Bolivarian Venezuela: the balance of a long decade

Abstract

The fundamental aim of this article is to produce a balance and a critical analysis of the political process taking place in Venezuela since the year 1998. To this end tree stages have been identified through which the process of change has advanced up to the present and the fundamental aspects which have characterized each period are shown. The first stage (1998-2003) was characterized by the constituent phase, the attempted coup d’ état and petroleum sabotaje, while the second stage (2003-2007) is typified by the new social policy (‘misions’) and político-electoral hegemony. The last period, which began in 2007 and has not yet finished, is marked by internal contradictions and the stagnation of the change process.