Power Struggle in Venezuela: Which Way Out of the Crisis?

Venezuela is troubled. More than four million people have now fled to neighbouring countries, and there is a shortage of basic foodstuffs and medicines. Time and again the electricity supply goes off for days on end. One of the worst logistical and indeed state crises in the history of the country has plunged large parts of the population into poverty and further destabilised an ailing political system. Incumbent Nicolás Maduro and leader of the opposition Juan Guaidó, the self-proclaimed president of Venezuela who has been recognised as such by a number of countries worldwide, are in a fight for political supremacy. International powers like the United States and Russia are trying to take advantage of the situation for their own gain. Afraid of being externally influenced, the Venezuelan government has consequently blocked the delivery of aid – exarcebating the humanitarian crisis. The situation is particularly aggrevated by the country’s heavy economic dependence on oil exports. A change of government or new elections alone will surely not suffice. How, then, can Venezuela find its way out of this crisis? Moderator Julia-Niharika Sen (of the NDR TV programme Weltbilder) will discuss this question with Prof. Dr. Sabine Kurtenbach (Acting Director of the GIGA Institute for Latin American Studies), Xenia Böttcher (ARD correspondent), and Kai Küstner (NDR, former ARD correspondent). They will shed light on the crisis in Venezuela from a variety of perspectives, provide insights into research practice and into reporting on the ground, and share their personal experiences. Together, they will scrutinise not only the situation in the country itself but also the international reactions to it – as well as the wider effects on the entire region. A summary of the event can be accessed in the NDR Mediathek, tagesschau24, and NDR Info's "Das Forum". In the collaborative event series from NDR and the GIGA “Crossing Borders – Foreign Correspondents Connecting with Scholars” (“Grenzgänger – Auslandskorrespondenten treffen Wissenschaftler”), researchers and journalists discuss current events across the world, always including a perspective on how Germany and Hamburg are affected.