International Trade
130 containers of food, medicine and personal care
products arrived at La Guaira port from Cartagena,
Colombia, aboard the MAERK WISMAR. This cargo includes cooking oil, rice,
beans, sugar, spaghetti, corn flour, tuna, milk, mayonnaise, tomato sauce,
toilet paper, diapers, shampoo, brushes, soap, sanitary napkins and medicine.
More in Spanish: (Bolipuertos, http://www.bolipuertos.gob.ve/noticia.aspx?id=37426;
El Mundo, http://www.elmundo.com.ve/noticias/economia/politicas-publicas/arribaron-a-la-guaira-130-contenedores-con-aliment.aspx)
Logistics & Transport
DHL restores service to Venezuela
DHL
Express Venezuela has reestablished its import and export operations here, says
DHL Venezuela president César Ramírez, who confirmed the arrival of a special
company Boeing 737flight from Panama. More in Spanish: (El Mundo, http://www.elmundo.com.ve/noticias/negocios/empresas/dhl-normaliza-su-servicio-en-venezuela.aspx#ixzz4lCKw38fZ)
Oil & Energy
Venezuela oil price crashes through US$ 40
The
price Venezuela receives for its mix of medium and heavy oil fell 4.1% to its
lowest point since the coordinated OPEC supply freezes were announced in
November. According to figures released by the Ministry of Petroleum and
Mining, the average price of Venezuelan crude sold by PDVSA during the week
ending June 23 fell to US$ 39.23, down US$ 1.66 from the previous week's US$ 40.89. As
per Venezuelan government figures, the
average price in 2017 for Venezuela's mix of heavy and medium crude fell to US$
43.77. (Latin American Herald Tribune, http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2438826&CategoryId=10717)
Crisis-stricken Venezuela looks to import fuel
Venezuela
is seeking more than 13 million barrels of fuel imports by the end of the year,
which constitutes about a third of what the nation needs annually. Refineries
are operating at less than 50% of their installed capacity—which is 3.1 million
bpd—due to insufficient supplies of crude oil and to insufficient maintenance.
Refinery maintenance is being overlooked as the state oil company focuses its
efforts on producing enough oil to repay debts accumulated over the last few
years mainly to China and Russia amid the oil price crash. Venezuela pumped
1.95 million bpd as of this April, according Caracas, production in April
averaged 2.19 million bpd. Whatever the actual number, it’s below the average
of 2.31 million bpd from April 2016. The decline is not huge, but it is
significant in the context of the oil-for-loan deals and the capacity
utilization rate of Venezuelan refineries. It is likely that Caracas will seek to
import more fuels to satisfy its daily needs of 200,000 bpd. (Baystreet: https://www.baystreet.ca/articles/commodities.aspx?articleid=31056)
Venezuela lost over 200,000 bpd of oil production in
2017
According
to opposition Congressman and economist José Guerra, Venezuela is in the worst
of the worlds, by losing market and with low prices in a context where the
government shut foreign financing. The chair of the Standing Committee of
Finance and Economic Development of the Venezuelan National Assembly (AN), José
Guerra, warned that in the middle of the political standoff, Venezuelans are
not aware that the economic issue is worsening at fast pace. Guerra explained
that two elements contribute to exacerbate the economic crisis in Venezuela: “first, the concomitant fall of oil
production and prices; second, the pronounced depreciation of the bolivar.”
(El Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/noticias/daily-news/guerra-venezuela-lost-over-200000-bpd-oil-production-2017_658331)
Portugal investigates fraud linked to PDVSA funds
Portugal
is investigating alleged appropriation of funds belonging to Venezuelan state
oil company PDVSA that were channeled through now-defunct Portuguese bank Banco
Espirito Santo between 2009 and 2014, PDVSA said on Saturday. PDVSA's
reputation has been tarnished in recent years by high-profile corruption
investigations including guilty pleas by two U.S.-based contractors who
authorities said ran a US$ 1 billion corruption scheme associated with PDVSA
contracts. Venezuela's opposition-led Congress last year said about US$ 11 billion
in funds went missing at PDVSA while Rafael Ramirez, currently Venezuela's U.N.
envoy, was at the helm from 2004 to 2014. Ramirez slammed the report as "irresponsible lies." (Reuters, http://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-pdvsa-idUSKBN19F0SL;
El Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/noticias/daily-news/portugal-spain-probe-into-diversion-pdvsa-funds_658327)
Commodities
Venezuelan families now pay 4 times as much for food,
reduce intake
According
to the prestigious CENDES think tank within the Venezuelan Teachers Federation,
families here must now pay 4.3 times as much for the same basic products they
were able to purchase last year, as prices rise and their purchasing power
shrinks. Last month, families needed 15.2 minimum wages to buy the 58
components of the basic food product basket. This means a minimum wage covers
barely 6.6% of the basket. Venezuelan family daily intake has become lower due
to scarcity and high prices. They still have lunch, but do without breakfast or
dinner on a daily basis. More in Spanish: (El Nacional; http://www.el-nacional.com/noticias/economia/ano-familias-pagaron-cuatro-veces-mas-por-cesta-alimentaria_188978;
http://www.el-nacional.com/noticias/economia/familias-reducen-porciones-comida-por-escasez-altos-precios_189009)
Economy & Finance
Venezuela in talks with NOMURA to sell fixed-income
securities -sources
Venezuela's
central bank is seeking to sell fixed-income securities to NOMURA Holdings Inc
as a way of raising cash amid an economic crisis, an opposition deputy and a
finance industry source said on Thursday, only weeks after a similar deal
embroiled the Japanese bank in controversy. Opposition legislators this month
publicly chided NOMURA for participating along with GOLDMAN SACHS Group Inc in
a US$ 2.9 billion bond operation that helped the government of President
Nicolas Maduro bolster the country's flagging foreign currency reserves. The
talks revolve around US$ 710 million in securities known as credit-linked notes
that were issued by NOMURA to Venezuela in 2008, according to the finance
industry source, as a way for the then-prosperous country to invest its
plentiful oil revenue. Venezuela, struggling under triple-digit inflation and
Soviet-style product shortages as its socialist economy unravels, is willing to
sell the notes back to NOMURA at a discount before the notes mature. "NOMURA is buying back notes that are held by
the central bank," opposition legislator Angel Alvarado, who is part
of a broad effort to pressure global banks not to provide financing to
Venezuela, told Reuters. "The
government is continuing with its desperate strategy of selling off assets
because its cash-flow limitations." Venezuela's Central Bank Governor
Ricardo Sanguino denied it was in negotiations with NOMURA, but Venezuela has
recently negotiated such deals through intermediaries. Alvarado on Thursday
published letters by Congress chief Julio Borges to U.S. regulatory agencies
including the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) asking for a probe into
Nomura and Goldman for the May bond operation. "The pricing and spread paid by each institution to Dinosaur (an
intermediary) suggest price fixing and above-market commissions," read
the letters. "We believe there is
enough evidence to open an investigation against GOLDMAN SACHS and NOMURA."
Following the uproar over its purchase of PDVSA bonds in May, GOLDMAN issued a
statement that cited the presence of an intermediary in the operation, noting
that it therefore did not directly do business with the Venezuelan government. Borges'
letters describes this argument as "subterfuge"
because neither institution has the financial resources for such an operation.
(Reuters: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-nomura-hldgs-idUSKBN19D2GE)
Venezuelan dictator’s Wall St. lifeline
Wall
Street continues to trade Venezuelan oil bonds issued in 2014, helping to get
the country out of debt, writes Jeff Jacoby for Townhall. The problem: These “hunger bonds” line the pockets of
investors while “Maduro’s access to cash
and his grip on power remain intact.” Though Jacoby is uneasy with the free
world’s role in boosting an oppressive regime, he admits there are no easy
answers: “Cutting off Maduro’s access to
cash might lead to even worse repression and hunger. Propping up his regime by
buying Venezuelan debt could have the same effect.”
Rift at Venezuela broker-dealer TORINO leads to
founder's exit
The
co-founder of one of the most respected broker-dealers focused on Venezuela
left the company amid a disagreement about the firm’s direction. Jorge
Piedrahita departed New York-based TORINO Capital on June 13 after he
unsuccessfully pushed to expand its businesses in Argentina, Brazil and Central
America to colleagues who favored an all-in approach on Venezuela, which has
some of the world’s riskiest and highest yielding bonds amid a dearth of
official data that makes any insights on the country more valuable. The
emerging-market investment bank hired Francisco Rodriguez, a former Bank of
America Corp. economist and one-time head of Venezuela’s congressional budget office,
last year to beef up its research on the chaotic, oil-rich nation. The firm,
which has about a dozen employees in New York, also includes five research
assistants in Caracas who assist Rodriguez with his reports on Venezuela’s
ever-changing politics, default odds and foreign-exchange systems. (Bloomberg: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-06-27/rift-at-venezuela-broker-dealer-torino-leads-to-founder-s-exodus)
Whoops!
CITIGROUP's valuation flub leads to a quick rating reversal
First, there were Goldman Sachs’s “hunger bonds.” Now, Venezuela’s giving another Wall Street bank fits. CITIGROUP cut
shares of Latin American e-commerce behemoth MERCADOLIBRE to neutral just four
days after calling them a buy. Turns out analyst Paola Mello had overestimated
its valuation due to a mixup about the outlook for long-term revenue growth in
Venezuela. One sympathizes with Mello. It’s incredibly difficult to make
forecasts related to Venezuela with any degree of certitude at the moment,
given that annual inflation is estimated at 600%, businesses must cope with myriad official and unofficial
exchange rates, and the country has been wracked with deadly
anti-government protests amid food shortages. (Bloomberg, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-06-23/whoops-citigroup-valuation-flub-brings-quick-reversal-on-rating)
Politics and International Affairs
Pressure mounts on Maduro
On
Monday, citizens, students, politicians and activists shut down the streets of
Caracas and several cities around Venezuela, following a call by the Democratic
Unity opposition coalition to interrupt all traffic for 4 hours to protest
government repression and the call for what they call a “fraudulent” and unconstitutional National Constituent Assembly. National
Guard and Police tried to curtail their activities by gassing protesters, who
quickly reassembled. A group of workers were arrested as they tried to block
the main thoroughfare in Caracas, the Francisco Fajardo thruway. During the
evening violence, burning and looting broke out at several locations,
particularly in the city of Maracay, a military bastion around 70 miles West of
Caracas, which was formerly a pro-Chavez stronghold. Demonstrators are holding
rallies on an almost daily basis to demand Maduro’s resignation and new
elections. Thousands of anti-government protesters once again took to the
streets on Saturday in opposition organized marches to military bases around
the country to demonstrate against the killing of an unarmed 22-year-old
activist who was shot dead by a military police sergeant on Thursday. David
Vallenilla, 22, was shot at close range by a military police sergeant,
apparently with rubber bullets, as youths tried to pull down the fence around
an air force base in Caracas and threw rocks at officials who had fired tear
gas from inside. His father, describing himself as a former boss and friend of
President Nicolas Maduro on Friday urged an investigation into the killing. Demonstrators
rallied outside La Carlota air base where the protester was shot dead – and
were greeted with tear gas and rubber bullets, sending protesters running. Though
most of the demonstrators protested with banners and slogans, another small
group entered the air base throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails after breaking
through the railings around it. Maduro warned on Saturday, during a speech
marking Independence Day, that some of those detained would face a military
trial and would be “severely”
punished. “Desperation, hatred, and fury
thrive among the enemies of the fatherland,” said Maduro, describing the
OAS’s inability to produce a statement on Venezuela as a victory for the
country. Seventy-five people have died in the protests over the past three
months. (Euro News: https://uk.news.yahoo.com/pressure-mounts-venezuela-maduro-005433128.html9;
http://www.euronews.com/2017/06/25/clashes-in-caracas-as-venezuela-opposition-rally-over-activists-death;
Latin American Herald Tribune, http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2438824&CategoryId=10717;
Reuters, http://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-politics-idUSKBN19E2G8;
The Atlanta Black Star: http://atlantablackstar.com/2017/06/26/protests-continue-unabated-politically-torn-venezuela/;
MSN: http://www.msn.com/en-gb/video/other/venezuela-students-protest-against-bid-to-rewrite-constitution/vp-BBDk45E;
and more in Spanish: Notiminuto: http://www.notiminuto.com/noticia/en-fotosi-asi-transcurre-trancazo-en-caracas/)
Heroes or agitators? Young lawmakers on Venezuela's
front line
A group
of young Venezuelan lawmakers has risen to prominence on the violent front line
of anti-government marches that have shaken this country for three months,
bringing 75 deaths. One was knocked off his feet by a water cannon. Another was
pushed into a drain. Most have been pepper-sprayed, tear-gassed, beaten and hit
by pellet shots. On the streets daily leading demonstrators, pushing at
security barricades and sometimes picking up teargas canisters to hurl back at
police and soldiers, the energetic National Assembly members are heroes to many
opposition supporters. The dozen or so legislators, all in their late 20s or
early 30s, belong mainly to the Justice First and Popular Will parties, which
are promoting civil disobedience against a president they term a dictator. They
march largely without protective gear - unlike the masked and shield-bearing
youths around them - though supporters and aides sometimes form circles to
guard them. They do not receive salaries since funds to the National Assembly
were squeezed, living instead off gifts from relatives and friends. And some
still reside at home with parents. Some have dubbed the band of lawmakers
"the class of 2007" for
their roots in a student movement a decade ago that helped the opposition to a
rare victory against Maduro's popular predecessor Hugo Chavez in a referendum.
State airlines refuse to sell them tickets, and private carriers are under
pressure to do the same, meaning they cannot fly around the country. Some have
also had passports confiscated or annulled, blocking foreign travel. Their
mantra is peaceful protest, and indeed when marches have not been blocked -
such as to a state TV office and the Catholic Church headquarters - there has
been no trouble. But some admit to tossing back gas canisters or throwing the
odd stone, and there has been criticism the legislators have not done enough to
restrain violence within opposition ranks, from burning property to lynching
someone. But to President Nicolas Maduro's socialist government, they are the
chief "terrorists" in a
U.S.-backed coup plot aimed at controlling the vast oil wealth of the nation. Officials
accuse the lawmakers of paying youths and even children as young as 12 to
attack security forces, block roads and burn property. They have threatened to
jail them. The lawmakers scoff at that, saying they now carry the nation's
dreams for change while an ever-more desperate Maduro is clinging to power
against the majority's will. (Reuters, http://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-politics-lawmakers-idUSKBN19H0E8)
Switch in military leadership seen as bolstering PSUV
faction
President
Nicolas Maduro has appointed Admiral Remigio Ceballos Ichaso to replace Defense
Minister General Vladimir Padrino Lopez as head the country's Strategic
Operational Command, a position that gives Ichaso operational control of the
Venezuelan armed forces. A Stratfor source has said that Diosdado Cabello, an
influential powerbroker in the country, influenced Maduro's decision. The move
made June 20 could be an attempt by Cabello to shield himself and his allies in
the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) from pressure by members
of the armed forces. In his new position, Ichaso gains the power to issue
orders directly to the country's eight lower-level regional defense zone
commanders. Padrino Lopez remains defense minister. The PSUV has been riven
into opposing factions that disagree on a constitutional rewrite ordered by
Maduro. A core of ruling party elites allied with the president intends to
rewrite parts of the constitution to cement their hold over the country's
institutions amid Venezuela's deepening economic crisis. The country's
political opposition, along with the dissident Chavistas, perceives the
involvement of the armed forces, whether through political pressure or a coup,
as vital to ending the constitutional redo. Therefore, it's not surprising
that, faced with a dissident movement within his own party and an increasingly disloyal
military, that Cabello would try to shield himself through his influence with
the military. It's customary for the Venezuelan armed forces to reshuffle its
commanders at this time of year, and Cabello appears to have used his influence
in this process to protect himself. Still, Venezuela's economic crisis is set
to grow more intense, and political confrontation by the opposition and
dissident Chavista faction against the government will only increase. As the
constitutional rewrite process proceeds, it will trigger additional protests,
and the armed forces' loyalty will remain in doubt despite the PSUV's influence
in appointing its leadership. (Stratfor: https://worldview.stratfor.com/article/venezuela-switch-military-leadership-seen-bolstering-psuv-faction)
Maduro invites 5 nations to facilitate talks with
opposition
President
Nicolas Maduro has announced that representatives of Uruguay, the Dominican
Republic, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Saint Vincent & Grenadines will be
arriving within the next few weeks, to help create a communications thread
between his regime and the opposition so that they can return to a dialogue. At
the same time, he said Venezuela could return to the Organization of American
States (OAS) if Secretary General Luis Almagro resigns. In referring to
international rejection of his National Constituent Assembly, Maduro said “only we Venezuelans decide our affairs”.
More in Spanish: (Notiminuto: http://www.notiminuto.com/noticia/pdte-maduro-la-oea-que-se-olvide-de-venezuela/
OAS head offers to quit if Maduro holds free elections,
frees political prisoners
After
President Nicolas Maduro suggested this week Venezuela could return to the
Organization of American States (OAS) if its Secretary General Luis Almagro
stepped down, Almagro hit back: “Here is
my response: I will resign from the General Secretariat the day that free, fair
and transparent national elections are held without impediments,” Almagro
said in a video message posted on Twitter. Almagro conditioned his resignation
offer on a long list of demands, including free elections, the release of
hundreds of political prisoners, respect for the National Assembly, a guarantee
of Supreme Court independence and the opening of a humanitarian aid channel
into the country. Almagro recognizes that the list is long. “Regrettably, there are many things that are
necessary for the freedom of Venezuela. In exchange for the freedom of
Venezuela, I offer my post. Because we will never resign, we will not resign,
until we have in our hands the freedom of Venezuela,” he says near the end
of the video. Maduro offered no immediate response to Almagro’s offer. But he
has labeled the OAS a puppet of Washington, and he accuses opposition activists
of sowing chaos to plot a coup against him. (Latin American Herald Tribune, http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2438790&CategoryId=10717;
Reuters, http://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-politics-idUSKBN19F0OU;
Euro News: https://uk.news.yahoo.com/pressure-mounts-venezuela-maduro-005433128.html9)
Attorney General says Venezuela has become a “police state”
Attorney
General Luisa Ortega Díaz says that the judiciary’s subservience to the secret
police has made this country into a “police
state”, not one where citizen rights are upheld. “They have put the cart before the horses here, the SEBIN (Bolivarian
Intelligence Service) dictates guidelines to the judiciary, and they obey. This
is not the rule of law, this is a police state”, she says. Ortega adds that
the Supreme Tribunal (TSJ) here violated the National Assembly through a set of
rulings that disrupt constitutional order, and that “if the Constituent Assembly consolidates itself, Venezuelans will
undergo the darkest times of all our republic’s history. If this project goes
through, democracy will be definitely undone.” More in Spanish: (Noticiero Venevisión, http://www.noticierovenevision.net/noticias/politica/fiscal-ortega-diaz-afirma-que-venezuela-es-un-estado-policial)
Maduro’s son, wife, and closest supporters nominated
to National Constituent Assembly
Nicolás
Ernesto Maduro Guerra, the 27-year-old only son of President Nicolás Maduro,
expects to become one of the 545 members of the National Constituent Assembly
that Maduro proposes to elect on July 30th, to rewrite Venezuela’s
constitution. Maduro Guerra, who has held several public positions in his
father’s administration since 2013, joins First Lady Cilia Flores, former
Foreign Minister Delcy Rodríguez, legislator Captain Diosdado Cabello, and
several other Maduro confidants in the roster of pro-regime nominees for the
proposed Assembly. The Democratic Unity opposition coalition has refused to
take part in the process, calling it a “fraud”.
More in Spanish: (Notiminuto: http://www.notiminuto.com/noticia/hijo-de-maduro-se-postulo-a-la-asamblea-constituyente/
Venezuela risks becoming Caribbean 'North Korea,'
former leaders say
Two
former Latin American presidents said the world is running out of time to find
a solution to the crisis in Venezuela as President Nicolas Maduro aims to
consolidate power over the country. Despite widespread protests, Maduro’s push
to “put a group of his friends in what is
called a ‘constituent assembly,’ would
be the end of democracy and the annihilation of the Republic of Venezuela,”
said Jorge Quiroga, former president of Bolivia. That election “will install a Soviet state in Venezuela,
liquidate democracy, end the Congress, cancel elections and turn Venezuela into
a sort of Caribbean ‘North Korea’,” he said. Joined by former Colombian
President Andres Pastrana, Quiroga spoke to journalists at the Vatican on 23rd
June on the deteriorating situation in Venezuela and attempts to diffuse the
crisis following their meeting with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary
of state. (The Catholic Universe: http://www.thecatholicuniverse.com/venezuela-risks-becoming-caribbean-north-korea-former-leaders-say-13568)
Ecuador ex-President claims Venezuela leader is
non-violent
Former
Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa claims Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro
is a good person who is non-violent. Asked about violence stemming from a
political and economic crisis in Venezuela and nearly daily street protests
against Maduro’s leftist government, he replied: “Oftentimes the violence comes from the right. There are groups there
that want to create chaos and violence, but what you read in the newspapers is
that the repression and violence comes from the security forces, from the
government. And that’s not the case”. He claimed Venezuela is under
permanent attack from foreign powers, saying the assault was media-driven and
economic in nature and was doing that country a great deal of harm. (Latin
American Herald Tribune, http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2438789&CategoryId=10717)
US urges global action on "tragic situation" in Venezuela
The
United States mission at the United Nations (UN) demanded on Thursday “action” in view of the “tragic situation” in Venezuela. Venezuelan
"people are starving while their
government tramples their democracy," said US Ambassador to the UN,
Nikki Haley, in a statement. Her appeal was made shortly after the end of the
meeting in Cancún, Mexico, of the Organization of American States (OAS) General
Assembly, without any resolution intended to cancel a national constituent
assembly attempted by the Venezuelan government to re-write the constitution. (El Universal, http://www.eluniversal.com/noticias/daily-news/urges-global-action-tragic-situation-venezuela_658325)
The Netherlands prepare to evacuate citizens in
Venezuela
The
Netherlands government is preparing to evacuate Dutch citizens living in
Venezuela due to social unrest here. Foreign Minister Bert Koenders and Kingdom
Affairs Minister Ronald Plasterk have sent a joint letter to the Dutch
Parliament expressing their deep concern and have for some time advised Dutch
citizens to avoid unnecessary travel to Venezuela. More in Spanish: (Noticiero
Venevisión, http://www.noticierovenevision.net/noticias/internacional/gobierno-holandes-prepara-evacuacion-de-sus-ciudadanos-que-habitan-en-venezuela)
Historian claims Venezuela's government hopes for
international sanctions
Historian
Agustin Blanco Munoz of the Central University of Venezuela says it is unlikely
that international pressure can make the Maduro regime restore the rule of law.
He compares the Venezuelan government to Fidel Castro's communist regime in
Cuba, which was effectively expelled from the OAS in 1962 and hit with an
expanded trade embargo. "The OAS
helped them stay in power another 55 years," he said. "Had the US
bombarded Cuba with food and medication, would it be different today? Did the
supply shortage actually harm Castro?" That is why Blanco Munoz does
not believe that Maduro and his supporters would be upset about sanctions. In
fact, Venezuelan vice-president Diosdado Cabello had announced before the OAS
meeting: "They would do us a favor."
Blanco Munoz doubts that the OAS would impose sanctions against Venezuela,
although he adds: "But if they do,
PSUV leaders will throw a party." (DW: http://www.dw.com/en/venezuelas-government-hopes-for-international-sanctions/a-38174996)
His country in turmoil, Royals’ Escobar balances
baseball with thoughts of Venezuela
Alcides
Escobar has never endured a season like this. He has never performed this
poorly at the plate, even after years of declining offense. Never felt the
mental weight of a slump this deep. Never felt the pressure of looming free
agency, either. And yet, when Escobar discusses the challenges of 2017, he is
not just talking about the batting average that finally surpassed .200. On most
nights, when the game is over and the at-bats are done, Escobar returns to the
clubhouse and grabs his phone, scouring the latest news from back home. “It’s hard,” Escobar said in a recent
interview in Spanish. “When you get to
the stadium you have to focus on your job. But when it’s done, you start
looking at Twitter and Instagram and reading the news and your mind just goes
back to Venezuela. It’s where I was
born and raised, I always offer
support to my people. I know something better will come.” Escobar, of
course, is not alone. On opening day, there were 77 Venezuelan players on
major-league rosters, more than 10% of the league. Many of them are among the
game’s greatest stars, from Detroit’s Miguel Cabrera to Houston’s Jose Altuve to
Salvador Perez, Escobar’s friend and teammate. Across baseball, more and more
Venezuelan players have begun speaking out against the violence against
protesters. Yet many remain reluctant to publicly criticize the government.
Escobar has sought to occupy a space in the middle. Every day, he retweets
articles about the protests. In May, Escobar spoke about his country in a video
for La Vida, a branch of the Hall of Fame that celebrates Latin baseball. “I hope it doesn’t become worse,” he
said, looking toward the camera. “I hope
that we don’t see more deaths, that we don’t have more violence.” The
message came a month after Perez addressed the situation in an Instagram post,
stating that he was neither a “Chavista” — a supporter of former president
Chavez — nor in opposition. (The Kansas City Star: http://www.kansascity.com/sports/mlb/kansas-city-royals/article158334814.html)
The following brief
is a synthesis of the news as reported by a variety of media sources. As such,
the views and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of Duarte
Vivas & Asociados and The Selinger Group.
