VIETNAM

Vietnam
I INTRODUCTION

Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, country located on the eastern coast of the Indochinese Peninsula. Vietnam is bordered on the north by China, on the west by Laos and Cambodia, and on the south and east by the South China Sea. Hanoi is the capital, and Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) is the largest city.

Vietnam is relatively long and narrow, with a varied terrain. The far north and much of central Vietnam are hilly to mountainous. In the north, the highlands slope gradually toward the eastern coast, forming broad plains intersected by numerous streams. The plains are intensely cultivated, and over centuries the Vietnamese have built many dikes and canals to irrigate crops and control flooding. In central Vietnam, the narrowest part of the country, the mountains and highlands extend nearer to the coast, in a few places jutting into the sea and elsewhere dropping sharply to a narrow coastal plain. Southern Vietnam is very low lying, containing the broad, fertile delta of the Mekong River. Like the northern plains, much of the Mekong Delta is cultivated, and there are vast tracts of rice paddies.

Vietnam developed as an agricultural society, and the population is still predominantly rural. In 2005, 27 percent of the population lived in urban areas. People are increasingly migrating to cities, however, swelling the populations of Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and other places.

Vietnam has about 50 ethnic and language groups, but ethnic Vietnamese, or Viets, constitute the vast majority of the population. The original homeland of the Vietnamese people was in the valley of the Red River, a river that originates in southern China and flows through northern Vietnam before entering the Gulf of Tonkin. China conquered the region in the 2nd century bc, but the Vietnamese successfully restored their independence in ad 939. During the next 1,000 years, Vietnam became one of the most dynamic civilizations in Southeast Asia and expanded southward along the coast.

France invaded Vietnam in the late 19th century. The French divided the country into three separate regions; joined the regions with Cambodia and Laos into the Indochinese Union, known as French Indochina; and exploited Vietnamese resources to benefit France. After World War II (1939-1945), anticolonial groups led by the Indochinese Communist Party revolted against French rule. In 1954, after Vietnamese forces defeated the French at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, Vietnam was temporarily divided into two zones: North Vietnam, led by a Communist government, and South Vietnam, headed by anti-Communists. For the next 20 years the government in the South, supported by the United States, sought to defeat a growing insurgent movement led by the North to unify the country (see Vietnam War). The United States withdrew its combat troops in 1973, and South Vietnam fell to a Communist offensive two years later. In 1976 a unified Communist state was established with its capital at Hanoi. Although Vietnam remains under Communist rule, its leadership has begun implementing aspects of a market economy in order to promote economic development.

II LAND AND RESOURCES

Shaped like an enormous letter S, Vietnam extends more than 1,500 km (1,000 mi) from China in the north to the Gulf of Thailand in the south. At its narrowest, just north of the port city of Da Nang, the distance between the sea and the country’s western border is less than 50 km (30 mi). Vietnam’s total area is 331,690 sq km (128,066 sq mi).

A Natural Regions

Vietnam has four major geographic regions. The country’s northernmost section consists of a tangled mass of rugged and heavily forested mountains that extend into Vietnam from China’s Yunnan Plateau. In Vietnam, these mountains attain a maximum elevation of 3,143 m (10,312 ft) at Fan Si Pan, the country’s highest point. To the east and southeast of these mountainous highlands is the Red River Delta, a triangular-shaped alluvial plain that stretches along the Gulf of Tonkin, an arm of the South China Sea. The Truong Son (Annam Highlands) lies to the south of the delta and forms the backbone of Vietnam. Also in this region are the Central Highlands, a vast upland plateau situated between the Cambodian border and the South China Sea. Vietnam’s fourth and southernmost region is the Mekong Delta. This region is a fertile area of marshy flatland that stretches from the southern edge of the Central Highlands in the north to the mangrove swamps of the Ca Mau peninsula in the south.

B Rivers

Vietnam’s two major rivers are the Red River in the north and the Mekong River in the south, both of which are navigable for their entire lengths within Vietnam. The Red River flows almost directly southeast from southern China into Vietnam’s northwestern highlands. The Mekong follows an irregular path across Southeast Asia to its mouth at the South China Sea. Farming in much of the Mekong Delta was once impossible because salt water from the South China Sea would periodically cover the low-lying land. To combat this problem, the French installed dikes during the 20th century. Today, an intricate system of dikes and canals helps prevent flooding of the Mekong and Red River deltas. Among Vietnam’s noteworthy smaller rivers are the Huong River (Perfume River) at Hue and the Ka Long O River near Vinh.

C Coastline

Vietnam’s coastline extends 3,444 km (2,140 mi) from the Chinese border in the north to the frontier with Cambodia in the Gulf of Thailand. In some areas, such as east of the Central Highlands and north of the Red River Delta, the mountains extend directly into the sea. This creates a number of protected harbors suitable for shipping, including those of the port cities of Da Nang, Qui Nhon, and Nha Trang. The mountains also form a picturesque backdrop, and beaches at Da Nang and Nha Trang are among the most popular resort areas in the country. The remaining coastal areas are flatlands, created by the deposits of alluvial soils by rivers. Over time, this deposition process creates triangular, flat deltas, notably the Red and Mekong deltas.

D Plant and Animal Life

Many plant and animal species thrive in Vietnam’s warm, rainy climate. Mountain forests are typically dense, consisting of a wide variety of evergreens and rain forest vegetation. Upland farmers periodically clear lands for cultivation, which causes some deforestation, although this is not nearly as serious a problem as in other areas of Southeast Asia. During the Vietnam War (1959-1975) heavy bombing cleared some areas of foliage, but plant life in these areas has gradually begun to recover. In the country’s warmest zones, farmers have widely planted the hillsides and plateau regions with cash crops such as coffee, tea, and rubber. Most lowland areas and some upland valleys are planted with wet rice, although other useful crops include bananas, coconuts, papaya, and bamboo. Dense mangrove swamps cover the lowland areas along the southern coast of the Mekong Delta and on the Ca Mau peninsula.

Vietnam’s forests are inhabited by many large mammals, including elephants, deer, bears, tigers, and leopards. Smaller animals, such as monkeys, hares, squirrels, and otters, are also found in considerable numbers throughout the country. In recent years, scientists have identified several previously unknown species of animal life in the Truong Son, including the endangered sao la, a cattlelike animal. Many species of birds and reptiles, including crocodiles, snakes, and lizards, also thrive in Vietnam.

E Natural Resources

Vietnam’s most valuable natural resource is its land, particularly the fertile, alluvial soils in the Red and Mekong deltas. Some 29 percent of the land is currently being cultivated.

Vietnam has some valuable mineral resources, including gold, iron, tin, zinc, phosphate, chromite, apatite, and anthracite coal. Most deposits are located in the northern part of the country. Few attempts were made to extract these minerals until the French takeover of Vietnam at the end of the 19th century. The French opened coal mines, principally along the coast directly east of Haiphong. They also established a phosphate factory on the Paracel Islands, located in the South China Sea.

Since reunification, the Communist government has sought to increase exploitation of Vietnam’s natural mineral resources but has had only modest success so far. Extraction of oil deposits in the South China Sea began in the mid-1980s. In the mid-1990s oil production was sufficient to meet domestic needs, while also providing an important source of export earnings.

F Climate

Vietnam’s climate is generally hot and humid. In central and southern Vietnam, seasonal variations are slight and marked only by a dry and a wet period. The average daily temperatures in the Mekong Delta range from 17° to 34°C (63° to 93°F) in January and from 22° to 33°C (72° to 91°F) in July. Along the central coast, temperatures range from 18° to 28°C (64° to 83°F) in January and from 24° to 37°C (76° to 99°F) in July. The northern plains experience greater seasonal variations and generally have cooler nighttime temperatures. The average daily temperatures at Hanoi, for example, range from 13° to 20°C (56° to 68°F) in January and from 25° to 33°C (78° to 91°F) in July.

In general, rainfall is plentiful throughout the country, although most precipitation in southern and central Vietnam occurs during the summer months when monsoon winds sweep in from the sea. The Mekong Delta has the longest rainy season, typically lasting from May to October. Central Vietnam receives heavy precipitation from September to December. The average annual rainfall is about 1,680 mm (66 in) in the Red River Delta, 1,650 mm (65 in) along the central coast, and 1,980 mm (78 in) in the Mekong Delta. Typhoons periodically strike the central coast, and in recent years some have caused considerable loss of life and destruction of cropland.

G Environmental Issues

Groundwater contamination has led to inadequate supplies of drinking water in many areas of Vietnam. Only 99 percent (2004) of the urban population has access to safe drinking water. Chemicals sprayed during the Vietnam War caused widespread defoliation in the country’s forests, contributing to soil degradation and water pollution. Coastal water pollution, along with severe overfishing, has greatly endangered the country’s marine life.

Deforestation rates in Vietnam were high in the late 20th century as a result of logging, agriculture, and heavy bombing during times of war. Forests cover 39 percent (2005) of Vietnam, and only 3.9 percent (2007) of the land is protected in parks and other reserves. Vietnam is party to international treaties concerning climate change, endangered species, hazardous wastes, ship pollution, and wetlands.

III PEOPLE AND SOCIETY

Vietnam’s 2008 population was 86,116,559, yielding a population density of 265 persons per sq km (686 per sq mi). However, most people live in or near the densely populated Red or Mekong deltas.

A Principal Cities

Four of the five largest cities in Vietnam are located on or very near the coast. Vietnam’s largest metropolis is the southern port of Ho Chi Minh City. The administrative capital of Hanoi, Vietnam’s next largest city, lies in the Red River Delta about 140 km (about 85 mi) upriver from the Gulf of Tonkin. Haiphong is the major northern seaport; Da Nang is an important port in central Vietnam; and Hue, located near Da Nang, is the former imperial capital and an important trade center.

B Ethnic Groups

Vietnam’s population is relatively homogeneous. As much as 90 percent of the people are ethnic Vietnamese, descendants of the people who settled in the Red River Delta thousands of years ago. Ethnic Chinese constitute the largest minority group. Other important minorities are the Khmer and the Cham. In addition, there are also numerous tribal groups. While the ethnic Vietnamese live in lowland areas scattered throughout the country, most minorities are concentrated in specific regional areas. The ethnic Chinese, also known as overseas Chinese, are immigrants or descendants of immigrants who settled in Vietnam during the last 300 years. They live primarily in the cities and provincial towns and number about 2 million. The Khmer (about 500,000) and the Cham (about 50,000) are descendants of peoples who lived in central and southern Vietnam prior to the Vietnamese conquest of those areas. The tribal peoples are descendants of communities who migrated into Vietnam from other parts of Asia over a period of several thousand years. They are divided into about 50 different language and ethnic groups (including the Tho, the Tay, the Nung, the Muong, the Rhadé, and the Jarai) and live almost exclusively in the mountains surrounding the Red River Delta and in the Central Highlands. Taken collectively, the tribal peoples represent 7 percent of the country’s total population.

For the most part, the various ethnic groups in Vietnam coexist with few mutual tensions. Relations between the ethnic groups are not always amiable, however. Ethnic Chinese play a dominant role in the national economy, which angers some Vietnamese who resent the economic power of the much smaller Chinese population. Furthermore, some Vietnamese are suspicious of China, which subjugated parts of Vietnam for centuries, and this suspicion is occasionally directed at the ethnic Chinese citizens of Vietnam. Some tribal minority communities have resisted recent Vietnamese penetration into mountain areas.

C Language

The official language of Vietnam is Vietnamese, a member of the Austro-Asiatic language family. Linguists usually consider Vietnamese to be a distinct language group, although it has some similarities to Chinese and other languages spoken in Southeast Asia. Like Chinese, Vietnamese is a tonal language, but its syntax is closer to Khmer, the official language of Cambodia. Other languages spoken in Vietnam are Chinese, Khmer, Cham, and various tribal languages spoken by peoples living in the mountains.

When China conquered the Red River Delta in the 2nd century bc, Chinese was adopted as the official language. Eventually a separate script based on Chinese characters and known as chu nôm (southern characters) came to be used unofficially for the written form of Vietnamese. In order to translate works of scripture, Catholic missionaries devised a form of written Vietnamese using the Latin (Roman) alphabet in the 17th century. This system, known today as quoc ngu (national language), was the first to indicate tones through the use of accent marks. In 1910 quoc ngu officially replaced Chinese characters as a means of writing Vietnamese, and in 1954 the governments of both North and South Vietnam adopted it as their national script.

D Religion

Vietnam contains a rich mixture of religions, reflecting the influence of many cultures. Early Vietnamese culture included three major belief systems: Mahayana Buddhism, Confucianism, and Daoism (Taoism). Indian and Chinese monks brought Buddhism to Vietnam early in the 1st millennium ad, and Confucianism and Daoism (Taoism) were both introduced after the Chinese conquest. After the restoration of Vietnamese independence in the 10th century, the royal court initially gave official support to all three belief systems. Eventually, however, the court recognized only Confucianism, which is more a set of social ethics than a religious faith. Buddhism and Daoism continued to be popular among the mass of the population.

Today, the majority of Vietnamese are at least nominally Mahayana Buddhists. Of this number, only a minority are serious adherents. Roman Catholicism, which French missionaries introduced in the 17th century, is a major religion, claiming almost as many followers as Daoism. Other religions include such recently established sects as Hoa Hao (a variant of Buddhism practiced in the Mekong Delta) and Cao Dai, which blends various Asian and Western religious beliefs. Theravada Buddhism is practiced by the Khmer minority. Some tribal peoples practice spirit worship. Freedom of worship is guaranteed by the constitution, but the Communist government suppresses religious organizations and activities that it considers threatening to national security.

E Education

For centuries, education in Vietnam was based on the Confucian system practiced in China. Young males studied classical Confucian texts in preparation for taking civil service examinations. Those who passed the exams were eligible for positions in the bureaucracy. The French introduced Western schooling, although few students received training beyond the elementary level, and literacy rates were low.

Major advances in education occurred after the division of Vietnam in 1954. The South adopted an education system based on the United States model, which emphasizes the development of an individual’s talents and skills. The North introduced mass education and trained people for participation in a Communist society based on the political theories of Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin. After reunification in 1975 the Communist system used in the North was extended throughout the country, although technology training is now as important as teaching Communist ideology.

About 94 percent of the population aged 15 and over is literate. Education is compulsory for children ages 6 to 14. Nearly all children receive primary schooling. Fewer young Vietnamese receive a secondary education, however, partly because there is a shortage of adequate facilities, particularly in the mountainous areas. In addition, some families cannot afford to send their children to school, as even public schools impose student fees to help meet operating costs.

In 1993 the government reorganized higher education to improve the system’s overall ability to educate students in the principles of a market economy and train them to meet the changing needs of the labor market. In 2002–2003 just 10 percent of the people of relevant age were expected to attend schools of higher education. Major universities are located in Hanoi, Hue, Thai Nguyen, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City, and the provincial capitals have smaller institutes.

F Social Structure

During the period of Chinese rule and for centuries after, Vietnamese social structure was patterned after the system prevalent in China. The vast majority of people were farmers. The governing class comprised about 5 percent of the population and was selected from candidates who had passed the Confucian civil service examinations or from influential landholding families. There were also a small number of artisans and merchants.

After the partition of Vietnam in 1954, the Communist government of North Vietnam completely changed the social structure. Private property was eliminated, and peasants and workers were given a new, if nominal, dominance in the social order. At the top of the order, functioning as the new ruling class, were officials of the Communist Party. In the South, on the other hand, the social structure remained virtually unchanged after the partition. After the Communists won the civil war in 1975, however, they imposed the same social structure on the South as they had on the North in 1954. Since the mid-1980s a more complicated social system has developed as a result of market economic reforms. Although most Vietnamese remain farmers, the number of industrial workers is increasing. Furthermore, an urban middle class is emerging, which includes many private entrepreneurs.

G Way of Life

Before the late 1800s, nearly all the people of Vietnam lived in villages, and the cultivation of wet rice was the principal economic activity. The basic component of rural society was the nuclear family, composed of parents and unwed children. As in China, however, extended family relationships were also important. In many cases, extended families lived together. Parents arranged the marriages of their children, and filial piety (obedience to one’s parents) was expected. Wives, too, were expected to obey their husbands. Families venerated their ancestors with special religious rituals. The houses of the wealthy were constructed of brick, with tile roofs. Those of the poor were of bamboo and thatch. Rice was the staple food for the vast majority, garnished with vegetables and, for those who could afford it, meat and fish.

The French introduced Western values of individual freedom and sexual equality, which undermined the traditional Vietnamese social system. In urban areas, Western patterns of social behavior became increasingly common, especially among educated and wealthy Vietnamese. Elite Vietnamese attended French schools, read French books, replaced traditional attire with Western-style clothing, and drank French wines instead of the traditional wine distilled from rice. Adolescents began to resist the tradition of arranged marriages, and women chafed under social mores that demanded obedience to their fathers and husbands. In the countryside, however, traditional Vietnamese family values remained strong.

The trend toward adopting Western values continued in South Vietnam after the division of the country in 1954. Many young people embraced sexual freedom and the movies, clothing styles, and rock music from Western cultures became popular. But in the North, social ethics were defined by Communist principles adapted from China and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). The Communist government officially recognized equality of the sexes, and women began to obtain employment in professions previously dominated by men. At the same time, the government began enforcing a more puritanical lifestyle as a means to counter the so-called decadent practices of Western society. Traditional values continued to hold sway in rural areas, where the concept of male superiority remained common.

In 1986 the Vietnamese government adopted an economic reform program that borrowed freely from free-market principles and encouraged foreign investment and tourism. As a result, the Vietnamese people have become increasingly acquainted with and influenced by the lifestyles in developed countries of East Asia and the West. The Communist regime finds this trend worrisome, believing it could lead to an increase in individualism, materialism, drug use, and pornography. While the administration stresses the importance of economic development, it remains committed to wiping out what it considers the “poisonous weeds” of capitalism in Vietnamese society.

H Social Issues

During the Vietnam War, the Communist government of North Vietnam was successful in limiting the country’s social problems to those directly connected with the war effort. Although malnutrition and poverty were common, corruption was rare and the incidence of drugs, prostitution, and crime was limited.

Following the war, Vietnam developed high rates of birth defects, probably due to the aerial spraying of Agent Orange and other chemical herbicides during the war. The U.S. military sprayed these defoliants on forests and crops to help expose the hiding places of Communist forces. As a consequence, innumerable Vietnamese were exposed to extremely toxic byproducts known as dioxins, which have been associated with severe birth defects and certain rare cancers in humans. Toxins that leaked into croplands and rivers around the sprayed areas also had long-term effects on the food supply of the country as a whole. Tests conducted after the war showed that considerable levels of dioxins were present in fish, a staple of the Vietnamese diet, and in milk from nursing mothers.

Land mines from the war also posed a significant problem. Concealed by both U.S. and Communist forces, land mines continued to kill and cripple people after the war. From the end of the war in 1975 to 2005, more than 58,000 Vietnamese were killed by land mines—more than all the U.S. servicemen who died during the war. See also Mine (Warfare).

Social problems have increased since the economic reforms of 1986. Corruption has escalated as increasing amounts of money circulate through society. Unemployment is also on the rise, especially among young people. Drug addiction and alcoholism are becoming serious problems; prostitution is rampant, especially in urban areas; and incidents of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) have increased in Vietnam. Many of these social ills may be inevitable consequences of the modernization process. However, they represent a serious challenge to a government determined to bring about economic development without the accompanying problems of social and political instability.

I Social Services

Before the Communist era, the government relied on the family network to care for the sick and elderly and to provide other social benefits to family members. Under Communism, the state assumed responsibility for some of these benefits through collective farms and state-run industries that provided for the care and welfare of their employees. After the economic reforms of 1986, which essentially dismantled collective farms, farmers were expected to provide their own savings to cover the expenses of illness or retirement. People in the emerging private sector had to do the same.

Although the government has reduced benefits in certain areas, it still lacks the resources to deal with many of the other social needs of the population. As much as one-third of the workforce in rural areas is underemployed, and an estimated one-half of the rural population lives in poverty. At the same time, the availability of health care is declining.

IV THE ARTS

Traditional Vietnamese culture reflected the influence of neighboring China. Vietnamese art, architecture, music, and literature all followed Chinese forms. With the advent of French colonialism in the late 19th century, however, the influence of Western culture replaced that of China. Modern Vietnamese cultural expression combines the socialist realism of Communist systems with current trends in the capitalist world.

A Literature

Before French colonial rule, literature in Vietnam was divided into two styles: a classical style based on the Chinese model and a vernacular one based on local themes and genres. Classical literature was written in literary Chinese and took the form of poetry, history, and essays. Vernacular literature was written in chu nôm and took the form of poetry or verse novels. French colonial rule significantly influenced Vietnamese literature. Drama, poetry, and novels began to be written in quoc ngu and imitated Western models. This trend continued in the South after the country was divided in 1954. In the North, a new form of literature, called socialist realism, developed. In this literature, actual people and events are depicted in an idealized, optimistic way to provide a glimpse of the “glorious” future in a socialist, or Communist, society. In modern Vietnam, however, the influence of socialist realism is in decline, as writers increasingly seek a more realistic approach to describing the problems of society and the bitter legacy of the Vietnam War.

B Art and Architecture

In the precolonial era, art and architectural styles were patterned after those in China. Traditional Vietnamese religious temples and official buildings were usually constructed of wood with tile roofs and typically included intricate carvings. Painting, usually on silk, followed classical modes current in China with an emphasis on landscapes, birds and plant life, and calligraphy. Sculpture, in wood or in stone, was usually Buddhist in inspiration. The ceramics industry was relatively well developed, and artisans produced wares both for household use, such as bowls and plates, and for religious purposes, such as statues.

After the French conquest, Western styles predominated. Official buildings were often built in French colonial style, and schools of Western painting became popular. These trends have continued to the present. Architecture now tends to follow international styles, although there is some effort to preserve the distinctive character of major cities such as Hanoi, Hue, and Ho Chi Minh City. Abstract painting has become popular, although traditional modes and folk art continue to attract interest. Lacquerware and woodwork are produced primarily for the tourist trade.

C Music and Drama

Traditional music in Vietnam reflected a variety of influences from China and neighboring societies in the region. The use of the five-tone scale reflects Chinese influence, while Indian-style dancing and percussion instruments, such as the Cham rice drum, were borrowed from neighboring Champa. Similar to the Chinese style, music and verse were often closely tied together, as in various types of theater and the uniquely Vietnamese ca dao (a form of lyrical folk song performed without instrumental accompaniment).

Since the colonial era, Western music and theater have begun to dominate over the traditional forms. After 1954, Western-style rock music attained considerable popularity in South Vietnam. As in the West, the lyrics often contained a political message, conveying the malaise of a generation raised in a society ripped asunder by war. The popularity of Western-style music continued after reunification in 1976. Despite government efforts to promote music that contains messages of patriotism and self-sacrifice and that is based on traditional forms like the ca dao, Western music has tended to predominate through imported records and tapes. On the surface, popular music in Vietnam lacks the underlying message of rebellion that it sometimes projects in the West. However, the government is still concerned that Western popular music encourages attitudes of individualism and self-gratification—values not welcomed in official circles. Contemporary drama, often based on Western styles, is often laced with satire, as authors use irony and innuendo to criticize the shortcomings of the government and the ruling party.

D Film

A local film industry first developed in North Vietnam after the division of the country in 1954. The Communist government created the state-run Vietnamese Feature Film Studio to produce newsreels and documentaries that promoted the cause of reunification and revolution. The quantity and quality of such films were limited, although among the most interesting were films produced by artists operating with guerrilla units in South Vietnam during the war.

Film production increased after reunification. With the assistance of a newly founded College of Stage Arts and Cinematography, about ten feature films were produced each year. Thematic content, however, was tightly controlled by the state and focused on the struggle for national unification or the challenges of constructing a Communist society. In recent years, film producers have begun to assert their independence in the selection of subject matter. A number of recent films have criticized postwar social and economic conditions, and some have even questioned the official line on the heroic character of soldiers fighting against the regime in the South during the Vietnam War. However, film producers risk censorship or persecution when they transcend the limits of official approval.

E Libraries and Museums

The National Library, founded in Hanoi in 1919, includes more than a million volumes. A number of specialized science and social science libraries are located in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

Most major museums in northern Vietnam are in Hanoi, including the Vietnam Museum of Fine Arts and the Army Museum, which includes weaponry and aircraft from the Vietnam War. The Cham Museum, located in Da Nang, houses a collection of cultural artifacts from the ancient kingdom of Champa, including many sandstone sculptures of Hindu images. Most of the major museums in southern Vietnam are located in Ho Chi Minh City. Two of them, the Vietnam Revolutionary Museum and the War Crimes Museum, focus on the Communist struggle for power in Vietnam and the Vietnam War.

V ECONOMY

During the centuries of Chinese and Vietnamese imperial rule, Vietnam’s society was predominantly agrarian. Its major source of wealth was rice. Although some manufacturing and trade existed, they received little official encouragement and occupied minor segments of the gross domestic product (GDP). Under French colonial rule, agriculture continued to occupy the primary place in the national economy, although emphasis shifted to the cultivation of export crops. In addition to rice, these crops included coffee, tea, rubber, and other tropical products. Small industrial and commercial sectors developed, notably in the major cities, but their growth was limited because colonial officials were determined to avoid competition with goods produced in France.

After partition in 1954 the governments of North and South Vietnam sought to develop their national economies, although they established different economic systems with different resources and trading partners. The North operated under a highly centralized, planned economy, whereas the South mostly maintained a free-market system that had some government involvement. After reunification in 1976 the North gradually extended its centrally planned economy throughout the country. In 1986, however, the government launched a reform program to move toward a mixed economy that operates under private as well as collective or state control. As a result, Vietnam entered a period of rapid development. By 2006 GDP had risen to $61 billion, increasing at an annual rate of 8.2 percent in the 1990s. However, per capita incomes remained low, averaging about $725.30 a year. The services sector contributed 38 percent of GDP; industry, 42 percent; and agriculture, forestry, and fishing, 20 percent.

A Government Role in the Economy

In Vietnam, as in other states ruled by Communist parties, the government is expected to play a guiding role in all matters, including the national economy. Classical Marxist economic theory calls for all major industries and utilities to be nationalized and for farmland to be placed under state or collective ownership.

Such was the situation in North Vietnam during the Vietnam War and initially in the reunified country established in 1976. However, Vietnam’s economy performed disastrously in the first decade after the war. Excessive government controls, lack of managerial experience, limited capital resources, and the absence of a profit incentive all contributed to the weak economy. In 1986 the government launched a reform program called doi moi (economic renovation) to reduce government interference in the economy and develop a market-based approach to increase national productivity.

The need for economic reform gained urgency in 1990, when poor harvests and economic mismanagement left millions of Vietnamese facing malnutrition. However, Vietnamese leaders initially encountered many difficulties in their effort to renovate the system. Among those obstacles was the reluctance of party leaders to further privatize the economy as well as a high level of bureaucratic interference in economic affairs.

The pace of economic reforms accelerated following the Communist party’s approval in 2001 of a ten-year development strategy enhancing the role of the private sector. The strategy simultaneously affirmed the primacy of the state in driving economic development, and Vietnam’s economy came to be characterized as “a market economy with socialist orientation.”

In the second decade of the doi moi reforms, Vietnam achieved one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. Annual growth rates exceeding 7 percent ranked Vietnam second only to China. The country’s economic vitality attracted surging levels of foreign investment and significantly decreased the number of Vietnamese living in poverty. However, Vietnam lagged behind in modernizing its infrastructure, a crucial step in making Vietnamese businesses competitive against foreign competition.

Vietnam sought to increase foreign trade and investment through membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO). Following more than a decade of negotiations, Vietnam’s entry was formally approved in November 2006, paving the way for the country to become the organization’s 150th member in December.

B Labor

The official labor organization in North Vietnam is the Vietnam General Confederation of Trade Unions, founded in Hanoi in 1946. After the country was reunified, the organization absorbed the South Vietnam Trade Union Federation. The confederation is an umbrella organization overseeing the activity of specialized labor unions in Vietnam, such as the National Union of Building Workers. By the mid-1990s the confederation contained more than 50 labor unions with a total membership of more than 4 million. As in all Communist systems, the labor movement in Vietnam is under strict party supervision. Labor unrest, including unsanctioned strikes, has increased since the doi moi reforms were launched in 1986. Much of the hostility fueling this unrest results from poor working conditions and low salaries in foreign-owned enterprises.

Vietnam’s labor force numbered 45 million in 1996. Agriculture, forestry, and fishing employed 58 percent of the workforce in 2004; the services sector employed 25 percent; and industry employed 17 percent.

C Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing

Vietnam has traditionally derived the bulk of its wealth from agriculture, especially from the cultivation of wet rice. During the traditional and colonial eras most farmland was privately owned and cultivated either by owners or tenants. Under Communist rule, however, the government placed farmland in the North under collective ownership. After reunification, the government attempted to collectivize all privately held farmland in the South, but local resistance and declining grain production eventually persuaded party leaders to dismantle the collective system. Instead, they granted long-term leases to farmers in return for an annual quota of grain paid to the state. Surplus production could be privately consumed or sold on the free market.

Agricultural production increased dramatically, rising 62 percent between 1985 and 1997. By far the most important crop is rice, which is farmed under wet conditions in the Red and Mekong deltas as well as in parts of central Vietnam. Most rice-growing areas can support two crops per year, and three crops per year are possible in parts of central Vietnam. Total rice production rose from about 16 million metric tons in 1985 to 36 million metric tons in 1997, while tea production rose from 28,200 to 142,300 metric tons. Other important crops are coconuts, coffee, cotton, fruits and vegetables, rubber, and sugarcane. The annual fish catch increased from 808,000 metric tons in 1985 to 3.4 million metric tons in 2005.

The growth of commercial forestry has been hindered by a lack of transportation facilities as well as by the mixture of different species of trees, which makes it uneconomical to harvest a single species. Furthermore, population pressures have increased the rate of deforestation. Since 1992 the government has banned the export of logs and some timber products in an attempt to preserve remaining forests. Most harvested roundwood is used for household fuel. Timber production, primarily teak and bamboo, has remained stagnant.

D Manufacturing

At the time of the French conquest in the late 19th century, Vietnam’s industry was at a relatively primitive stage. The French introduced some modern technology and production methods. After the division of Vietnam in 1954, both the North and South governments attempted to promote industrialization. However, efforts were stymied by the Vietnam War, and little was accomplished before 1975.

After reunification, the Communist government promoted the creation of an advanced industrial society characterized by state ownership, but the results were meager. The plans adopted as a part of the doi moi reforms call for a balanced approach to developing both industry and agriculture, with a mix of state, collective, and private ownership.

Most large firms remain under state ownership, but the role and number of private enterprises has steadily increased. Most enterprises produce consumer goods for the domestic market, although a growing number manufacture goods for export, notably textiles and processed foods. Steel production has increased dramatically since the end of the war, and the manufacture of cement, chemical fertilizer, and textile and paper goods is on the upswing. Foreign firms play a growing but still limited role in the industrial sector.

E Mining

Most mining activities take place in the northern provinces of the country, where anthracite coal, phosphate rock, gypsum, tin, zinc, iron, antimony, and chromite are extracted. Coal and apatite are mined extensively. The total coal production in 2003 was 16 million metric tons.

In recent years, large petroleum and natural gas deposits have been discovered along the continental shelf in the South China Sea. With assistance from the Soviet Union, Vietnam began extracting oil from its first oil field in the mid-1980s. Additional oil fields have since become productive. In the late 1990s petroleum accounted for nearly one-third of Vietnam’s export revenues. Further development may be hindered, however, by disputes with China and other neighboring nations over the ownership of offshore deposits in the area.

F Energy

Per-capita consumption of electricity is relatively low in Vietnam because many people, especially in rural areas, burn wood to meet their household energy needs. Such traditional fuels accounted for nearly half the country’s total energy use in the mid-1990s, but commercial and urban growth is increasing the demand for electricity. In the mid-1990s electricity was supplied mainly by hydroelectric stations, although thermal installations burning petroleum and coal were also important.

G Transportation and Communications

A primitive transportation system has long been one of the main obstacles to economic development in Vietnam. While the system of roads is one of the best in Southeast Asia, until recently the motor fleet was outmoded, consisting primarily of Soviet trucks built during the 1950s. Furthermore, rail facilities suffered damage during the war, and a lack of funds prevented adequate repair or expansion of the system. In the late 1990s, the government began an attempt to modernize the truck fleet and the rail system and to improve the major roadways. Most goods in the country, however, are still transported by barge along the numerous rivers and canals.

Major ports used for international shipping are Haiphong, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City. All, however, lack modern facilities. The state-run Vietnam Airlines operates both internationally and domestically but has been seriously hindered by an aging fleet consisting of Soviet-built planes that have been in operation since the Vietnam War. To modernize the airline, the government is using scarce foreign exchange reserves to purchase new aircraft from Europe and the United States.

Poor communications facilities represent an additional obstacle to economic development. The nation’s telephone system is grossly inadequate, and Vietnam is just beginning to enter the computer age. Private ownership of telephones and computers is still severely limited. Access to information is somewhat better, as most Vietnamese own a radio or a television set, and there are a number of major national newspapers, including the official daily Nhân Dân (The People) and the military newspaper Quan Doi Nhân Dân (People’s Army). Many independent newspapers and periodicals are now being published, although those that transcend the official line run the risk of censorship or losing their licenses.

H Foreign Trade

During the French colonial period, Vietnamese foreign trade was characterized almost exclusively by the export of primary raw materials—such as rice, rubber, and other tropical products—and the import of manufactured goods from abroad, mainly from France. During the Vietnam War, both the North and South had a chronic imbalance in their balance of payments, as their sponsors pumped in military and economic assistance with little regard to their client’s ability to pay.

After reunification, these adverse conditions continued. Vietnam consistently ran a significant deficit in its trade relations with foreign countries. At first, the bulk of Vietnamese trade was with the Soviet Union and other Communist countries, which exported manufactured goods, food, and oil to Vietnam in return for cheap textile goods, cash crops, and maritime products. Trade was tightly controlled under the management of several state-owned trading corporations, each specializing in a particular commodity line. The United States imposed a trade embargo on North Vietnam in 1964 and all of Vietnam in 1976; this embargo was lifted in 1994.

Foreign trade has developed rapidly since the implementation of the doi moi reforms and the end of the U.S. embargo. Most foreign trade now takes place with other countries of Asia or with developed countries in the West. Exports have increased significantly, notably in the area of cash crops, oil, and rice. But imports of foreign technology and consumer goods have increased as well, and the trade deficit continues to be one of the country’s most serious problems. In 2002 the value of imports was estimated at $19.7 billion, while exports were estimated at $16.7 billion.

I Currency and Banking

Vietnam’s national monetary unit is the new dông, which is divided into 100 xu (15,994 new dông equal U.S.$1; 2006 average). Until 1990 the only banking system within the country was The State Bank of Vietnam, with its headquarters in Hanoi. In 1990 the government established four independent commercial banks (for foreign trade, investment and construction, agricultural development, and industry and commerce) and allowed foreign banks to operate. The State Bank continues to perform general supervisory functions; it also controls the money supply and credit policies. The Bank of Foreign Trade is authorized to handle foreign currencies.

J Tourism

Modern tourism began in Vietnam during the colonial era, but it declined drastically during the long years of conflict after World War II. With the launching of economic reforms in 1986, the government opened the country to foreign travelers and has made a concerted effort to improve its tourist facilities as a means of earning hard currency. Old hotels like the Metropole in Hanoi and the Continental in Ho Chi Minh City have been renovated, and a number of new ones have been built in both cities. In addition, a number of foreign cruise lines stop at ports along the coast en route to Hong Kong and Singapore. In 2006, 3.6 million tourists from all parts of the world visited Vietnam. Most visitors make short trips to the major cities and the former imperial capital of Hue.

VI GOVERNMENT

Prior to the French conquest, the political institutions of Vietnam were patterned after the Chinese model. Confucianism was the state ideology, and the emperor ruled with the assistance of mandarins—scholars trained in Confucian principles. That system was essentially discarded during the period of French colonial rule, although the Vietnamese emperor was still permitted a figurehead authority from his imperial palace in Hue. After the division of the country in 1954, the North established a Soviet-style Communist regime, while the government in the South created a parliamentary system patterned after those in the West. Neither became a practicing democracy. The Communist system of the North was extended to the entire country after reunification in 1976. Modern Vietnam has a unitary system of government with a strong central government, and exclusive power resides with the Vietnamese Communist Party, the sole legal party in the state.

A Constitution

After the end of French colonial rule in 1954, two independent governments emerged in Vietnam: the Republic of Vietnam (RVN) in the South, and the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) in the North. After the North won the Vietnam War and took control of all of Vietnam, the DRV became the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV). The current constitution was promulgated in 1980 and was patterned after the Soviet model, which combined nominal democratic ideas, such as the concept of elections by secret ballot, with the Leninist concept of a dominant Communist party ruling by dictatorial means in the overall interests of the people. In 1992 the constitution was amended to reflect economic reforms undertaken in 1986 as well as a decision to reduce the role of the party in the governing process.

B Executive

Under the constitution as amended in 1992, the head of state is a president, elected to a five-year term by the National Assembly from among its members. The president is advised by a National Defense and Security Council and is assisted by a cabinet composed of a prime minister, a deputy prime minister, and other senior ministers. All ministers are appointed by and accountable to the National Assembly.

C Legislature

According to the constitution, Vietnam’s legislature, the unicameral (single-house) National Assembly is the “highest organ of State power” in Vietnam. It possesses sole power to pass legislation and to amend the constitution. It is composed of 498 deputies, elected for five years by all citizens over 18 years of age. The National Assembly holds two sessions each year to pass legislation proposed by the executive branch of the government. In the past, it served as a rubber stamp for decisions already reached by the Communist Party. Recently it has begun to adopt a more independent position on issues of direct concern to the Vietnamese populace.

D Judiciary

The judicial system in Vietnam was patterned after the Soviet model. At the lowest level are district courts, whose decisions may be appealed to provincial and city courts. The highest court of appeal is the Supreme People’s Court, which also functions as a court of first instance for certain serious crimes. Members of the Supreme People’s Court are elected by the National Assembly for five-year terms. Each of the lower courts is assigned a judge and several people’s assessors, who play a role similar to that of a jury in the Anglo-American system. All are elected by and held accountable to the local government.

The Supreme People’s Office of Supervision and Control is responsible for the uniform implementation of the law. The office is headed by a procurator-general who is appointed to a five-year term by the National Assembly. Below the central office are local offices of supervision and control, which ensure observance of the law by local government bodies and by all citizens.

E Local Government

For administrative purposes, Vietnam is divided into 57 provinces and four cities directly under the central government. The provinces are further divided into districts and then villages or communes. At each level, voters elect people’s councils with legislative powers. These councils in turn elect a people’s committee from among their members to serve as an executive body. In some respects, people’s councils and people’s committees resemble local governments in Western democracies. They have the right to question decisions taken by other governmental organs at their level, but their decisions and actions are subject to review by higher organs of government power. Moreover, decisions by local government organs are normally undertaken in accordance with the instructions of Communist Party committees at that level, although party influence has declined somewhat since the inception of the doi moi (economic renovation) program in the mid-1980s. Party directives are circulated at the local level through the Fatherland Front, a mass association with branch offices at all administrative levels and among various interest groups in the country.

F Political Parties

Vietnam is in practice a one-party state. According to the amended 1992 constitution, the Communist Party is “the force leading the State and society.”

The supreme body of the Vietnamese Communist Party is the National Congress, which meets approximately every five years. Delegates are elected to the Congress by party branches at lower levels. The delegates approve major policy decisions and elect a Central Committee, which functions in the intervals between the National Congresses. The Central Committee holds sessions twice a year to approve decisions by party leaders. The Central Committee also elects a Politburo that serves as the ruling body of the party. The Politburo is currently composed of 19 members and meets several times a month. A Politburo Standing Committee of four members operates as a standing executive body. Membership in the Vietnamese Communist Party is estimated at about 2.2 million.

G Defense

The Vietnamese armed forces are firmly subordinated to the authority of the government. They are represented at senior levels by a minister of defense in the cabinet, and senior military officials frequently serve in the party Central Committee and Politburo. In addition to local militia units, the military has three branches of service: the army, the navy, and the air force. In 2004 the military contained 484,000 troops. Vietnamese men age 18 to 35 must fulfill a 24-month term of military service; specialists must serve an additional 12 months.

H International Organizations

Vietnam has been a member of the United Nations since 1977. The country is also a member of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank), and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). In 1998 Vietnam joined the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.

VII HISTORY

Archaeological findings indicate that settlers in the Red River Delta may have been among the first peoples in East and Southeast Asia to practice agriculture. By the end of the 2nd millennium bc, Vietnamese civilization had begun to enter the Bronze Age. The ancestors of the modern Vietnamese were one of many scattered communities that lived in what are now South China and northern Vietnam during the 1st millennium BC. According to local tradition, a line of hereditary kings ruled over the ancient kingdom of Van Lang in the Red River Delta for thousands of years. Van Lang was conquered by Thuc Phan, who founded a small Vietnamese kingdom called Au Lac.

A Chinese Rule

In 221 bc the state of Qin completed its conquest of neighboring states and became the first dynasty to rule over a united China. However, the dynasty collapsed soon after the death of its dynamic founder Qin Shihuangdi in 210 bc. In the wreckage of the empire, the Qin’s Chinese commander in the south, General Zhao Tuo (Chao T’o), created his own kingdom out of the Qin’s former southern provinces. Zhao, known in Vietnam as Trieu Da, named the kingdom Nam Viet (Nan Ywe in Chinese, meaning “southern Viet”). He soon conquered the Vietnamese kingdom of Au Lac and added it to his kingdom.

In 111 bc, however, Chinese armies conquered Nam Viet and absorbed Zhao’s kingdom, including the old state of Au Lac, into the growing empire of the Han Dynasty. At first, the Han tried to rule through local chieftains, who periodically attempted to expel the Chinese invaders and restore an independent state. The Han imperial court then integrated the Red River Delta politically and culturally into the Chinese Empire. They imposed Chinese-style political institutions and made Confucianism the official ideology. They also made Chinese the official spoken and written language. Eventually, Chinese characters were adapted as the written form for the Vietnamese spoken language. Chinese art, architecture, and music all became models for their counterparts in Vietnam.

Vietnamese resistance to Chinese rule was fierce but sporadic. The first major revolt occurred in ad 39 when two widows of local chieftains, known as the Trung Sisters, led an uprising against foreign rule. The revolt was briefly successful and the eldest sister established herself as ruler of an independent state. However, Chinese armies led by General Ma Yuan invaded the Red River Delta and again conquered the Vietnamese four years later.

B Independence Restored

In the succeeding centuries a series of unsuccessful uprisings against Chinese rule followed. Finally in ad 939 Ngo Quyen took advantage of chaotic conditions in China and led a successful Vietnamese rebellion against the local occupation forces. He established the Ngo dynasty, but after his death in 944 the dynasty disintegrated and a long period of civil strife followed. In the early 11th century Ly Thai To founded the first of the great Vietnamese dynasties. Under the astute leadership of several dynamic rulers, the Ly dynasty ruled Vietnam from 1010 to 1225. The rise of the new state, known as Dai Viet (Great Viet), reflected the emergence of a strong sense of Vietnamese national identity. The Ly rulers, however, found Chinese techniques useful in controlling and mobilizing their subjects; therefore they retained many of the political and social institutions that had been introduced during the long centuries of Chinese rule. For example, they adopted the Confucian civil service examination system, formalized in China during the 8th and 9th centuries, as a means of selecting government officials. This method of selection allowed talented individuals to rise to positions of power based on their abilities, not their political connections. At first, only members of the ruling aristocracy were authorized to compete in the examinations, but eventually the right was extended to most males. The Ly used the educational system to spread moral principles valued in China. Young Vietnamese who prepared for the examinations learned the Confucian classics and grew up conversant with the great figures and ideas that had shaped Chinese history.

But Vietnamese society was more than just a pale reflection of China. Beneath the veneer of Chinese thought and fashion popular among the upper classes, native forms of expression continued to thrive. Young Vietnamese learned to appreciate the great heroes of the Vietnamese past, many of whom—like the Trung Sisters—had built their reputation on resistance to Chinese occupation. At the village level, social mores reflected native traditions more than patterns imported from China. In Vietnam, for example, the legal rights of women were more extensive than in neighboring China. Although to the superficial eye Vietnam may have looked like a “smaller dragon” under the watchful eye of the powerful empire to the north, it continued to develop a separate culture with vibrant traditions of its own.

B1 An Agrarian Society

Nevertheless, China and Vietnam shared a number of important similarities. In both states, the primary source of wealth was agriculture. Because of its subtropical climate and plentiful rainfall, Vietnamese food production was based almost exclusively on the cultivation of wet rice. As in China and medieval Europe, much of the land was owned by powerful noble families, who often owned thousands of serfs (indentured farm laborers) or domestic slaves. A class of peasant landholders also existed, however, and the imperial court frequently attempted to limit the power of the noble families by dividing their large manorial estates and distributing the land to the peasants.

The Vietnamese economy was not based solely on agriculture, however. Commerce and manufacturing thrived, and local craft goods appeared in regional markets throughout the area. Especially prized were Vietnamese ceramics, cheaper than those produced in China and only slightly lower in quality. But Vietnam never developed into a predominantly trading nation, nor did it become a major participant in regional commerce. Like China, Vietnam looked inward, and the imperial court viewed the merchant class with suspicion.

B2 March to the South

Under the Ly dynasty Vietnam gradually became a dynamic force in Southeast Asia, and this power increased under the succeeding Tran dynasty. The Tran took power from the Ly in 1225, when the eight-year-old Ly empress transferred power to her new Tran husband. During the remainder of the 13th century, the Tran were preoccupied with the growing power of the Mongols, pastoral warriors from northern Asia. The Mongols completed their conquest of China in 1279 and established a new empire there known as the Yuan dynasty. A few years later, Mongol armies invaded Vietnam in an effort to reincorporate the Red River Valley into China. Under the leadership of General Tran Hung Dao, the Vietnamese vigorously resisted; after several bitter battles they defeated the invading forces and drove them back across the border.

While the Vietnamese maintained their guard to the north, an area of equal and growing interest lay to the south. For centuries, the Vietnamese state had been restricted to its heartland in the Red River Valley and the mountainous perimeter. Determined to obtain an outlet for their growing population, in the 10th century Vietnamese rulers began turning their attention south to the kingdom of Champa, a seafaring state inhabited by Malay-speaking peoples. The two states competed bitterly for advantage. On several occasions, Cham armies broke through Vietnamese defenses and occupied the Vietnamese capital. More frequently, Vietnamese troops were victorious, and they gradually drove the kingdom of Champa to the south. In the 15th century Vietnamese forces captured the Cham capital, south of present-day Da Nang, and virtually destroyed the kingdom. For the next several generations, Vietnam continued its historic “march to the south,” wiping up the remnants of the Cham kingdom and gradually penetrating the marshy flatlands of the Mekong Delta. There it confronted a new foe, the Khmer kingdom of Angkor, which had once been the most powerful state in mainland Southeast Asia. By the late 16th century, however, it was in a state of decline and unable to offer sustained resistance to Vietnamese encroachment. A hundred years later, Vietnam occupied the lower Mekong Delta and began advancing westward, threatening to transform the disintegrating Khmer state into a mere protectorate.

B3 Civil War

The Vietnamese advance to the south coincided with new challenges to the north. In 1407 the Chinese Ming dynasty, which had overthrown Mongol rule in 1368, occupied Vietnam. By 1428, however, resistance forces under rebel leader Le Loi had restored Vietnamese independence. Le Loi mounted the throne as the first emperor of the Le dynasty, which was to last for more than 300 years.

The new ruling house retained its vigor for more than 100 years, but internal rivalries weakened the dynasty in the 16th century. In 1527 General Mac Dang Dung deposed the Le monarch and made himself ruler. The Nguyen and Trinh families, Le nobles who supported reinstatement of the Le ruler, regained control of the country by 1592. By that time an ambitious Trinh noble, Trinh Kiem, had become dominant in the Le court and had granted a member of the Nguyen family a fiefdom in the south. This effectively divided the state into two separate administrative regions, and a rivalry developed between the Trinh and Nguyen lords. The split of Vietnam into two squabbling regimes coincided with European interest in the region. In the 16th and 17th centuries European fleets visited Vietnam carrying traders who sought wealth and missionaries who were intent on converting Vietnamese and others in the region to Christianity. To seek advantage over their rivals, the European traders and missionaries sided with one or another of the Vietnamese states, further dividing the country.

By the late 18th century, the Le dynasty was near collapse. With no powerful central government, feudal lords increasingly gained control of vast rice lands. In 1773 three brothers from the village of Tay Son in central Vietnam launched a peasant rebellion against the corruption and misrule of the Nguyen court. In each village they captured, the Tay Son confiscated land from the wealthy and redistributed it to the poor. By 1783 the Tay Son rebellion succeeded in overthrowing the Nguyen family in the south. The Tay Son brothers, as they were popularly called, then turned their forces against the Trinh government in the north. By 1789 the ablest of the brothers, Nguyen Hue (no relation to the Nguyen family that had controlled the south), gained control of the north and declared himself founder of a new dynasty. His death in 1792, however, left a power vacuum.

Meanwhile, Nguyen Anh, the sole surviving heir of the Nguyen house in the south, had assembled a force to retake Vietnam. By 1789 his forces had recaptured most of the former Nguyen territory. They then moved north and in 1802 defeated the Tay Son armies. Nguyen Anh established a new Nguyen dynasty, with its capital at Hue in central Vietnam to symbolize the newly restored unity of the country.

C French Conquest

A French Catholic missionary, Bishop Pigneau de Behaine, had raised a mercenary force to help Nguyen Anh seize the Vietnamese throne. The bishop hoped the new emperor would provide France with trading and missionary privileges, but Nguyen Anh was suspicious of French influence. Under his rule and that of his successors, any resistance to the absolute power of the government was dealt with harshly. The Nguyen regime persecuted religious followers, including Christians, Buddhists, Daoists (Taoists), and followers of traditional beliefs. The persecution of French Christian missionaries and their Vietnamese converts, in particular, received the attention of French Catholics. Religious groups in France demanded retaliatory action from the government in Paris. When commercial and military interests also urged a decisive move to protect French interests in Southeast Asia, the French emperor Napoleon III approved the launching of a naval expedition to punish the Vietnamese and force the court to accept a French presence in the country. The first attack at Da Nang in 1858 failed to achieve its objectives. A second attack farther south the following year was more successful, however, and in 1862 Emperor Tu Duc agreed to cede several provinces in the Mekong Delta to France as the colony of Cochin China. In the 1880s the French resumed their advance, launching an attack on the Red River Delta on the pretext of protecting French citizens there. After severe defeats, the Vietnamese court accepted French rule over the remaining territory of Vietnam, which was divided into two protectorates—Tonkin in the Red River Delta and Annam along the central coast. In 1887, after France had established a third protectorate over Cambodia, it consolidated the administration of its Southeast Asian territories, creating the Indochinese Union, or French Indochina. Laos was incorporated into the union in 1893.

C1 Colonial Rule and Resistance

The imposition of French colonial rule met with little organized resistance. Emperor Tu Duc himself hoped that by adopting a conciliatory attitude toward French demands in the southern provinces, the invaders might eventually be brought to reason and persuaded to give up their new conquests. He therefore prohibited his subjects from openly resisting French actions. But the sense of national identity was not extinguished, and anticolonial sentiment soon began to emerge. Poor living conditions, worsened by French economic exploitation, contributed to growing Vietnamese hostility to foreign rule. French occupation did bring some improvements in the area of transport and communications and also contributed modestly to the growth of a commercial and manufacturing sector. However, as a whole, colonialism brought little improvement in the lives of the Vietnamese. In the countryside, peasants struggled under heavy taxes and high rents. Workers in factories, in coal mines, and on rubber plantations labored in abysmal working conditions for paltry wages. By the early 1920s nationalist parties began to demand reform or independence. In 1930 the Moscow-trained revolutionary Ho Chi Minh (real name Nguyen Tat Thanh) established the Indochinese Communist Party (ICP).

Until the outbreak of World War II (1939-1945), the ICP and other revolutionary groups labored with little success. In 1940, however, Japan demanded the right to place northern Vietnam under military occupation. Japan planned to use the area as a base from which to launch a future invasion of the rest of Southeast Asia. The French viceroy, the senior government official in French Indochina, lacked sufficient armed forces to resist. He agreed to Japanese demands and was reduced to a figurehead authority. Seizing the opportunity, Ho Chi Minh organized a broad national front group called the League for the Independence of Vietnam (Viet Nam Doc Lap Dong Minh, or Viet Minh for short) and built up guerrilla forces in preparation for an uprising at war’s end. To win wide popular support, the Viet Minh program emphasized national independence and moderate reform rather than openly Communist aims. When Japan surrendered to the Allies in August 1945, Viet Minh forces rose throughout the country and, in what is known as the August Revolution, declared the establishment of an independent republic with its capital at Hanoi.

The French, however, were unwilling to concede independence, and in late 1945 they seized control over the southern provinces from retreating Viet Minh and other nationalist forces. Negotiations to seek a compromise solution were held in France in the summer of 1946, but they failed to resolve differences. War broke out in December when Viet Minh military units attacked French positions in Hanoi and then retreated to the mountains north of the Red River Delta.

C2 The Expulsion of the French

The Franco-Viet Minh conflict (now often called the First Indochina War) lasted nearly eight years. The Viet Minh set up their headquarters in the mountainous area between the Red River valley and the Chinese border and built up their forces for a major counter-offensive. After failing to capture Ho Chi Minh and destroy the guerrilla movement, the French formed a rival Vietnamese government under Bao Dai, the last emperor of the Nguyen dynasty. In August 1945 Bao Dai had abdicated the throne in favor of Ho Chi Minh’s republic, which was formally declared in September. Viet Minh forces lacked the strength to defeat the French, but the movement had earned sufficient popularity among the Vietnamese people to prevent French victory. In 1950 the United States—increasingly concerned about Communist advances in Asia—recognized Bao Dai’s government and began to provide military and economic aid to the French. In turn, the Viet Minh (still dominated by Ho Chi Minh’s ICP) sought assistance from the new Communist government in China.

The war was a virtual stalemate for three years. In France, however, the public grew weary of the war in Indochina. In March 1954 Viet Minh forces attacked Dien Bien Phu, the French military outpost in the isolated town of Dien Bien. The dispirited government in France agreed to hold negotiations on a peace agreement at Geneva, Switzerland. The French outpost fell to a Viet Minh assault on May 7, the night before negotiations began at Geneva (Dien Bien Phu, Battle of).

D Vietnam Divided

Representatives from all the major world powers, the two rival Vietnamese governments, and the new royal governments in Laos and Cambodia attended the peace talks, which lasted for several weeks. In mid-July, despite U.S. urging to continue the struggle, the French agreed to a compromise agreement (known as the Geneva Accords). This agreement called for the withdrawal of French troops and a temporary division of the country into two separate zones. The Communists would withdraw to North Vietnam, while the non-Communists would move into South Vietnam. To avoid a permanent division, a solution unacceptable to the supporters of both Ho Chi Minh and Bao Dai, national elections were to be held in 1956 to bring about a reunified Vietnam.

D1 The Uneasy Peace

For the next five years Indochina experienced a brief interlude of peace. In Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh’s government (known as the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, or DRV) focused attention on laying the foundations of a Communist society while hoping for national reunification by means of elections, which were widely expected to favor Ho. But in the South, Bao Dai was soon replaced by Ngo Dinh Diem, a staunchly anti-Communist Catholic who refused to hold national elections as called for by the Geneva Accords. Sympathetic to his anti-Communist beliefs, the United States supported Diem, who claimed that Vietnam’s colonial oppressors had negotiated the agreements. A constitution was written, and after elections staged only in the South, Diem became president of a new Republic of Vietnam (RVN).

During the next several years the Diem regime vigorously sought to crush lingering support for the Viet Minh in the South, as well as all other forms of domestic opposition. His harsh actions resulted in growing hostility from many South Vietnamese. Meanwhile Diem’s social and economic programs failed to reduce the severe inequality of landholdings in the countryside. In 1959, fearing that the Communist base in the South could be entirely eliminated, the North adopted a policy of revolutionary war intent on toppling Diem’s government and bringing about national reunification. In 1960 the North Vietnamese government ordered the creation of the National Liberation Front (NLF), based on the model of the Viet Minh created two decades earlier. Most members of the NLF were native southerners. Relatively few were members of the Communist Party, but the Communists ruled from behind the scenes. In 1961 the armed wing of the NLF, the People’s Liberation Armed Forces (PLAF, popularly known as the Viet Cong, or “Viet Communists”), was formed.

The United States provided increasing amounts of military assistance to Diem’s government, and U.S. advisers instructed South Vietnamese troops on how to fight a guerrilla war. Diem became increasingly unpopular, however, and conditions throughout the country steadily worsened, allowing the PLAF to gain control of much of the countryside. The South alienated many Vietnamese Buddhists by the government’s alleged favoritism to Catholics. With tacit U.S. approval, dissident elements in the army launched a coup in November 1963 to overthrow Diem, and he was killed in the attack. In the political confusion that followed, the security situation in South Vietnam continued to deteriorate, putting the Communists within reach of total victory. In early 1965, faced with the South’s imminent collapse, U.S. president Lyndon Johnson ordered the intensive bombing of North Vietnam and the dispatch of U.S. combat troops into the South.

E The Vietnam War

The U.S. intervention caused severe problems for the Communists on the battlefield, but it did not persuade them to abandon their struggle. The North Vietnamese leaders were convinced that they could outwait the Americans as they previously had the French. The North Vietnamese government sent regular units of the North Vietnamese army into the South to bolster the efforts of the local PLAF forces. But the sheer weight of U.S. firepower was difficult to overcome. As casualties mounted, insurgent units were being driven out of the villages into the mountains or along the borders of the country.

In early 1968, hoping to bring about a collapse of the RVN or at least undermine public support for the war effort in the United States, Hanoi launched the Tet Offensive, a simultaneous attack on almost every major South Vietnamese city. Similar attacks took place on towns and villages in the countryside. The Tet Offensive resulted in enormous casualties for the attacking forces, but it also weakened the regime of the new South Vietnamese president Nguyen Van Thieu. The Tet Offensive was also successful in severely shaking the American people’s confidence in the effectiveness of U.S. strategy. In March President Johnson decided to seek a negotiated settlement and announced he would not run for reelection. Peace talks opened in Paris in May but quickly collapsed and stalled for months. In November Richard Nixon was elected as the new U.S. president.

During his presidential campaign, Nixon announced that he had a secret plan to end the war. When implemented, the plan consisted of a gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops while simultaneously strengthening the South Vietnamese army to defend its own territory. At the same time, Nixon opened contacts with China, hoping China would agree to limit its support for North Vietnam in return for better relations with the United States. In 1972, when a second Communist offensive failed to achieve a victory, North Vietnam agreed to a compromise settlement. Under the arrangement, the South’s president, Nguyen Van Thieu, was allowed to remain in office in Saigon, but the NLF was permitted to play a legal political role in the South. All U.S. combat troops were to be withdrawn from Vietnam, but the United States could continue to provide military assistance to the South. The agreement did not address the presence of North Vietnamese units inside the South’s territory. Despite President Thieu’s anger at these conditions, the Paris Agreement was signed in January 1973. According to the terms of the agreement, consultations were to be held on future elections to form a new government in South Vietnam.

The agreement soon unraveled. In early 1975 the Communists launched a military offensive in the Central Highlands, intensifying the attack when the United States failed to respond. At the end of April the Thieu regime collapsed, and the Communists seized power in Saigon.

F The Socialist Republic of Vietnam

In 1976 the South was officially reunited with the North in a new Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Under the leadership of Le Duan, party chief since the death of Ho Chi Minh in 1969, Communist leaders in Hanoi adopted an ambitious plan to bring about the creation of an advanced Communist society. However, extensive war damage, lack of foreign investment, managerial inexperience, and the passive resistance of millions of people in the southern provinces all combined to defeat the program. By the end of the decade, the economy was in shambles, and popular hostility to the leadership had reached alarming heights. Thousands of people, many of them ethnic Chinese merchants and their families, fled the country in flimsy boats or across the border into China.

A foreign policy crisis worsened the domestic problems. For decades, Communist Party leaders had planned to unite Vietnam with revolutionary governments in neighboring Laos and Cambodia to form a militant alliance against the threat of imperialism. By the end of 1975, Communists had come to power in both countries, but the new government in Cambodia, under the leadership of militant revolutionary Pol Pot, was suspicious of Vietnamese intentions. Pol Pot refused to join with Hanoi, and Cambodian troops attacked Vietnamese villages near the Cambodian border. Pol Pot also demanded the return of territories in the Mekong Delta that the Vietnamese had seized from Cambodia’s predecessor, the Angkor Empire, during their “march to the south” centuries before.

In December 1978, after abortive efforts to bring about a compromise, Vietnam launched an offensive to overthrow the Pol Pot regime and install a new pro-Vietnamese government in Cambodia. They accomplished this in early 1979; however, the Vietnamese government had underestimated China’s interest in the area. Long suspicious of Vietnamese plans to dominate all of Indochina, Chinese leaders warned Vietnam that any attack on Cambodia would be viewed as a grave threat to the peace. Adding to China’s suspicions was the fact that Vietnam had recently signed a military security pact with China’s bitter rival, the Soviet Union. Furthermore, Chinese and Vietnamese troops had recently clashed on their mutual frontier, and the Chinese government bitterly criticized Vietnamese mistreatment of its ethnic Chinese population.

Less than two months after the Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia, China launched a brief but bitter assault into northern Vietnam. Although Chinese troops withdrew a few weeks later, they remained along the common frontier, forcing Vietnam to maintain a high defense posture in the area. In the meantime, Vietnam was forced to station nearly 200,000 occupation troops in Cambodia to protect the pro-Vietnamese government it had installed there.

G The Doi Moi Reforms

By 1986, the year of Le Duan’s death, Vietnamese leaders had begun to recognize that major changes were needed. At a national congress held in December, new party leaders launched the doi moi (economic renovation) program to reform Vietnamese society and stimulate economic growth. They abandoned efforts to build a fully Communist society by the end of the decade and dismantled collective farms. Party leaders declared their intention to bring about a mixed economy, involving a combination of state, collective, and private ownership. Foreign investment was encouraged, and a more tolerant attitude was adopted toward the free expression of opinion in the country.

Vietnam also sought to improve its position in foreign affairs. All Vietnamese occupation troops were withdrawn from Cambodia by the end of the 1980s. In 1991 Vietnam signed a peace agreement in Paris that created a coalition government of Communist and non-Communist elements in Cambodia. Vietnam made serious attempts to improve relations with China and with the United States, which ended its economic embargo in 1994. Full diplomatic relations were established the following year. In 1995 Vietnam joined with non-Communist governments in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a regional organization dedicated to promoting the economic growth of its member states. Also in 1995, Vietnam applied for membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO) with the aim of opening the country to greater foreign trade and investment.

Vietnamese leaders, however, have not yet entirely abandoned their dream of creating a Communist society. While stating their intention to create a modified market economy, they insist that state-run industries will hold the “commanding heights” in the system. Party leaders will not tolerate the creation of rival political organizations and rigorously suppress dissent from opposition forces. Conservative party leaders express open concern at the corrosive influence of decadent ideas from the West, which they view as a plot by “dark forces” in the United States to destroy the Vietnamese revolution. Like the leadership in neighboring China, Vietnamese leaders have declared their support for a policy of “economic reform, political stability.”

In 2001 Vietnam’s Politburo elected Nong Duc Manh as the Communist Party’s general secretary, making him the country’s top leader. Manh pursued a program of economic liberalization, and Vietnam’s economy came to be characterized as “a market economy with socialist orientation.” Manh was reelected to a second five-year term in 2006 and indicated that economic reforms would accelerate. The doi moi reforms had brought tangible success, making Vietnam one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. From 1996 to 2006 Vietnam maintained an annual growth rate of more than 7 percent. In 2006 it ranked second only to China in economic growth.

Vietnam’s economic prospects received a further boost in November 2006, when the WTO approved the country’s bid for membership. The acceptance capped more than a decade of negotiations. The Politburo of Vietnam ratified the deal in late November, paving the way for Vietnam to become the 150th member of the WTO the following month. To gain membership, Vietnam committed to further opening its economy to foreign trade and investment. Among other provisions, Vietnam agreed to lower many import tariffs, abolish trade quotas and restrictions, and open previously protected economic sectors to foreign investors. Membership was expected to give Vietnam more access to overseas markets but also increase the pressures of foreign competition on Vietnamese businesses.

VENEZUELA

Venezuela
I INTRODUCTION

Venezuela, country on the northern coast of South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea. Venezuela’s landscapes range from the towering peaks of the Andes Mountains in the north to tropical jungles in the south. In the middle of the country are grassy plains and rugged highlands. Beautiful beaches fringe the coast, and islands belonging to Venezuela lie offshore. The country’s capital and largest city is Caracas.

A Spanish colony for more than 300 years, Venezuela became one of the first of Spain’s South American colonies to declare its independence in the early 19th century. Formerly known as the Republic of Venezuela, the country changed its official name to the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in 1999. The name is in reference to Símon Bólivar, the military leader who helped win independence for Venezuela and other South American countries. Since becoming a sovereign nation, Venezuela has undergone periodic episodes of civil conflict and dictatorship, with the military exerting a strong influence over politics. Since the late 1950s, democratically elected governments have ruled the nation.

The majority of Venezuelans are mestizos, people of mixed European and Native American ancestry. The country’s economy was dominated by agriculture until the discovery of vast quantities of petroleum in the early 1900s. Government-run agencies have coordinated oil production since the 1970s. Although the oil industry has generated great wealth, Venezuelan society remains sharply divided between rich and poor. An elite class of businessmen, oil-company technicians, and large landowners controls most of the country’s resources, while a large number of unskilled urban laborers and rural farmworkers live in relative poverty.

II LAND AND RESOURCES

Venezuela has a total area of 916,445 sq km (353,841 sq mi), which makes it just over twice the size of the state of California. Along the north the country’s coastline extends for about 2,800 km (about 1,700 mi). The numerous recesses along the coast include the gulfs of Venezuela and Paria. The coast is generally narrow and steep except in the west, which has expanses of low and occasionally marshy land. Of the 72 coastal islands that belong to Venezuela, Margarita is the largest and most important.

Venezuela is bounded by Colombia to the west, Brazil to the south, and Guyana to the east. The country has four distinct geographic regions: the northern mountains, the Maracaibo lowlands, the Llanos (plains) of the north central region, and the Guiana Highlands to the south.

A Northern Mountains

The northernmost ranges of the Andes extend into western Venezuela. The largely uninhabited Sierra de Perijá range forms the Colombia-Venezuela border. Peaks in these mountains reach elevations above 3,400 m (11,000 ft), with average crest heights about 2,400 m (8,000 ft). Heavily forested slopes descend from the highest peaks in a series of lesser ridges to the humid lowlands of Lake Maracaibo.

The highest Andean range in Venezuela is the Cordillera de Mérida, which extends northeastward from the border with Colombia. Many of the peaks in this range have snow year round. The Cordillera de Mérida contain the country’s highest point, Pico Bolívar (5,007 m/16,427 ft). A series of lower mountains runs parallel to Venezuela’s Caribbean coast for about two-thirds of its east-west length. Most of Venezuela’s people live along the coast or in the coastal mountains.

B Maracaibo Lowlands

The Maracaibo lowlands are situated in the northwest corner of Venezuela and nearly enclosed by the mountains and highlands. Although they make up the smallest natural region of the country, they contain Venezuela’s second largest city, Maracaibo and the rich petroleum fields nearby.

Lake Maracaibo, an inland extension of the Gulf of Venezuela, dominates the Maracaibo lowlands. Lake Maracaibo is one of the largest lakes in South America, extending about 195 km (120 mi) in length. A narrow channel connects the northern end of the lake to the Gulf of Venezuela and the Caribbean Sea. In 1956 this channel was dredged so that oil tankers could pass through it.

Oil fields are located along the shores of Lake Maracaibo. The southern lakeshore has a luxuriant tropical forest rising above swampy, insect-infested lagoons. Widely scattered sugarcane and cacao plantations occupy the better-drained soils in this area.

C The Llanos

The Llanos, a region of vast tropical grassland, lie south of the coastal mountains and occupy the north central region of Venezuela. These plains cover about one-third of the country and extend to the Orinoco River delta on the northeastern coast. Elevations rarely exceed 215 m (700 ft). Savanna grasses, widely scattered clumps of brush, and palm groves cover the land. Ranchers raise cattle on these hot plains.

The climate of the Llanos is tropical. During the wet season from May to November, heavy tropical rains fall, rivers overflow their banks, and vast areas of the Llanos are flooded. During the dry season that follows, grasses become parched, trees drop their leaves, and ranchers drive their cattle to water in wet lowland pastures near the Orinoco.

D Guiana Highlands

More than half of Venezuela lies south of the Orinoco River in a remote region known as the Guiana Highlands. This rugged region takes its name from the ancient Guiana bedrock that underlies it. The highlands consist of rolling hills, low mountains, and plateau. Tropical forests cover much of the land, interspersed with open grasslands. The chief mountain ranges are the Sierra Parima, from which the Orinoco headwaters flow, and the Sierra Paracaima, along the borders with Brazil and Guyana. The Guiana Highlands are sparsely settled but have attracted attention owing to discoveries of valuable ores such as iron, manganese, and bauxite.

Huge flat-topped mountains called tepuys rise in a part of the highlands near the Brazilian border known as the Gran Sabana. Waterfalls tumble over the edges of many tepuys. The highest waterfall in the world, Angel Falls, is located in the Gran Sabana. This impressive waterfall plunges a distance of 979 m (3,212 ft).

The Orinoco Delta is situated at the northern end of the Guiana Highlands, where the Orinoco River empties into the Atlantic Ocean. The delta consists of numerous islands and mangrove swamps.

E Rivers

Venezuela has six navigable rivers. Of the thousand or more streams in the country, the majority flow into the Orinoco. The Orinoco flows east across central Venezuela and drains approximately four-fifths of the total area of the country. With the tributaries—the Apure, Meta, and Negro rivers—it forms the outlet into the Atlantic Ocean for the waters of much of the interior of Colombia, as well as of inland Venezuela.

F Climate

The climate of Venezuela is tropical on the Llanos and along the coast and temperate in the mountainous regions. The coastal areas are extremely hot and humid. More comfortable conditions occur in highland regions, and nearly all the principal cities in Venezuela are between 600 and 1,800 m (about 2,000 to 6,000 ft) above sea level. The average daily temperature range in January is 15° to 26°C (59° to 78°F) in Caracas and 23° to 32°C (73° to 90°F) in Maracaibo; in July the range is 17° to 26°C (63° to 80°F) in Caracas and 24° to 34°C (76° to 94°F) in Maracaibo. Most precipitation falls from May through November, with the northern mountain slopes receiving less rain than those on the south. The dry season is from December to April.

G Natural Resources

Venezuela is rich in mineral resources. The country’s most important resource is petroleum. Other resources include natural gas, bauxite, gold, iron ore, copper, zinc, lead, and diamonds. Forests, too, are an important resource.

H Plants and Animals

Forests of varied species including palms, coral trees, mangoes, and brazilwoods cover 52.3 percent of Venezuela. Plant life common to the Temperate Zone (the region north of the tropic of Cancer) thrives above about 900 m (about 3,000 ft). Long grass grows on the Llanos, and mangrove swamps cover much of the Orinoco River delta.

Among the animals of Venezuela are jaguars, monkeys, sloths, anteaters, ocelots, bears, deer, and armadillos. Birdlife is abundant and includes flamingos, herons, ibis, guacharos (also called oilbirds), and numerous other species. Reptiles, including crocodiles and large snakes, such as anacondas and boa constrictors, are also found in Venezuela.

I Environmental Concerns

Venezuela protects more than a third of its land area—the highest percentage of any country in North and South America. Yet despite these protective measures, Venezuela continues to lose some of its valuable tropical forests each year. In addition, soil degradation in the grasslands of the Llanos, resulting from years of overgrazing, has become a major problem.

Occasional oil spills have killed fish and shut down shoreline resorts on Lake Maracaibo. Industrial pollution also plagues the Caribbean Sea coast where most of the country’s population lives. Insufficient sewage treatment facilities contribute to the pollution of the Caribbean Sea coast as well. In rural areas many people lack access to proper sanitation. Air pollution is an additional concern in urban centers such as Caracas, Maracaibo, and Valencia. Venezuela is party to international treaties concerning biodiversity, climate change, endangered species, marine life conservation, ship pollution, tropical timber, and wetlands.

III PEOPLE

About 67 percent of the population of Venezuela is made up of mestizos (people of mixed European and Native American ancestry), and 21 percent is of European descent. The remainder is predominantly black, and about 2 percent of the total population is unmixed Native American. The society is 88 percent urban. Spanish is the official language of the country. The principal religion is Roman Catholicism.

Venezuelan society is marked by a striking contrast between rich and poor. In Caracas government-distributed oil wealth has created impressive buildings and a class of millionaires and highly paid technicians whose standard of living is on a par with that of the wealthy in any Western country. But in the hills surrounding Caracas, unskilled laborers live in squalor in shantytowns. Similarly, in the countryside a small number of landowners live in mansions, while undernourished farmworkers live in rudimentary dwellings.

The Venezuelan population is 26,414,815 (2008 estimate), giving the country an overall population density of 30 persons per sq km (77 per sq mi). The overwhelming majority of the population lives in the northern highlands or coastal regions. Only a small percentage inhabits the huge area (nearly 50 percent of the total land area) south of the Orinoco River.

A Principal Cities

Venezuela is highly urbanized. Caracas (population, 2007, 2,085,488) is the capital as well as the financial, cultural, and commercial center of Venezuela. Located in a beautiful valley in the coastal highlands, Caracas is a city in which modern skyscrapers and apartment houses contrast sharply with elegant old colonial buildings and with the slum dwellings of recent migrants from the countryside who have come to the city seeking employment. The nearby town of La Guaira serves as the seaport for Caracas.

Maracaibo (population, 2008 estimate, 1,450,665), the country’s second largest city, is located on the shores of Lake Maracaibo. Once a collection of crude huts built on stilts over water, Maracaibo developed into a modern city during the 20th century, largely because of its role as a major center of the petroleum industry. Valencia (population, 2008, 839,926), in the coastal highlands, is one of the country’s main manufacturing centers. Barquisimeto (1,085,483), in the Andes, is the hub of several important highways as well as a major railroad terminal.

B Education

Education in Venezuela is free and compulsory for children between the ages of 6 and 15. The adult literacy rate in 2005 was 94 percent. The country’s 15,984 primary and preprimary schools had a total enrollment of 3.3 million pupils and were staffed by 185,748 teachers; secondary schools had an enrollment of 1,543,600 students.

In 2002–2003 about 983,000 students were enrolled in institutions of higher education, which included the Central University of Venezuela (1721) and Andrés Bello Catholic University (1953), in Caracas; Carabobo University (1852), in Valencia; the University of the Andes (1785), in Mérida; the University of Zulia (1891), in Maracaibo; and the Polytechnical Institute (1962), in Barquisimeto.

C Culture

The dominant influence on the culture of Venezuela was that of the Spanish conquerors. The Native Americans of the country, lacking any political or cultural unity of their own, were assimilated into the immigrant groups and had only a slight influence on the national culture.

The distinct Venezuelan contribution to folk legend is the llanero, or South American cowboy. The national dance, the joropo, and popular instruments such as the maraca, a type of rattle, and the cuatro, an instrument with four strings that resembles a small guitar, are all associated with the llanero.

Venezuelan literature gained momentum in the early 19th century with the appearance of writers such as Simón Rodríguez, Andrés Bello, and Simón Bolívar. Outstanding among later writers of the 19th century was Juan Antonio Pérez Bonalde, known principally for his translations of German poet Heinrich Heine and American writer Edgar Allan Poe. Pérez Bonalde is considered a precursor of romanticism in Latin American literature. In the early 20th century, novelist Teresa de la Parra became one of the most popular women novelists of Latin America, and Rufino Blanco Fombana produced works about life in Venezuela in the late 19th century.

Two of the best-known Venezuelan novelists of the 20th century were former president Rómulo Gallegos and Arturo Uslar Pietri, who ran for president in 1968. Gallegos’s works reflect the interaction of humankind and nature. Uslar Pietri’s novel Un Retrato en la geografia (1962, Portrayal in Geography) is an original look at Venezuelan society in which a recently released political prisoner describes the new social landscape that he encounters.

Venezuelan artists of the 20th century who developed international reputations include sculptor Marisol (Escobar) and painter and sculptor Jesús Rafael Soto. Both artists moved between Venezuela, New York, and Paris. A museum dedicated to Soto’s work is in Ciudad Bolívar.

Venezuela, which was regarded as one of the less profitable colonies of Spain, lacks the splendors of Spanish architecture that are found in other South American countries. Nevertheless, in the second half of the 20th century, the combination of the wealth produced from oil discoveries and strong ties with the United States helped foster the development of modern architecture. Carlos Raúl Villanueva, who explored the structural and expressive possibilities of reinforced concrete, is the best-known Venezuelan architect of the 20th century. He designed the campus of the Central University in Caracas.

See also Latin American Architecture; Latin American Literature; Latin American Music; Latin American Painting; Latin American Sculpture.

D Museums

Some of Venezuela’s leading museums are located in Caracas. These include the Museum of Fine Arts, the Museum of Colonial Art, the Natural Sciences Museum, and the Bolívar Museum, with displays on the life and times of Simón Bolívar. Also of interest are the Talavera Museum, in Ciudad Bolívar, and history museums in Maracaibo and Trujillo.

IV ECONOMY

The economy of Venezuela is built upon the nation’s rich petroleum and mineral resources. However, its reliance on petroleum leaves the nation vulnerable to fluctuations in world markets. The government has made numerous efforts to diversify the economy but without success. At the beginning of the 21st century, the economy suffered from inflation and high unemployment and underemployment. In addition political instability had a negative effect on the economy. Opposition to President Hugo Chávez led to a general strike in late 2002 and early 2003 that worsened the country’s already weak economy.

Despite the strike that slowed oil production in the early 2000s, oil revenues rose as a result of an increase in oil prices. Chávez pledged to spend the money on social welfare, including health and education. With the increase in oil revenues beginning in 2004, Venezuela’s economy improved. However, critics said government spending was out of control.

The national budget in 2005 included revenues of $36.5 billion and expenditures of $41.1 billion. The gross domestic product (GDP), the total of all goods and services produced within a country, in 2006 was $181.9 billion.

A Agriculture

Agriculture plays a much smaller role in Venezuela’s economy than in the economies of other South American countries. Before the discovery of oil, agriculture provided the country’s major exports, including coffee, cacao, cattle, and hides. Oil production, however, led to years of neglect of the agricultural sector, and by the 1950s the country was importing more than one-third of its food. In 1960 the government passed the Agrarian Reform Law, which was aimed at expanding and diversifying agricultural production. For a time food production grew rapidly, but by the mid-1970s rapid population growth outpaced the growth in agricultural production. In addition, much of the best farmland remained in the hands of large landowners and often lay idle, while those who need to earn a living from the land worked the poorer farmland. Today, Venezuela still must import much of its food. The United States is a major supplier.

Much of the best farmland in Venezuela is concentrated in the hands of a few large landowners, while those who need to earn a living from the land are left with poorer land. The lack of arable land for the poor has led to heavy migration from rural areas to the cities. In 2005 Venezuela’s president initiated plans to increase food production by breaking up the large estates. The first step was to review land use. Ranchers objected to inspections of their estates and declared the measures unconstitutional.

Agriculture, including forestry and fishing, employed 11 percent of the workforce; in 2003 it contributed 5 percent of the GDP. The principal crops include sugarcane; fruits such as bananas, plantains, and oranges; maize; rice; and cassava. Livestock raising is carried on chiefly on the Llanos and east of Lake Maracaibo.

B Forestry and Fishing

In 2005, 52 percent of Venezuela was forested. However, the country’s timber industry is underdeveloped largely because of the inaccessibility of the forest areas. Timber is used mainly as fuel and by the building, furniture manufacturing, and paper industries.

The rich fishery resources of Venezuela include a wide variety of marine life. The fish catch in 2005 was 492,210 metric tons. The country’s fish catch includes tuna, sardines, herrings, shrimp, and shellfish. Important pearl fisheries are located off Margarita Island.

C Mining

Petroleum, located in the Maracaibo Basin and in the eastern part of the country, dominates the Venezuelan economy. Crude and refined oil are the main source of government revenue and account for about one-third of the GDP. In 2004 Venezuela produced almost 1 billion barrels. Much of its oil is exported to the Netherlands Antilles for refining. Venezuela is a founding member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).

The Venezuelan government nationalized the petroleum industry in 1976, although private investment and foreign participation has been permitted since 1992. In 2007 the country had petroleum reserves estimated at 80 billion barrels.

Venezuela also is a major producer of natural gas; output in 2003 was 29.7 billion cubic meters (1.05 trillion cubic feet). Venezuela has tapped its vast reserves of bitumen to produce liquid coal, an emulsion of bitumen and water principally for use in power plants.

Other minerals commercially exploited in Venezuela include iron ore, bauxite, diamonds, gold, silver, platinum, coal, salt, copper, tin, asbestos, phosphates, titanium, and mica. In 2000 the country adopted new mining regulations intended to encourage greater private-sector and foreign investment in the mining sector. But growth failed to follow, largely because of labor unrest.

D Manufacturing

The government of Venezuela has given high priority to the development of heavy industry since the 1960s. It established a significant steel industry and began the production of aluminum and petrochemicals, especially nitrogen-based fertilizers. In the late 1970s, a significant portion of the country’s oil revenue was invested in these state-owned industries. Ciudad Guayana, a city founded in an area rich in natural resources, became a major industrial center. But petroleum revenues dropped in the 1980s, as did investment in industry. By the late 1990s, the manufacturing sector was contracting, smaller firms shut down, and jobs were lost. Political instability in the early 2000s added to the problems of the manufacturing sector.

The leading manufactured goods of Venezuela include refined petroleum and petroleum products, steel, aluminum, fertilizer, cement, tires, motor vehicles, processed food, beverages, clothing, and wood items.

E Tourism

Venezuela has a number of tourist attractions, including its long Caribbean coastline, the Andes Mountains, and the world’s highest waterfall (Angel Falls). However, its tourism industry remains largely undeveloped. Most of the country’s tourists visit the beaches on Margarita Island. More adventurous visitors seek out the wildlife and natural beauty of the Orinoco Delta and the interior highlands and tropical rainforests.

F Energy

In 2003, 68 percent of Venezuela’s electricity was produced in hydroelectric facilities, particularly at the Guri Dam, a major installation on the Caroní River. Venezuela generated 87 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity in 2003.

G Currency and Banking

The basic unit of currency is the bolivar, consisting of 100 centimos (2,147 bolivars equal U.S.$1; 2006 average). The Banco Central de Venezuela, founded in 1940, is the government banking agent, the sole bank of issue, and the clearinghouse for commercial banks. The country’s principal stock exchange is in Caracas.

H Foreign Trade

The principal exports of Venezuela are petroleum and petroleum products, which together account for 82 percent of foreign sales. Other exports include bauxite and aluminum, steel, chemicals, agricultural products, and basic manufactures. Total exports were estimated at $25 billion in 2003.

Main imports include raw materials, machinery, transportation equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, and basic manufactures. Imports were estimated at $8.4 billion in 2003.

Principal trading partners for exports are the United States, The Netherlands (primarily petroleum to the Netherlands Antilles for refining), Brazil, and Colombia. Chief sources of imports are the United States, Colombia, Brazil, Japan, and Mexico.

Venezuela is a member of five international trade organizations, the Andean Community, Latin American Integration Association (LAIA), Mercosur, Group of Three, and the Association of Caribbean States (ACS). These organizations work toward improving conditions within member countries by increasing economic integration and international trade.

I Transportation

Roads are the principal means of transport for goods and people in Venezuela, and the country has an extensive road network. In 1999 Venezuela had 96,155 km (59,748 mi) of roads, of which 34 percent were paved. Highway density is greatest in the north central area.

The railway network, by contrast, is poorly developed. In 2005 the country had only 682 km (424 mi) of operated railroad track, principally a line from Puerto Cabello to Barquisimeto. The leading seaports of Venezuela include La Guaira, Puerto Cabello, and Maracaibo. Transport on interior waterways, particularly the Orinoco River, also is important.

The main international airport is located in Caracas with others located in major cities such as Maracaibo and Barcelona. Venezuela has a number of passenger airlines based in the country.

J Communications

In 2005 Venezuela had some 136 telephone lines for every 1,000 people. The number of mobile cellular phones in use increased substantially during the 1990s because of dissatisfaction with the country’s phone system. An estimated 189 television sets and 301 radios were in use for every 1,000 residents. Influential daily newspapers included Últimas Noticias, El Mundo, El Universal, and El Nacional, all published in Caracas.

K Labor

In 2006 the employed labor force of Venezuela was 13.3 million people. Some 11 percent of the workforce was employed in agriculture, 69 percent in services, and 20 percent in industry, including manufacturing, mining, and construction. However, Venezuela suffers from high unemployment and underemployment; in 2003, 17 percent of the labor force was unemployed. Organized labor in Venezuela consists of trade unions and peasant leagues. The largest and most powerful organization is the Confederation of Venezuelan Workers, with a membership of about 2.5 million.

V GOVERNMENT

Venezuela is a federal republic. It is governed under a constitution adopted in 1999. All citizens may vote beginning at age 18.

A Executive

The chief executive of Venezuela is a president, who is popularly elected to a six-year term. A council of ministers assists the president. The president has the authority to dissolve the legislature under certain conditions.

B Legislature

As a result of the 1999 constitution, Venezuela’s bicameral National Congress, which consisted of a Senate and Chamber of Deputies, was replaced by a unicameral National Assembly in 2000. Legislators are popularly elected to a five-year term.

C Political Parties

The leading political parties in Venezuela are the Fifth Republic Movement Party (Movimiento V República, MVR), led by President Hugo Chávez; the Democratic Action Party (Accíon Democrática, AD); Movement Toward Socialism (Movimiento al Socialismo, MAS); Project Venezuela (Proyecto Venezuela); and Social Christian Party of Venezuela (Partido Social Cristiano de Venezuela, COPEI).

D Local Government

Venezuela is divided into 23 states; federal dependencies, made up of 72 islands in the Caribbean; and the Federal District, site of Caracas, the national capital. Each of Venezuela’s 23 states and its federal district has a popularly elected governor and legislature.

E Judiciary

The highest court in Venezuela is the Supreme Tribunal of Justice, made up of 32 judges appointed to 12-year terms by the National Assembly. Each of the states has a superior court as well as several lesser tribunals.

F Defense

All Venezuelan males between the ages of 18 and 45 are liable for 30 months of military service. In 2004 Venezuela maintained combined armed forces, made up of the army, navy, air force, and national guard, of 82,300 people.

G Health and Welfare

The Venezuelan government sponsors a limited program of health, accident, and retirement insurance. The average life expectancy at birth in 2008 was 77 years for women and 70 for men.+

VI HISTORY

Christopher Columbus first sighted the coast of Venezuela in 1498. In 1499 Spanish explorer Alonso de Ojeda followed the coast to Lake Maracaibo. He named the region Venezuela, or Little Venice, because the Native American buildings constructed on stilts along the lake’s edge reminded him of the Italian city of Venice, which was built on a series of islands in a lagoon.

A Spanish Colony

The Spanish began settling Venezuela in 1520. In 1528 Charles V of Spain granted to the Welsers, Bavarian bankers to whom he was in debt, the part of Venezuela lying between Cape Vela and Maracapana. As part of the arrangement, the Welsers were to develop the region and establish settlements. Instead, their representatives enslaved the Native Americans and so demoralized the European settlers that in 1546 the Spanish government revoked the grant and reassumed control.The city of Caracas was founded in 1567.

Economic activities in the colonial period centered on agriculture, particularly cacao and tobacco farming and some livestock raising. Venezuela became a center of piracy and smuggling, activities in which the English and the Dutch were the most notorious participants.

During the colonial period, Venezuela operated under a number of administrative jurisdictions. Originally, the Spanish authorities divided what is now Venezuelan territory between the Viceroyalty of Peru and the Audiencia of Santo Domingo (located in what is now the Dominican Republic). The Superintendency of Venezuela, more or less the present territory, was created in 1783.

In 1728 the Spanish government chartered the Guipuzcoana Company and gave it a monopoly of trade in Venezuela, with the additional duties of patrolling the coast to prevent smuggling. The company was very unpopular and did much to stir up political discontent in the colony. In addition, the Spanish policy of appointing peninsulares (individuals born in Spain) to the major administrative positions in their American colonies caused much resentment among Creoles (Spaniards born in the colonies), who were excluded from positions of power.

B Independence

The first decisive attempt by a Spanish American colony to gain independence from Spain was made by Venezuela. In 1808 the armies of French emperor Napoleon I overran Spain and Portugal. They deposed Ferdinand VII of Spain. In 1810 the Creoles in the cabildo, or town council, of Caracas overthrew the Spanish authorities and formed a junta, or governing body, to rule in the name of the king. However, the junta soon threw aside all pretense of loyalty to the Spanish crown and issued a formal declaration of independence on July 5, 1811.

This first attempt to gain independence faltered after 1812, when Spanish troops began reconquering the colony. Francisco de Miranda, the commander in chief of the revolutionary forces, tried to negotiate peace with the Spanish commander but was taken to Spain, where he died in prison. Leadership in the movement for independence passed to one of his lieutenants, Simón Bolívar, who recovered control of Caracas briefly in 1813, only to be driven out by the Spanish a year later.

Spanish rule was solidified in Venezuela after the arrival of a large force of Spanish troops in 1815. Bolívar, whose forces were too weak to oppose the Spanish army, withdrew to Haiti. In 1816, however, he returned to the mainland with a reinforced army and seized control of the lower Orinoco Valley. Over the next few years Bolívar gathered his forces. In 1819 Bolívar’s position was further strengthened when a congress, convened by him at Angostura (now Ciudad Bolívar), proclaimed a union of New Granada (now Colombia and Panama), Venezuela, and Ecuador under the name of the Republic of Colombia (also known as Gran Colombia), with Bolívar as president. On June 24, 1821, the Spanish army was decisively beaten in Venezuela at the Battle of Carabobo, assuring the independence of the new nation.

Venezuela seceded from the union in 1829 and formed an independent republic with its capital at Caracas. José Antonio Páez, a hero of the revolution, served as president and remained the dominant political figure until 1846. He was tolerant toward the Roman Catholic Church and fostered a few measures for the stimulation of trade, agriculture, and education.

C Series of Dictatorships

The political history of Venezuela was comparatively uneventful until the year 1846 ushered in an era of civil wars between supporters of the Conservative Party and the Liberal Party. Conflict between these two groups characterized the early history of many Latin American countries. Liberals generally supported voting rights for all adult males, the separation of church and state, and a weak central government that gave greater power to the states and provinces within a nation. Conservatives advocated the preservation of class and church privileges, close government cooperation with the church, and a powerful central government.

In 1870 Antonio Guzmán Blanco gained control of the country. Under his despotic rule the public debt was stabilized, the building of railroads begun, and efforts were made to improve communications facilities. His administration also introduced reforms at the University of Caracas, emphasizing technological education, and rebuilt parts of the capital. Guzmán Blanco stripped the Roman Catholic Church of much of its wealth and authority. He retired in 1888 as a result of popular demonstrations against him. Rival aspirants contended for the presidency until General Joaquín Crespo brought another interval of peace and order between 1892 and 1899.

On two separate occasions during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Venezuela became embroiled in conflicts with European powers. The first incident took place in 1886 over a dispute with Britain concerning the border of British Guiana (now Guyana). The United States persuaded Britain to submit the case to an arbitration tribunal that subsequently awarded the larger share of the territory to Britain.

The second incident occurred during the rule of Cipriano Castro, from 1899 to 1908, when the government failed to pay its foreign debts. In 1902 Britain, France, Germany, and several other powers blockaded Venezuelan ports, demanding payment. On two occasions, European warships bombarded the ports. In 1904 an international tribunal asked to rule on the dispute decided in favor of the allies.

In 1908 General Juan Vicente Gómez deposed Castro. Gómez established a stable government and began to pay off the country’s vast debts. In 1917, when Gómez learned that Venezuela had large quantities of petroleum, he called foreign oil companies together and asked them to submit their suggestions for a partnership with the nation for the production of petroleum. With the aid of experts, he made an agreement with the petroleum companies that made Venezuela prosperous enough to pay off all of its public obligations; it was the only nation in the world at that time free from debt.

Internally, Gómez ruled tyrannically from 1908 until his death in 1935, with two interruptions, from 1915 to 1922 and from 1929 to 1931. On both of these occasions, handpicked candidates under the control of Gómez served as president. Gómez had many of his political opponents imprisoned, tortured, or assassinated, and he treated the national treasury as his own personal account. Gómez did little to improve education, housing, or health care, but he oversaw the modernization of Venezuela. The stable, oil-based economy supported major public works projects in the cities and ports, as well as construction of highways.

Minister of War Eleazar López Contreras succeeded Gómez as president. Contrary to precedent, López Contreras refused reelection, turning over his administration in 1941 to his duly elected successor, General Isaías Medina Angarita. However, Medina Angarita made no effort to train the people to govern themselves, and his limited program of land reform did not satisfy the liberal Democratic Action Party (AD), a political party founded in 1941 by young reformers.

D World War II and Postwar Politics

Venezuela broke off diplomatic relations with the Axis powers at the end of 1941 and ultimately declared war on them in 1945 in order to qualify as a charter member of the United Nations.

In October 1945 a revolution broke out, and violent fighting took place in Caracas. A new government was set up under the presidency of a young AD leader, Rómulo Betancourt. Although foreign powers suspected he might be sympathetic toward communism, Betancourt allayed their fears by his declarations concerning the prompt holding of elections and a program of acceptable reform. He also promised the foreign oil interests that no radical action would be taken against them.

The Betancourt government brought a new approach to government. Seven of the 11 members of the cabinet had been educated in the United States, and all were young men. For the first time an agriculture expert occupied that ministry and directed his efforts toward proper and efficient use of the land. Many difficulties confronted the new government in this field. The high wages paid by the oil companies had drawn workers from farms. Importation of food had increased the cost of living to one of the highest in the world. Small farms had been taken by Gómez to create a few immense cattle ranches. The new administration announced that these ranches would be converted into small holdings whose owners would be trained to raise a balanced crop for the benefit of the nation as a whole.

A new constitution, adopted in 1947, provided for popular vote by means of a secret ballot. Later in the same year, after the first democratic election in Venezuela, Rómulo Gallegos Freire, novelist and founder of the AD, was elected president. He took office in February 1948. However, the AD’s extreme popularity among voters and its proposed reform program alienated important groups, including conservative elements in the church and the military.

In November 1948 the government was overthrown by an army revolt, the leaders of which immediately formed a provisional government headed by Lieutenant Colonel Carlos Delgado Chalbaud. The junta suppressed the opposition and employed other dictatorial methods, including censorship of news. In 1950 Delgado Chalbaud was assassinated. The junta appointed the diplomat Germán Suárez Flámerich as provisional president, but the main power behind the government was a military officer, Colonel Marcos Pérez Jiménez.

The junta made elaborate plans for an election to choose a constituent assembly that would in turn choose a president. Electoral boards were appointed to register and poll the voters. The public was, however, indifferent. Finally, after government threats of punishment for anyone who did not register and vote, an election was scheduled for 1952. When early returns showed that the opponents of the junta were clearly in the lead, the military government suspended the election and the junta-backed government party, the Independent Electoral Front (FEI), installed Pérez Jiménez as president. In 1953 the constituent assembly confirmed him for a five-year term. Leaders of the opposition left the country. Later that year the constituent assembly approved a new constitution. The country, known officially since 1864 as the United States of Venezuela, was proclaimed the Republic of Venezuela.

E The Pérez Jiménez Regime

Venezuela’s enormous oil revenues allowed the Pérez Jiménez government to undertake construction of roads, bridges, railroads, and public buildings. One of the larger projects undertaken was the rebuilding of the center of Caracas. However, the government spent a great deal of money on military installations that became obsolete upon completion, and it made no efforts to improve agriculture, education, or standards of public health. Members of the administration embezzled vast sums of money, with Pérez Jiménez himself accumulating an enormous fortune.

The government maintained generally good contacts with other American countries, and the Tenth International Conference of American States was held in Caracas in 1954. Venezuela, however, broke off diplomatic relations with Argentina in 1957, after having rejected numerous Argentine complaints concerning the activities in Caracas of former Argentine dictator Juan Perón.

Jiménez ruthlessly suppressed all criticism of his regime. The government drove opponents into hiding or exile, and the secret police carried out mass jailings and tortured political prisoners. Until late 1957, however, the administration appeared stable. As the time for the 1957 national election approached, Pérez Jiménez jailed all known opposition leaders, including Rafael Caldera Rodríguez, leader of the Social Christian Party (COPEI). In December the government held a plebiscite, the results of which showed that 2,353,935 of a total of 2,900,543 voters approved of Pérez Jiménez and his regime.

The people, already resentful of the dictatorship, reacted violently to the official announcement of the referendum. On January 21, 1958, a general strike in Caracas signaled the start of a popular uprising. Rioting broke out in the streets of Caracas. The situation culminated in two days and nights of terror, during which police killed about 300 citizens. Pérez Jiménez fled the country and a group of military officers and civilians, known as the Patriotic Junta and led by Rear Admiral Wolfgang Larrazábal, seized control of the government.

F Democratic Governments

In 1957 the Larrazábal government released leading political prisoners. Other opposition leaders returned from exile. In elections held in 1958, former president Betancourt of the AD was reelected.

The new administration restored the country’s credit, which was severely weakened by the Pérez Jiménez regime, expanded social welfare projects, provided increased educational opportunities, and encouraged foreign investment. The government also raised income taxes, primarily in the higher income brackets, to secure funds for development projects. A land reform bill aimed at giving 700,000 farmers land of their own was passed in 1960, and the government promoted diversification of the economy.

The five years of the Betancourt administration were marked by almost continuous efforts by extremists of both the right and the left to unseat the government. Both groups of extremists received support from outside Venezuela. In 1960 the Organization of American States (OAS) voted sanctions against the Dominican Republic, then under the control of the dictator Rafael Trujillo, for supporting right-wing efforts to assassinate Betancourt. Diplomatic relations with Cuba were severed in November, following charges by the Venezuelan government that the disorders had been orchestrated in large part on orders of Cuba’s Communist leader, Fidel Castro. During 1962 and 1963 leftist groups attempted unsuccessfully to overthrow the government.

President Betancourt promulgated a new constitution in January 1961. Despite constitutional provisions guaranteeing various rights to labor and expressing opposition to large landed estates, social unrest and rioting continued throughout 1961.

Elections in 1963 brought Raúl Leoni of the ruling AD to the presidency. For the first time in Venezuela’s history, there was a peaceful transfer of power from one constitutionally elected regime to another. Lacking a congressional majority, Leoni formed a coalition government. The Leoni government also tried to increase agricultural productivity and to expand industries, and it moved ahead with the agrarian reform program. For the next few years Venezuela enjoyed a large measure of political stability. In October 1966, however, a military uprising broke out, led by the national guard garrison near Caracas. It was crushed by the government, which had also been combating guerrilla activity (see Guerrilla Warfare) in the countryside and in the capital throughout the year.

G Nationalization Measures

Toward the end of the decade, the political life of the nation gained some tranquility. In 1968 Rafael Caldera Rodríguez, leader of COPEI, won a narrow election victory, largely because of a split in the AD. Despite his narrow support, Caldera governed effectively and virtually eliminated the guerrilla and terrorist activities of the late 1960s. Economically, he pursued a policy of nationalizing foreign enterprises. In 1973 Venezuela joined the increasingly effective Andean Community, an organization of South American countries located along the Andes Mountains, whose aim is to facilitate development of member nations through economic and social cooperation.

Political activity was brisk in 1973 as the presidential elections neared. In May the congress ratified a constitutional amendment barring the candidacy of former president Pérez Jiménez. In the December elections, the winner was Carlos Andrés Pérez, the leader of the AD. He attempted to improve relations with Venezuela’s neighbors but took an increasingly independent line from the United States. He expressed open hostility to the military dictatorship that had gained control of Chile in 1973 and resumed diplomatic relations with the Communist government of Cuba. Pérez nationalized the iron and steel industry in 1975 and the oil industry in 1976.

The 1978 elections were won by COPEI and its presidential candidate, Luís Herrera Campíns. Under the Herrera government the economy entered a long recession, despite a near doubling of the country’s income from oil exports. Venezuela’s foreign indebtedness tripled, to more than $34 billion, and the cost of living nearly doubled. The 1983 elections resulted in a sweeping victory for the AD, and its candidate, Jaime Lusinchi, took office as president. Confronted by falling world oil prices and heavy obligations to pay interest and principal on the foreign debt, Lusinchi initially followed austerity policies that prolonged the recession. However, these policies enabled Venezuela, alone among Latin American countries, to pay its foreign creditors in full and on time. Nevertheless, the country was unable to get new loans from foreign bankers. When economic growth resumed in 1986, it was accompanied by domestic inflation, which doubled the cost of living within two years.

The AD also won the 1988 elections, resulting in a second presidency for Carlos Andrés Pérez, who faced a serious economic crisis. Venezuela’s national income per person was less than 75 percent of its 1977 level, and the international value of its currency had fallen by almost 90 percent in five years. In 1989 consumer price increases imposed as part of an austerity program triggered violent protests in Caracas that were suppressed by the authorities, causing at least several hundred deaths. Emergency loans from the United States and other countries helped ease the crisis, as did increased revenue from oil exports. However, continued popular discontent with government policies, including attempts at selling government-owned industries to private companies, led to defeats of the AD in local elections. In 1991 Venezuela and the other members of the Andean Community signed a treaty that would establish the Andean Common Market.

In 1992 two military coup attempts were crushed, one in February and another in November. Pérez was suspended from office in May 1993, after the Senate voted unanimously to have him stand trial on charges of embezzlement and misuse of public funds. Senator Ramón José Velásquez was elected interim president, pending elections in 1993. In December 1993 Rafael Caldera was again elected president.

In January 1994 the nation’s second largest bank, Banco Latino, collapsed, precipitating an economic crisis. The crisis affected several other banks, prompting a strong response from the central government. By August, 13 banks had been nationalized, including several of the largest in Venezuela. Citing immediate necessity and coup rumors, President Caldera announced the suspension of some civil and economic rights in order to help the government arrest those responsible for the banking collapse and to prevent speculation and inflation.

H Privatization Measures

In September 1994 Caldera announced a new economic plan, designed to pull the country out of its economic slump. The standard of living of the country’s middle class had fallen. The percentage of the average household’s income spent on food had increased from 28 percent to nearly 70 percent in 25 years. Caldera’s new plan called for reducing inflation and the deficit, an increase in foreign investment and foreign currency holdings, a reduction in the dependence on oil tax revenues, improvements in tax collection, and a rise in the domestic price of oil. Public unrest over the government’s handling of the crisis continued periodically throughout 1994 as demonstrators protested price increases.

In 1995 the National Congress approved a bill that allowed foreign oil companies to carry out joint exploration and production ventures with Venezuela’s state-owned oil company. Although the government decided to allow private investment in the oil industry, agreements with investors stipulated that the state would take close to 90 percent of the industry’s profits.

Foreign investment was also encouraged to exploit the gold deposits discovered near the country’s western border. Taxes on mining companies were cut, and the central bank’s monopoly on purchasing gold was ended.

Also in 1995 the government restored the civil liberties suspended the previous year and drastically reduced government subsidies for automobile fuel. In 1996 the sales tax was also raised from 12.5 percent to 16.5 percent. These measures were meant to slow inflation and foster balance and growth of the economy. However, Venezuelans saw the cost of living double in 1996, while wages remained steady. In 1997 the government gave in to public pressure and granted a 77 percent raise to government workers.

I Chávez’s Rule

A crisis in Asian financial markets in 1997 and a slump in world oil prices in 1998 caused a downturn in the Venezuelan economy. In the 1998 presidential election, Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías, a former military officer who had participated in two failed coup attempts in 1992, won the presidency. Chávez ran without support from Venezuela’s two major political parties. During the campaign he promised to end government corruption and to provide better economic conditions for the large number of Venezuelans living in poverty.

In April 1999 voters approved a referendum calling for the election of a constituent assembly to write a new constitution. The constituent assembly was elected in July, with candidates from Chávez’s Patriotic Pole coalition winning most of the 131 seats. When the constituent assembly convened in August, it assumed most of the National Congress’s duties, in addition to drafting a constitution.

In a referendum in December 1999 more than 70 percent of those casting ballots voted in favor of the new constitution, which renamed the country the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and gave the president more power. The presidential term was increased from five to six years, and presidents were no longer barred from serving consecutive terms in office. A unicameral National Assembly replaced the bicameral National Congress. The constitution gave the executive branch of the federal government many powers previously held by state and local governments and reduced civilian control of the military. Provisions promoted as anticorruption measures allowed voters to revoke legislation or recall elected officials, including the president, through referenda.

Also in December 1999, torrential rains caused devastating floods in the northern coastal states. Mudslides destroyed whole villages. It was estimated that more than 400,000 Venezuelans lost their homes and as many as 30,000 died.

While the nation dug out from the disastrous mudslides, the new constitution took effect. The constituent assembly resigned in January 2000, its work completed. Presidential and congressional elections were held in July 2000. Chávez easily won reelection, and his coalition won a simple majority in the new unicameral assembly.

In a development that further enhanced Chávez’s power, the National Assembly voted in November 2000 to grant the president authority for one year to rule by decree on topics ranging from public finance to land reform. The law passed despite complaints from opposition parties that the measure granted too much authority to Chávez.

I1 Opposition to Chávez

As his presidency progressed, Chávez became increasingly unpopular among the upper and middle classes due to his economic reforms and disputes with business leaders. In April 2002 at least 17 people were killed in a march in Caracas to protest Chávez’s policies, and some people claimed that his supporters had killed the protestors. Military leaders then forced Chávez from power in a coup d'état. The next day tens of thousands of people, mainly the urban and rural poor, marched throughout the country to protest Chávez’s ouster. In response to the protests, the military returned Chávez to power less than three days after it had removed him.

Although Chávez regained the presidency, many people continued to oppose his policies. In December 2002 a loose coalition that included labor unions, business leaders, and the Democratic Action Party organized a general strike to protest Chávez’s leadership. During the nearly three-month strike, many businesses, banks, and schools closed, and employees of the state-owned oil company slowed oil production. The strike devastated Venezuela’s already weak economy, and the country faced severe economic problems including high unemployment and inflation.

I2 Recall Vote and After

High oil prices in 2004, however, helped the economy recover, and Chávez funneled millions in government revenues to aid literacy and health programs for Venezuela’s slum dwellers. That aid helped Chávez solidify his base among the poor while his opposition mounted a petition drive to recall him from office. The Democratic Coordinator, an umbrella group of organizations opposing the president, succeeded in gathering enough signatures for a referendum in August 2004 to recall Chávez two years before his term was to expire.

Chávez easily defeated the recall attempt, however, winning 59 percent of the vote. The opposition charged the voting was fraudulent, but international monitors from the Organization of American States (OAS) and the Carter Center of Atlanta, Georgia, led by former U.S. president Jimmy Carter, said the election was free and fair. Carter said the charges of fraud were “completely unwarranted.”

In legislative elections held in December 2005, politicians allied with Chávez captured all 167 seats in Venezuela’s National Assembly. A number of the major opposition parties boycotted the election, claiming the electoral system was biased, and only about 25 percent of eligible voters cast ballots.

Opposition parties returned to the electoral process in the 2006 presidential elections, but they made little headway among voters. Chávez was reelected by a wide margin as most Venezuelans appeared to support his policies of redistributing the country’s oil revenues, especially to benefit the poor and working class. Chávez won 63 percent of the vote in an election that saw a relatively high turnout.

Following the presidential election, Chávez asked the National Assembly for the power to rule by decree for a period of 18 months. Critics charged that Chávez was trying to create an authoritarian regime with all powers concentrated in his hands. They said the move was unnecessary in view of the fact that Chávez’s supporters control the legislature, the Supreme Court, and all but two states. Supporters of the president said the ability to rule by decree would give Chávez the power to implement his program to move Venezuela toward socialism without delay. They noted that the National Assembly had passed a similar Enabling Law in 2000, under which Chávez issued more than 40 decrees. In late January 2007 the National Assembly unanimously approved four measures that gave Chávez the power to rule by decree in 11 broadly defined areas, such as the economy, energy, and defense, for a period of 18 months.

Following passage of the legislation, Chávez nationalized the telecommunications, electrical power, and oil industries. By July 2007 he had successfully negotiated agreements with most of the foreign oil companies operating in Venezuela to take control of at least 60 percent of their oil drilling and refining operations in the Orinoco region. Only ConocoPhillips and Exxon Mobil Corporation refused the terms of the takeover, though they continued to negotiate. More controversially, however, Chávez also moved to close down or take control of media outlets. His refusal in May to renew the broadcast license of Radio Caracas Televisión (RCTV) met with mass protests and denunciations by human rights groups. Chávez’s defenders pointed out that RCTV played a prominent role in supporting the 2002 coup attempt against Chávez. They said a number of influential media outlets, including two leading newspapers in Caracas, remained privately owned and were allowed to publish while being openly critical of Chávez. However, Chávez’s critics countered that the government was opening new state-run television and radio stations and that government advertising in pro-Chávez newspapers had increased 12 times.

I3 Referendum on Term Limits

Chávez suffered the first major electoral defeat of his political career in December 2007 when voters narrowly rejected, by 51 to 49 percent, a referendum on 69 proposed amendments to the Venezuelan constitution. The amendment that drew the most attention and opposition was one that would have removed term limits on the president, allowing Chávez to seek another term in 2012 and beyond. Chávez argued that the measures were necessary to speed Venezuela’s transformation to a socialist society.

However, the term limit amendment, along with one that would have given Chávez the power to declare a state of emergency for an unlimited period, alienated some of his more moderate supporters, including the leader of a leftist political party and a prominent retired general who had supported Chávez against the 2002 coup attempt. The proposed amendments also cost him some support in poor neighborhoods, where voter turnout was not as high as during the 2006 presidential election. Chávez indicated that he would respect the will of the voters.