Venezuelan History and State Structure

Notable Venezuelan Figures

Andrés Bello was born in Caracas on November 29, 1781. A humanist, poet, lawmaker, philosopher, educator, and critic, he authored a polygraph that serves as a strong foundation for the emerging Latin American civilization. He was the first son of Bartolomé and Ana Antonia López y Bello.

Few of Bello's early works with uncertain dates are preserved. He wrote some poetry, including:

• The poem To the Vaccine
• An ode To Anauco
• The sonnet To an Artist
• The eclogue The Habitation of the Tagus
• The eclogue Tirsis Shady
• A romance A Samán
• An ode To the Spacecraft
• Sonnets To the Victory of Baylen and My Wish

José Félix Ribas

Born in Caracas on September 19, 1775
Died in Tucupido on January 31, 1815

José Félix Ribas was the last of eleven children from a distinguished Caracas family. He married Josefa Palacios, Simón Bolívar's aunt.

He began his Republican activity on April 19, 1810, encouraging residents to participate in the events of that day. During the independence struggle, he participated in numerous battles. The most important episode was the Battle of La Victoria (February 12, 1814), where he managed to stop the Royalist forces of Boves (led by Morales, as Boves was wounded) with inexperienced troops consisting mainly of young students and seminarians he had recruited.

Structure of the Venezuelan State

National Armed Forces

The National Armed Force is a professional, non-political institution organized by the state. Its mission is to ensure the independence and sovereignty of the nation and the defense, preservation, and observance of the principles enshrined in the Constitution. It is a local guarantor of constitutional principles.

The specific functions of the National Armed Forces are explicitly enshrined in Article 3 of the Organic Law of the Armed Forces, and are as follows:

• Secure control of vital areas that allow the movement of flows of people and goods between different regions of the country and the international environment.
• Defend strategic points to ensure the development of activities in different fields: economic, social, political, cultural, geographical, environmental, and military, and take provisions to prevent their use by any potential invader.
• Resist the occupation of the country by invading military forces, including preventive measures against hostile forces that show such intention.
• Participate in alliances or coalitions with Armed Forces of Latin American and Caribbean countries for achieving integration within the conditions set down in treaties, agreements, and arrangements, if approved by the National Assembly.

Branches of Government

National Legislative Power

The National Legislative Power is exercised by the National Assembly, a unicameral parliamentary body composed of deputies elected in each of the twenty-four federal entities. Deputies have proportional representation based on population and are elected for periods of five years.

National Executive Power

The National Executive comprises the President of the Republic, the Executive Vice President, Ministers, the Council of Ministers, the Attorney General's Office, and the Council of State.

Judiciary Power

The Judiciary is responsible for the administration of justice. It learns about the causes and matters within its competence through procedures determined by law and enforces its judgments.

Citizen Power

Citizen Power is autonomous and empowered to act at the national level. It is designed to prevent, investigate, and punish actions that undermine public ethics and administrative morality, as well as ensuring good governance and legality in the use of public heritage.

Electoral Power

Electoral Power, which is national and autonomous, is exercised through the National Electoral Council, the governing body. Subordinate agencies include the National Electoral Board, the Commission on Civil Registration and Electoral Commission, and the Commission on Political Participation and Financing.

Citizen Power and Electoral Power also ensure the enforcement and application of the principle of legality in all activity of the State administration.

State Public Power

The State Public Power corresponds to the states as autonomous and politically equal entities with legal personality. It is exercised by two branches: the executive and the legislature. The executive branch concerns the exercise of government and administration functions of each state, headed by a Governor elected by suffrage. The legislature of each State legislates on state competence and approves its budget law.

Municipal Government

Finally, the municipal government consists of municipalities and local institutions, such as parishes, associations, and districts.