To stand a real chance, Venezuela needs a solution that inspires at least a million of its emigrants, to immediately return to their homeland.
Sir, Ricardo Hausmann writes that for Venezuela “there is no road to recovery without the freedoms that underpin the market mechanism and without international financial assistance to kick-start imports and output. That will only happen after Mr Maduro leaves and this regime ends” “Maduro will not reverse an unprecedented economic collapse” August 24.
Indeed, but since so many of our landsmen are dying because of hunger and medicines, and the country is losing so much of its educated youth and that might find opportunities in other nations and never return, we need something much faster, much more drastic.
Hausmann states “by over-borrowing during the [oil] boom years: at over 600 per cent, Venezuela has the largest foreign public debt to export ratio in the world." If we include all the accounts payable hanging around it could even be much worse than that.
My proposal is to capitalize on our creditors weaknesses. After excluding all those who clearly have no legal enforceable claims, and there are many of them, I would call all Venezuela’s creditors and tell them:
“Here, take all Venezuela’s oil extraction and refinery assets. Put these to work as fast as you can, so you have a chance to collect something of your credits, as fast as you can; and pay out all royalties that will be due for any oil extracted, directly, in equal parts, to all Venezuelans living in Venezuela, as fast as these can be deposited in their respective debit cards.
Then the Venezuelans would, with that money demand what they most want and need, and the market forces, in a country so blessed with so many other resources than oil, and freed from the interference of its odious redistribution profiteers, would respond, almost instantaneously.
A dream? Perhaps, but also the last thing I want for my country is a bailout a la Greece, one that leaves all our youth indebted forever.
And who knows, perhaps then even Ricardo Hausmann would leave Harvard Kennedy School and return home. I sure would!
@PerKurowski
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