Christmas comes early for Maduro, but joy is limited in a troubled Venezuela

The international community and most of the country’s population might be in an uproar amid allegations that he stole July’s presidential election, but for strongman Nicolas Maduro Christmas has come early in Venezuela, so much so that he aims to decree its formal beginning for the first of October.

“September is arriving and so I said it already smells like Christmas,” Maduro recounted earlier this week on state television. “And because of that, and as a homage to all of you, I am going to decree the early start of Christmas for the first of October for everyone! Christmas has arrived, bringing peace, happiness and safety for all!,” he declared.

Maduro made the announcement in the midst of a repression wave that has already seen nearly 2,000 protesters thrown in jail, including assistants to opposition leaders María Corina Machado and Edmundo González, but also an alarming number of teenagers that were caught protesting against the announced results of the July 28 presidential election.

Just hours before Maduro announced his decision to move the religious holiday forward, which in a sense would make it last for about three months, his regime had formalized the arrest warrant for González, the opposition presidential candidate, who a growing number of nations believe was the real winner of July’s vote.

But this is not the first time the socialist strongman decides to move the start of the holiday season in Venezuela. He had done so in 2019, when he moved its start for November 1, in an attempt to clamp down on the unrest surrounding the coronavirus control measures, the marches led by opposition leader Juan Guaidó and a profound humanitarian crisis caused by the collapse of the economy.

The Christmas holidays have traditionally been a long affair for Venezuelans, who would take off three weeks of even the whole of December to relax, party and spend time with family and loved ones. But few are currently in a position to take three months off work to enjoy a holiday as most people find themselves struggling to make ends meet while living inside a failed economy. So the announcement will most likely only mean that government offices will receive orders to start the Christmas decorations early.

On Tuesday, the Venezuelan Episcopal Conference, the top representatives of the Catholic Church in the country, said that they found the announcement in poor taste.

“Christmas is a celebration of universal character. The manner and time of its celebration is the responsibility of the ecclesiastical authority. This holiday must not be used for propaganda or particular political purposes,” the conference said in a statement published on Instagram.