I WAS struck by the parallels between Venezuela, which has just defaulted on its sovereign debt, and Zimbabwe, which has just suffered a coup d’etat (“Hope and fear grip Zimbabwe as Mugabe’s brutal rule finally ends”, The Herald, November 17). The one has the world’s largest proven oil reserves and the other was once known as “the bread basket of Africa.” Both should be happy, prosperous and rapidly developing countries, where no-one goes hungry, which of course they are not.
From 2004 to 2009 Zimbabwe suffered hyperinflation. This was only brought to an end by dollarisation and the country entirely giving up on its own currency. Venezuela is currently in hyperinflation.
Both countries had large-scale seizures of private businesses. In Zimbabwe, around 4,000 white owned farms, which formed the backbone of the economy were expropriated, leading to famine. Similarly, Venezuela has experienced widespread expropriation of private businesses.
By 2007 an estimated 3.4 million Zimbabweans – a quarter of the population –had fled the country.
Similarly, Venezuela has experienced large scale emigration driven by economic mismanagement and repression.
At the same time, narrow political and military elites have enriched themselves to an astounding extent. The family of the late President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela are reputed to be worth several billion dollars. Similarly, when Solomon Mujuru, the husband of Zimbabwe’s then vice-president Joice Mujuru died in suspicious circumstances in 2011, his fortune was reportedly £7 billion.
What unites these countries and distinguishes them from other more economically competent ones is Marxist economics, which, unfortunately, are not greatly dissimilar from those espoused by Jeremy Corbyn and the Momentum movement.
Otto Inglis,
6 Inverlamond Grove, Edinburgh.
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