Venezuela Factbook (Closed, Planet Earth V2 RP)

[Oseancia]

The Federal Republic of Venezuela


[align=center]

Nation Name: The Federal Republic of Venezuela
Capital: San Salvacion
Official Language: Spanish
Currency: Venezuelan Qutal
Motto: "Power through peace, peace through prosperity."
Denonym: Venezuelan

Point Distribution: (Points per attribute, for a total of 30 points between all five attributes)
Raw Population: (4/10)
Economic Power: (8/10)
Technology: (6/10)
Military Strength: (6/10)
Social Dynamics: (6/10)

Government Type: Federal Republic
Head of State: Esteban Nunez
Population: 75,341,000
Military Size: 800,000 (Active Forces)
Brief Background Of Your Nation: The Federal Republic of Venezuela is a wealthy and bustling first-world nation located at the northernmost point of South America, governed by the Venezuelan Congress and Chancellor Esteban with a fair hand, and remarkable for its elegantly designed urban areas. It's hard nosed population of 75 million enjoy a level of social equality free from the usual accompanying government corruption. It is difficult to tell where the omnipresent, socially-minded government stops and the rest of society begins, but it concentrates mainly on Defence, although Education and Healthcare are on the agenda. It meets every day to discuss matters of state in the capital city of San Salvacion. The average income tax rate is 70%, and even higher for the wealthy. A powerhouse of a private sector is dominated by the oil industry and entertainmant media. The Venezuelan Defense Forces are a proffessional force of well trained and equiped soldiers, the city of San Salvacion is renowned for its stark white futuristic architecture, the three political parties that are the majority of the congress are currently vying for influence, and the high-end Venezuelan car company VMW is among the best in the world. Crime is totally unknown, thanks to the all-pervasive police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Venezuela's national animal is the Troupial, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests, and its currency is the Qutal.

Contents
History
Geography
Economy
Government
Military
Politics
Culture[/align][align=][/align]

[Oseancia]

History of Venezuela

Colonization
Spain's colonization of mainland Venezuela started in 1522, establishing its first permanent South American settlement in the present-day[update] city of Cumaná. The 16th century also saw fitful attempts at German colonization. Native caciques (leaders) such as Guaicaipuro (c. 1530–1568) and Tamanaco (died 1573) attempted to resist Spanish incursions, but the newcomers ultimately subdued them; Tamanaco was put to death by order of Caracas' founder Diego de Losada. Spain's colonization of mainland Venezuela started in 1522, establishing its first permanent South American settlement in the present-day[update] city of Cumaná. The 16th century also saw fitful attempts at German colonization. Native caciques (leaders) such as Guaicaipuro (c. 1530–1568) and Tamanaco (died 1573) attempted to resist Spanish incursions, but the newcomers ultimately subdued them; Tamanaco was put to death by order of San Salvacion's founder Diego de Losada.

Independance
After a series of unsuccessful uprisings, Venezuela—under the leadership of Francisco de Miranda, a Venezuelan marshal who had fought in the American Revolution and the French Revolution—declared independence on 5 July 1811. This began the Venezuelan War of Independence. However, a devastating earthquake that struck San Salvacion in 1812, together with the rebellion of the Venezuelan llaneros, helped bring down the first Venezuelan republic. A second Venezuelan republic, proclaimed on 7 August 1813, lasted several months before being crushed as well.
Sovereignty was only attained after Simón Bolívar, aided by José Antonio Páez and Antonio José de Sucre, won the Battle of Carabobo on 24 June 1821. José Prudencio Padilla and Rafael Urdaneta's victory in the Battle of Lake Maracaibo on 24 July 1823, helped seal Venezuelan independence. New Granada's congress gave Bolívar control of the Granadian army; leading it, he liberated several countries and founded Gran Colombia.
Sucre, who won many battles for Bolívar, went on to liberate Ecuador and later become the second president of Bolivia. Venezuela remained part of Gran Colombia until 1830, when a rebellion led by Páez allowed the proclamation of a newly independent Venezuela; Páez became the first president of the new republic. Two decades of warfare had cost the lives of between one- fourth and one-third of Venezuela's population (including perhaps one-half of the white population), which by 1830 was estimated at about 800,000. Venezuela eventually won the war against columbia and assumed control of both nations now united as one Venezuela. Equador, whos people did not wish to see bloodshed, surrendered peacefully to Venezuela in 1831.

19th Century
Much of Venezuela's 19th century history was characterized by political turmoil and dictatorial rule, including Independence leader José Antonio Páez, who gained the presidency three times and served a total of eleven years between 1830 and 1863. This culminated in the Federal War (1859–1863), a civil war in which hundreds of thousands died, in a country with a population of not much more than a million people. In the latter half of the century Antonio Guzmán Blanco, another caudillo, served a total of thirteen years between 1870 and 1887, with three other presidents interspersed.

20th Century - Present
In 1905 Alfredo Cintron, an early member of the new Federal Party, reorganized the government into a Federal Republic. The country was divided into four federal districts to consolidate more power in the federal government. Many were cautious and some enraged at the unexpected and then considered drastic decision by the new Chancellor Cintron, but after some time under the new government, its benefits began to pay off.
The discovery of massive oil deposits in Lake Maracaibo during the early 20th century would prove pivotal for Venezuela, and soon transformed the basis of its economy, from a heavy dependence on agricultural exports. It prompted an economic boom that would last into the 1980s; by 1935, Venezuela's per capita gross domestic product was Latin America's highest. Cintron benefited handsomely from this but at the same time, the new source of income helped him centralise the Venezuelan state and develop its authority. He remained the most powerful man in Venezuela until his death in 1935, although at times he ceded the Chancellorship to others. The federal dictatorship system largely continued under Eleazar López Contreras, but from 1941, under Isaías Medina Angarita, was relaxed, with the latter granting a range of reforms, including the legalization of all political parties.
In 1965 after mass protests for democracy and choice in political issues, the government, under Hiram Gonzalez II passed the Venezuelan Democracy Accord which allowed the people the right to vote for a Chancellor who may serve for no more than five years per term, or until his or her approval rating has fallen below 33%. This system has continued to the present day and has worked successfully for Venezuela, as the country continues to grow in wealth and power.

[Oseancia]

Geography of Venezuela

Venezuela is a country in South America, and part of Caribbean South America, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean. It is situated on major sea and air routes linking North and South America. Located at the northernmost end of South America, the geography of Venezuela is characterized by containing five main natural regions that present their own unique characteristics, from the Andes mountain range region; the Pacific Ocean coastal region; the Caribbean Sea coastal region shared with Panama; the Llanos (plains); to the Amazon Rainforest region. Venezuela is the only South American country which borders both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The Maracaibo lowlands form a large spoon-shaped oval bounded by mountains on three sides and open to the Caribbean on the north. The area is remarkably flat with only a gentle slope toward the center and away from the mountains that border the region. Lake Maracaibo occupies much of the lower-lying territory. Areas around the southern part of Lake Maracaibo are swampy, and, despite the rich agricultural land and significant petroleum deposits, the area was still thinly populated in 1990.

Although the country lies wholly within the tropics, its climate varies from tropical humid to alpine, depending on the elevation, topography, and the direction and intensity of prevailing winds. Seasonal variations are marked less by temperature than by rainfall. Most of the country has a distinct rainy season; the rainy period (May through November) is commonly referred to as winter and the remainder of the year as summer. The striking variety in temperature and precipitation results principally from differences in elevation. Temperatures range from very hot at sea level to relatively cold at higher elevations but vary little with the season.

[/align]

[Oseancia]

Economy of Venezuela

Venezuela has a mixed economy dominated by the petroleum sector, which accounts for roughly a third of GDP, around 80% of exports and more than half of government revenues. Venezuela has the least expensive petrol in the world because the consumer price of petrol is so heavily subsidised.
Venezuela has some of the largest oil and natural gas reserves in the world, and consistently ranks among the top ten crude oil producers in the world. In 2010, Venezuela crude oil proven reserves up 40.4 percent compared to 2009 reserve and it made Venezuela had the number one of crude oil proven reserves in the world. The country's main petroleum deposits are located around and beneath Lake Maracaibo, the Gulf of Venezuela (both in Zulia), and in the Orinoco River basin (eastern Venezuela), where the country's largest reserve is located. Besides the largest conventional oil reserves and the second-largest natural gas reserves in the Western Hemisphere, Venezuela has non-conventional oil deposits (extra-heavy crude oil, bitumen and tar sands) approximately equal to the world's reserves of conventional oil. The electricity sector in Venezuela is one of the few to rely primarily on hydropower, and includes the Guri Dam, one of the largest in the world.
Manufacturing contributed 17% of GDP in 2006. Venezuela manufactures and exports heavy industry items such as steel, aluminium and cement, with production concentrated around Ciudad Guayana, near the Guri Dam, one of the largest in the world and the provider of about three quarters of Venezuela's electricity. Other notable manufacturing includes electronics and automobiles, as well as beverages, and foodstuffs. Agriculture in Venezuela accounts for approximately 3% of GDP, 10% of the labor force, and at least one-fourth of Venezuela's land area. Venezuela exports rice, corn, fish, tropical fruit, coffee, beef, and pork. The country is not self-sufficient in most areas of agriculture; Venezuela imports about two-thirds of its food needs. Since the discovery of oil in the early 20th century, Venezuela has been one of the world's leading exporters of oil. Previously an underdeveloped exporter of agricultural commodities such as coffee and cocoa, oil quickly came to dominate exports and government revenues.

[Oseancia]

Government of Venezuela

The Venezuelan Government is a Federal Republic based on the Federal Constitution of Venezuela and ruled by an elected Chancellor, the Venezuelan Congress, and the National Citizen's Comittee. The Government is designed to be powerful and efficient while at the same time flexible and unbiased. The Venezuelan government is relatively free from the usual corruption that plagues national politics thanks largely in part to the Citizens Branch of government having no tolerance for disinformation or political "spin." The Chancellor leads the Executive Branch and is responsible for selecting the Vice-Chancellor and his cabinet while the Chamber of Congress is usually tri-partisan in nature. The Federal Republic is largely popular with the Venezuelan citizen and typically acts in the nation's best interests.

Executive Branch
The Executive Branch is one of three branches of government that balance each other out through a method typically referred to as "Checks and Balances." The Executive Branch is largely responsible for enforcing Venezuelan policy at home and abroad. The Chancellor of Venezeula is the chief executive and selects his own cabinet including his Vice-Chancellor. The Chancellor also serves as the commander-in-chief of Venezuela's armed forces. An election is held every five years and the Chancellor may run as many times as he or she likes however may lose the office if administration approval ratings fall below 33%.

Legislative Branch
The Legislative Branch is tasked with passing new laws and the re-evaluation of laws already put into effect. The institution responsible for this at the Federal level is the Chamber of Congress, a bicameral legislature divided into the Chamber of Representatives and the Federal Senate. While term lengths vary depending on a multitude of circumstances, they are relatively less restrictive than the term limits of the Executive and Citizen's branch.

Citizen's Branch
The Citizen's Branch was designed to represent the people of Venezuela regardless of status or influence giving all people an equal say. At the Federal level, it is the Citizen Senate that dictates policy on behalf of the people. Citizen senators are elected by popular vote from the
districts they hail from and are primarily responsible for deciding if a law or decision made by the government is indeed constitutional.

[Oseancia]

Military of Venezuela


The Venezuelan military as a whole is referred to as the Venezuelan Self-Defense Forces or VSDF for short. The idea of the VSDF came about with the formation of the Federal Republic and the Federalist movement. The military is 800,000 strong, and is divided into several branches. The name is in keeping with the ideals of the government suggesting that the military would only be used in a defensive nature, never to attack. Despite this, the VSDF is more than capable of carrying out offensive military operations if necessary. Venezuelan forces are state of the art (largely in part because of the nations mighty economy) and undergo some of the most intense training on Earth. Venezuela's forces are a completely volunteer and thus professional fighting force and are very patriotic in nature.

Venezuelan Land Defense Force

The Venezuelan Land Defense Force is the largest group of military personnel within Venezuelan territory. The VLDF mainly engage in land-based missions. Highly regarded as some of the best trained soldiers in the world, VLDF infantry are trained constantly to adapt to the changing world of the 21st century. Utilizing state of the art equipment to defend their homeland, Venezuelan infantry and ground forces stay ever vigilant in the event that another nation may launch an attack. Several sub groups are categorized under the VLDF including the Venezuelan Marine Corps and Venezuela's feared TOP-1 special operations unit. The Venezuelan Marine Corps, VMC, is the elite force of the VLDF. Only the strongest, bravest and most couragious soldiers are to be transfered into this section.

Venezuelan Maritime Defense Force

The Venezuelan Martime Defense Force is one of the world's most advanced and well funded naval strike forces. The rise of the Federal Republic led to a substantial increase in defense spending and almost 50% of that spending went to revamping the navy. Today, Venezuela defends its coast with several large battle groups including several aircraft carriers and one supercarrier. While costly, Venezuela maintains that the VMDF is essential to defending the countries multiple offshore drilling operations in the Caribbean and Atlantic.

Venezuelan Air Defense Force

Venezuela defends it's skies courtesy of the VADF. While not the largest or most powerful of the world's air forces, the VADF is highly trained and well funded. Constant research is put into the development of cutting-edge aircraft and electronics to ensure that any invader feels the wrath of the might VADF.