News

On Tuesday, state legislators from the opposition political party A New Time (Un Nuevo Tiempo) in the oil-rich state of Zulia, Venezuela, proposed a feasibility study for potential autonomy from the federal government, which they compared to the autonomy efforts in Bolivia’s wealthiest province.

According to former Attorney General Isaias Rodriguez, the so-called “final offensive” against Venezuela is being planned presumably from Colombia, and would be executed by that country’s army, according to agreements between Colombian President Álvaro Uribe and US Ambassador William Brownfield.

Venezuela’s Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro proposed that Latin American countries create a food bank to counter food supply problems and that oil profits of the region go towards a new food fund. Maduro made the proposal during the Food summit held in Nicaragua on Wednesday.

Venezuelan Planning and Development Minister Haiman El Troudi announced on Tuesday that inflation closed at 1.7 percent for April, unchanged from the previous month.

The United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) will hold a national assembly of party delegates on Friday to determine the methodology of selecting candidates for the upcoming state and local election party vice-president Alberto Müller Rojas said on Monday.

The United Steel Industry Workers Union at the recently nationalized SIDOR steel plant and the Venezuelan government finalized a collective labor contract early Sunday morning. Meanwhile, Sidor's former owner says it is still willing to negotiate the indemnity for the nationalization.

Venezuela will not recognize the results of an autonomy referendum, marred by fraud, abstention, and violence in Bolivia’s richest state, Santa Cruz on Sunday, Venezuelan representative to the Organisation of American States (OAS), Jorge Valero assured Sunday night.

The Venezuelan government reaffirmed its support for the territorial integrity of Bolivia and the government of Evo Morales in the face of moves by rightwing oppositionists in the state of Santa Cruz, to hold an unconstitutional referendum on autonomy this Sunday, May 4.

Toronto-based Crystallex Corporation announced Wednesday that the Venezuelan Ministry of the Environment denied a key gold mining permit for the company’s operation of the Las Cristinas mine, one of the largest gold deposits in Latin America.

Waving red flags, more than 300,000 workers marched in Caracas to celebrate May 1, the International Day of Workers Struggle. The rally also celebrated a decree by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez increasing the minimum wage by 30%.