Chavez is a social democrat!

international | miscellaneous | opinion/analysis Monday December 10, 2007 18:17 by Bob - ...

Redefining social democracy

Chavez...Venezuela's answer to Ruairí Quinn

At this stage, we all know what the craic is with Venezuela…We’ve also had many a discussion on social democracy vs socialism……But what would you say if I claimed that Chavez was a socialist in the social democratic tradition….Or, to put it another way, a social democrat in the socialist tradition!!!

Social-democratic politics tend to be understood as seeking to implement reforms that alleviate some of the worst aspects of the capitalist system, to the benefit of ordinary people, without breaking with capitalism itself.

Certainly, the Chavez government has implemented a wide number of social democratic reforms however, is he really trying to do away with capitalism completely.

If one looks at the economics section of the official Venezuelan embassy in the US, one finds a message that is far from a traditional, socialist point of view.

According to the website:
“Venezuela has an enormous potential for development and investment. It is an ideal site for international business operations due to the combination of its proximity to Latin American and Caribbean markets and its relatively short distance from North America and Europe…Opportunities for investment and trade in Venezuela are abundant in sectors such as oil and gas production and distribution, electrical distribution, petrochemicals, aluminum, steel, agriculture, tourism and consumer products and services, to name but a few.”

At the moment, Chavez seems to be in the middle of a genuine social-democratic upheaval, attempting to provide proper welfare, health care and education in a democratic, economically sustainable way…

Unlike some “social democratic” elements of parties such as the British Labour Party or the SDP, who would love to implement brutal anti-worker policies at the drop of the hat if they could get away with it, Chavez is acting like a true social democrat.

Chavez is a true social democrat, who rejects the new, artificial model of social democracy that seeks to subordinate struggles by workers to the interests of capital by promoting the idea of common interests between two fundamentally irreconcilable social forces — working people and the greedy.

Chavez is no trot! He is a proud social democrat/democratic socialist!!!