In an effort to increase the efficiency
of farms and improve workers’ conditions, Venezuelan President Hugo
Chávez is now carrying out land reform in the western part of the
country. The redistribution will put the farms under the control of
workers’ cooperatives to serve a wider portion of Venezuelans
instead of serving to make a profit for only a few.
Some farms were seized because the
owners did not live and work on their own farms; others were seized
because they were being used inefficiently. Venezuela used to be a
country that exported food, but now it relies on imports due to the
greed and inefficiency of the large landowners.
“The way of life has improved here,”
said
Hernando Arriete, a ranch hand at a recently expropriated farm.
Agrarian reform is a key part of the
Bolivarian revolution and will definitely benefit the workers of
Venezuela.
