10 reasons why you should come to the “Venezuela – Showing Another World is Possible” Conference
In just over a decade the elected Venezuelan government, led by Hugo Chavez, has worked with mass movements of the poor to carry out inspiring social changes. Whereas millions once lived in deep poverty, the country’s oil wealth is today being used to transform the lives of the majority. It is a real example of what can be achieved when governments put people before profits.
10 reasons why you should come to the ‘Venezuela – Showing Another World is Possible’ conference on 16 April
1. because in Venezuela illiteracy has been eradicated after 1.5m people learnt to read and write in just two years! Two thirds of those benefiting were women.
2. because free education is now guaranteed in Venezuela’s constitution. As a result the number of university students has trebled under Chavez!
3. because a free National Health System has been introduced ensuring everyone has access to a doctor for the first time! This is estimated to have saved 240,000 lives.
4. because child mortality has been halved and life expectancy increased as a result of the Chavez government’s social programmes.
5. because 4 million Venezuelans have been lifted out of poverty since 1998 with poverty rates falling by half and extreme poverty by two-thirds.
6. because malnutrition has been substantially reduced with over 12m people now receiving high quality subsidised food. A UN spokesperson said of this ““In times when we have food prices soaring and more than a billion people dying of starvation, Venezuela does just the opposite and has noticeably reduced the rate of malnourishment”.
7. because Venezuela has met the UN Millennium Development Goals, on poverty, gender equality, inequality and many more, way ahead of schedule – unlike most countries that are going to miss them.
8. because Venezuela has adopted a new constitution and social policies that tackle discrimination and guarantee rights for women, indigenous and black communities and disable and people.
9. because all this social change has been democratically backed in 14 sets of elections in just 12 years – all declared free and fair. In the 50 years before Chavez there were only 14 national elections in 50 years.
10. because your solidarity is needed. The US and old Venezuelan elite do not intend to allow the Venezuelan people to control their own oil resources. Military and economic coup attempts against the Chavez government have been tried and today the US continues to fund Venezuelan opposition to the tune of millions of dollars.
Come and learn more about these huge changes in Venezuela and show your support for democracy, social progress and the right of people to determine their own future free from outside interference.
More info and to register click here.
Produced by the Venezuela Solidarity Campaign
