Venezuela - A chronology of key events: 1498-99 - Christopher Columbus and Alonso de Ojeda visit Venezuela, which is inhabited by Carib, Arawak and Chibcha peoples.1521 - Spanish colonisation begins on the northeast coast. 1749 - First rebellion against Spanish colonial rule. 1810 - Venezuelan patriots take advantage of Napoleon Bonaparte's invasion of Spain to declare independence. 1811 - Independence Act signed. 1829/30 Venezuela secedes from Gran Colombia and becomes an independent republic with its capital at Caracas. 1870-88 - Venezuela governed by Antonio Guzman Blanco, who attracts foreign investment, modernises infrastructure and develops agriculture and education. 1902 - Venezuela fails to repay loans and, as a result, its ports are blockaded by British, Italian and German warships.1908-35 - Dictator Juan Vicente Gomez governs at a time when Venezuela becomes world's largest exporter of oil.1947-48 - President Romulo Gallegos, Venezuela's first democratically elected leader, overthrown within eight months in military coup led by Marcos Perez Jimenez, who forms government with backing from the armed forces and the US. Democratic rule: 1958 - Admiral Wolfgang Larrazabal ousts Marcos Perez Jimenez; leftist Romulo Betancourt of the Democratic Action Party (AD) wins democratic presidential election. Wealth Gap: Few Venezuelans have gained from the country's prosperity.

1964 - Venezuela's first presidential handover from one civilian to another takes place when Dr Raul Leoni (AD) is elected president. 1973 - Venezuela benefits from oil boom and its currency peaks against the US dollar; oil and steel industries nationalized. 1983-84 - Fall in world oil prices generates unrest and cuts in welfare spending; Dr Jaime Lusinchi (AD) elected president and signs pact involving government, trade unions and business. 1989 - Carlos Andres Perez (AD) elected president against the background of economic depression, which necessitates an austerity programme and an IMF loan. Social and political upheaval includes riots, in which between 300 and 2,000 people are killed, martial law and a general strike.

1992 - About 120 people are killed in two attempted coups. 1993-95 - Ramon Jose Velasquez becomes interim president after Perez is ousted on charges of corruption; Rafael Caldera elected president. 1996 - Perez imprisoned after being found guilty of embezzlement and corruption. 1998 - Hugo Chavez elected president. 2000 - Foreign Minister Jose Vicente Rangel discloses plot to kill Chavez. Chavez wins another six years in office and a mandate to pursue political reforms. Chavez becomes the first foreign head of state to visit Iraq since the 1991 Gulf war, in defiance of strong opposition from the US. 2001 14 November - President Chavez announces a series of measures aimed at stimulating the economy, including a land reform law, which determines how the government can take over idle, private land, and a hydrocarbons law, which deals with flexible royalty rates for companies which operate state-owned oil fields. Protesters demand that leaders of the state oil monopoly be sacked. 2001 11 December - The Venezuelan capital, Caracas, grinds to a halt as millions protest against President Chavez's controversial economic reforms, especially a new land law that gives the government the power to expropriate large estates and agricultural land deemed to be unproductive. 2002 14 February - Venezuela's national currency, the bolivar, plummets 25% against the US dollar after the government scraps five-year-old exchange rate controls.

2002 25 February - Chavez appoints new board of directors to state oil monopoly Petroleos de Venezuela in move opposed by executives.2002 9 April - Trade unions and the Fedecamaras business association declare general strike to support Petroleos de Venezuela dissidents. Chavez vows to crush strike. 2002 11 April - Some 150,000 people rally in support of strike and oil protest. National Guard and pro-Chavez gunmen clash with protesters - more than 10 are killed and 110 injured. Chavez shuts down coverage of violence by TV stations. Military high command rebels, demands Chavez resign. Headline news - but the papers were wrong to assume Chavez had gone for good. 2002 April 12 - Chavez resigns, is taken into military custody to await possible charges stemming from violence. Military names Pedro Carmona, one of the strike organisers, as head of transitional government.

2002 April 14 - Chavez returns to office after the collapse of the interim government. 2002 July - Former US President Jimmy Carter fails to bring about a face-to-face meeting between President Chavez and the main opposition parties. 2002 October - Chavez says security agents foil another plot to topple his government. Workers stage a national strike to press Chavez to step down or call early elections. Group of senior officers goes on national TV calling for civil disobedience, alleging the government is corrupt and has impoverished the nation.

2002 December - Opposition strike cripples the oil industry. Organisers demand that Chavez resign. The weeks-long stoppage leads to fuel shortages. Venezuela's general strike has brought chaos. Anarchists and Norwegians in general have been advised by the Anarchist International Embassy to leave Venezuela temporarely, or move to relative safe areas because of growing civil unrest. The decision has been taken as a result of the ongoing political crisis. A strike by oil workers opposed to President Hugo Chavez is now in its 20th day. This is likely to impact on critical supplies of essential commodities in coming days and might in turn trigger disturbances. Tensions in Venezuela have continued to rise and, on Friday, striking executives of its state-owned oil company defied a Supreme Court order to return to work and thousands of people marched in the capital, Caracas, to demand President Chavez step down or hold early elections.

Safety advice in Venezuela: Avoid carrying valuables or walking alone, especially in central Caracas. Do not accept unsolicited lifts and use only clearly-marked taxis. Those visiting alone should take particular care. President Chavez is at large popular among the Venezuelan working class, but he has been accused by his opponents of being dictatorial and his radical rhetoric has alarmed the middle classes and the business community. The Foreign Office said there was a serious shortage of petrol in Caracas and other major cities. Several other countries - the US, Canada and Germany - have already given similar travel advice to their residents.

The Anarchist International has recommended a solution towards the Frischian "Third Alternative" in Venezuela over time, but in the short run an evasive movement is probably the best thing to do. The anarchists will rise their voice later on in this South American country. The situation should probably be discussed more. Feel free to reply to this note