Genocide in Venezuela

The following is an article written by senior John Paul Secrest and junior Rockne Bhastardo about genocide in Venezuela.

               On February 27, 1989 the country of Venezuela changed forever.  In the months leading up to this event, an economic crisis had gripped the country.  It started with their government borrowing money from the American government.  They had no way of repaying what they borrowed with their current revenue.  In order to pay America back they looked for ways to increase their revenue.  Their plan was to over tax their people for basic necessities. 

               They increased the costs of public transportation by over one-hundred percent.  They increased the price of gas resulting in driving yourself impossible.  They increased the price of food making what they bought a week ago almost unaffordable.  In an outrage, a massive riot broke out near their capital city.  The government was left with two options: let them rage or take them down.  Their solution was to take them down.

               Armed soldiers started firing upon the citizens.  The soldiers had lost their chain of command and were just following the last orders they received.  They were killing people indiscriminately.  The rioters were put down, their families were put down, bystanders were put down, and everyone they saw was killed. 

               The government’s official death toll was three-hundred.  If you ask the people there, it was in the multi-thousands.  The victims have not been compensated in anyway after this occurrence.  The soldiers responsible for the murders where not even punished, they all now hold easy government jobs.  This past February marked the twenty-fifth anniversary of the massacre.  The people that lost family and friends are still alive today.  The lives of these victims have been changed forever, and most people don’t even know what they went through.