Interesting account of living in Venezuela since Socialists took over. Are we going to allow that to be our future?
Caruzo – Paperwork Hell: The Bureaucratic Tyranny of Socialist Venezuela
CARACAS – In this post-collapse socialist Venezuela, bureaucracy has become a monster worthy of a mythological tale and, much like everything else that has systematically collapsed over the past years, it has become ripe for corruption and bribery.
Vital documents like passports and driver’s licenses, all available healthcare in the country, access to TV, internet, electricity, water – it all runs through the bureaucracy.
Buckle up, hold onto that sanity and patience, and get ready to share in my adventure navigating the living hell of a Venezuelan public office.
As we’ve recently become home to the largest migrant crisis in modern history, I find it apt to start with the experience of obtaining that which is most precious to a Venezuelan migrant: their passport. Like food and medicine, a shortage of passports has been something that has plagued us for years – unless you’re a random Hezbollah member who can’t pick out Venezuela on a map, then our socialist regime will gladly sell you a passport.
In 2018, the minimum wage in Venezuela was 1,800 “sovereign” bolivars — which roughly translated to $30 at the official exchange rate. As of July of 2020, the minimum wage, which a large percentage of Venezuelans live on, is now 800,000 bolivars a month—which roughly to a meager $3.84 according to the Central Bank of Venezuela. A Venezuelan passport then would cost a little less than ten months of work at a minimum wage salary to pay, if those prices remained stable, but, of course, they didn’t.
The collapsed SAIME offices (Venezuela’s Administrative Service of Identification, Migration and Foreigners) have paved the way for a most foul and corrupt system deeply rooted within the organization itself that peaked in 2018. At that time, It was not uncommon for gestors (managers) to charge citizens a bribe that ranged anywhere between $700 and $5,000 to expedite your passport (again, a monthly minimum wage is almost $4). Imagine having to sell all of your personal belongings and spend all of your life savings just to be able to afford the right to your identity.
It doesn’t matter what you need or which public office you need to visit, the torture is all just the same. Shortages and bureaucracy go hand in hand with socialism, and when socialism has reached its inexorable collapse, things get bad, really bad, to the point that it’s infecting something as trivial as refueling a vehicle.
Caruzo – Paperwork Hell: The Bureaucratic Tyranny of Socialist Venezuela
CARACAS – In this post-collapse socialist Venezuela, bureaucracy has become a monster worthy of a mythological tale and, much like everything else that has systematically collapsed over the past years, it has become ripe for corruption and bribery.
Vital documents like passports and driver’s licenses, all available healthcare in the country, access to TV, internet, electricity, water – it all runs through the bureaucracy.
Buckle up, hold onto that sanity and patience, and get ready to share in my adventure navigating the living hell of a Venezuelan public office.
As we’ve recently become home to the largest migrant crisis in modern history, I find it apt to start with the experience of obtaining that which is most precious to a Venezuelan migrant: their passport. Like food and medicine, a shortage of passports has been something that has plagued us for years – unless you’re a random Hezbollah member who can’t pick out Venezuela on a map, then our socialist regime will gladly sell you a passport.
In 2018, the minimum wage in Venezuela was 1,800 “sovereign” bolivars — which roughly translated to $30 at the official exchange rate. As of July of 2020, the minimum wage, which a large percentage of Venezuelans live on, is now 800,000 bolivars a month—which roughly to a meager $3.84 according to the Central Bank of Venezuela. A Venezuelan passport then would cost a little less than ten months of work at a minimum wage salary to pay, if those prices remained stable, but, of course, they didn’t.
The collapsed SAIME offices (Venezuela’s Administrative Service of Identification, Migration and Foreigners) have paved the way for a most foul and corrupt system deeply rooted within the organization itself that peaked in 2018. At that time, It was not uncommon for gestors (managers) to charge citizens a bribe that ranged anywhere between $700 and $5,000 to expedite your passport (again, a monthly minimum wage is almost $4). Imagine having to sell all of your personal belongings and spend all of your life savings just to be able to afford the right to your identity.
It doesn’t matter what you need or which public office you need to visit, the torture is all just the same. Shortages and bureaucracy go hand in hand with socialism, and when socialism has reached its inexorable collapse, things get bad, really bad, to the point that it’s infecting something as trivial as refueling a vehicle.
