CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The world’s attention on Venezuela in recent weeks has been focused on the fallout from a highly controversial presidential election that both the ruling party and its opponents claim to have won, the subsequent prosecution of critics and the arrest warrant against the former opposition candidate for president.
But with political tensions rising, President Nicolás Maduro decided there was a more important issue to discuss: Christmas and the need to start the joyous season a little earlier this year. In October, to be exact.
“It’s September and it already smells like Christmas,” Maduro said Monday night on his weekly television show. “That’s why this year, as a tribute to all of you and out of gratitude for all of you, I will declare an early Christmas on October 1.”
But not everyone seems to feel like singing Christmas carols.
“Christmas should be a time of joy, family reunions, parties and gifts,” José Ernesto Ruiz, a 57-year-old office worker, said Tuesday in Caracas, the capital. “(But) without money and with this political crisis, who can believe that there will be an early Christmas?”
It’s not the first time Maduro, who has been in power since 2013, has announced the early arrival of Christmas. He has done so during the COVID-19 pandemic, but never this early. The political mood is also particularly tense this year, even though Maduro has said the season will come with “peace, happiness and security.”
Electoral authorities loyal to the ruling party declared Maduro the winner of the July 28 election without providing detailed results to support their claim, as they have done in previous presidential elections.
But the lack of transparency has led to international condemnation of Maduro and his allies, while the main opposition party has presented electronic copies of its own election results showing that its candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez received the most votes.
Just hours before Maduro’s announcement of the holidays, a Venezuelan judge ruled has issued an arrest warrant for Gonzáleza former diplomat, and accused him of several crimes, including conspiracy, forgery of documents and abuse of power.
After the election, protests broke out against Maduro’s proclamation and the government responded by arresting several people. More than 2,000 people, including journalists, politicians and aid workers, have been arrested since then.
“We are all worried about how we are going to put food on the table, how we are going to pay for the bus, how we are going to send the children to school and how we are going to buy medicine when we need it,” said Inés Quevedo, a 39-year-old secretary and mother of two.
“I don’t think they will increase our salaries or pay us the ‘aguinaldo,’” she added, referring to the Christmas bonuses that workers typically receive at the end of the year.
The minimum wage has not changed since 2022: 130 bolivars per month, or about $3.55. Workers also earn a monthly food aid bonus of about $40, and those signed up for a government benefits system get an extra $90.
“We will see what this Christmas brings,” Quevedo said.
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