photo of an empty polling place. Also, one explanation floated by a government figure is bad weather. This seems really silly, but I've seen how a heavy rain can basically bring Caracas' already terrible traffic to a standstill. Who knows at this point?
So, I've got email feelers out to folks in Venezuela on both the opposition and government sides about what this abstention rate is all about. More soon, I hope. But, in the meantime, don't believe the hype....
No comments:
Post a Comment