Venezuela News And ViewsVenezuela News And Views: The UNAM of Mexico city
Venezuela News And Views
Friday, March 14, 2008
The UNAM of Mexico city
I left Mexico. But before I write more about my stay there, to start this post there is a little clue about where I might be now. For those who did not get it on the first try, another shot in the woods.
The trip to Mexico City was more cultural than usual. First, I managed to visit all the halls of the Museum of Anthropology. That is, I finally recovered from the shock of my very first visit to the city when half the rooms where closed in particular the Maya one.
But as luck had it, business had me for a full day at the famous UNAM of illustrious trajectory, from the Olympic games and the Tlatelolco massacre to the current controversy about the UNAM students that happened to be in the Reyes camp when that one was bombed by the Colombian army. Now, I do not want to get into the grit of this, but how did these students got to the secret camp of Reyes? Needless to say that as I visited Mexican public opinion got suddenly aware of what the FARC meant on how it pushes its sick tentacles inside Mexico, and the UNAM.
But the UNAM today is a splendid campus. Perhaps not as neatly conserved as some famous US colleagues, but infinitely better conserved and organized than the Caracas UCV. The contrast is just almost unbearable as we see how Venezuelan successive governments have sort of abandoned the UCV even as this one has been declared a World site. Now, under the current administration the UCV body is in direct confrontation with the state and the consequences can be felt, including shooting of the students by forces as evil as the ones that shot the UNAM students that were at Tlatelolco square, under a PRI administration that tried to project a leftist liberal image to the world, just as the Chavez pantomime.
The UNAM today is, as I could observe through privileged work reasons, an active campus, with a dynamic research. Perhaps not as high tech as much better endowed universities up North but up to date enough to offer its brightest students a chance at a real academic career. The college I visited had a good atmosphere, students looking like students, spending their break on the well tended grass fields. If the buildings show a little bit of aging, they are clean and not run down the way we see many buildings at the UCV in spite of its best efforts. Simply put, maybe the Mexican government does not give the UNAM as much money as it should or that one would like to receive, but I have a clear idea that the UNAM gets proportionally much more from the Mexican system than what the UCV gets from the Venezuelan one. And certainly the UNAM staff cannot be accused of being close to the Mexican ruling class..... I also sensed that faculty at the UNAM was more accountable to results than the one at the UCV, but that is another discussion and even if chavismo is right in pointing such "productivity" problems, its offered solutions are not solutions and will only aggravate the problem of the decaying level of Venezuelan higher education.
But there was more to surprise me. First, the campus had a neat system of free bus to go all around Campus. And it works because traffic is kept in check, illegal parking is near inexistent and work study students (?) directing crossings and circulation is impressive. I will remind the reader that Mexico is also a Latin country, as messy as any other one but yet when they want they can establish enough order to make life enjoyable for all. This concept under chavismo has become totally alien to our society as we are slowly descending in utter chaos. Read the latest example narrated by Miguel where students are too worried about occupying space even if this implies a "burnt earth" strategy.
The other thing that surprised me was the bookstores around campus where piracy does not prevail as it prevails in Venezuelan campuses. The direct consequence on the lack of will by the Venezuelan government to control piracy of intellectual property is that Venezuelan bookstores are getting increasingly poorer of teaching material. Around the UNAM the problem is certainly not as bad and this blogger had the joy to sink himself in such book worm pleasures that he bought 5 technical texts to bring back home, at a significant cost in excess weight. And he resisted himself the temptation to dig into art and historical books, otherwise he might have missed his plane next day.....
This profusion of book stores in addition to one of the most famous library buildings (picture above) is no accident: the UNAM is indeed a center of culture and it reeks of it at every corner. Just a look at its web page will dazzle you by all the cultural activities offered which by themselves are infinitely superior in quality and quantity than all that Venezuela has to offer these sad days where creeps like Farruco Sesto preside over the regimentation of Kultur!
This last picture resumes in a way the surprisingly placid outlook of the huge UNAM where business seems to be to think more than to make politics. Even though Mexico is still not out of the Obrador accusations, you would never have guessed it from a UNAM visit. Even if the UNAM is a world on its own, a large city with all its services and problems, it functions, it looks to the future and is not immersed in navel gazing and acrid recriminations. But chavismo is clearly not interested in such a campus style: here campuses are to create the new Venezuelan man through political education. Technical education and critical thinking can take a back seat for the time being. We are going to pay this dearly. Meanwhile the UNAM can manage highly skilled professionals and dreamers wild enough to join the FARC. That tells you all.
And yes, I have been totally enthralled by the blooming jacarandas, I shot dozens of pictures just of them. But I think that three are enough for a single post.
Written from the Venezuelan provinces, this blog started as private letters to my friends overseas, letters narrating the difficult days of the 2002/2003 strike in Venezuela. These letters became this mix of news, comments, pictures of the Venezuelan situation. Unknowingly, I have written the diary of Venezuela slow descent into authoritarianism, the slow erosion of our liberties, the takeover of the country by a military caste, the surrendering of our soul to our inner demons.
Click logo above to go directly to the English language blog. Click here to go to the Spanish language mirror.
Not all key word will be searched through the blogger default search above. If that one fails try this one.
THE DAILY READS
For many years only one major newspaper in Venezuela had an English language section, El Univesal.
Venezuela Crisis has a visual and textual record "hors pair" of the recent electoral campaign in Venezuela, the first blogger to have covered live a Venezuelan campaign. Seems to be on a resting phase for a few weeks.
Veneconomy has some of the very best editorials that can be found in English on Venezuela.
Miguel's blog longest serving blogger, a role model. Plus, all you need to know on chavismo suspicious financial deals.
THE REGULAR READS (mostly from Venezuelans on Venezuela)
Estamos en Venezuela, nunca se sabe. In spite of its Spanish title, an irregular blog about a French student observing Venezuela. Interesting pictures.
STORAGE AND INFO ON VENEZUELA
General info
Local anti-Chavez links are compiled by Iruña, along political activities going on.
Some of the documents discussed in this blog have been posted "as is" in a Document Section. Usually articles that appear in paid sites.
Digital papers with Venezuela and LatAm in mind (in Spanish)
There are two major digital papers with forums and all, for a permanent clash between factions. Noticiero Digital is the oldest one and Noticias 24 is giving it a run for tis money.
Ciudadania Activa has a large selection of articles on Venezuelan politics and civil rights issues.
Relevant info to expose some of the regime's propaganda and human rights violations
The lies of April
The famous "infamous" video "The revolution will not be televised" has been duly analyzed and shown to be in large measure a crass manipulation. Counter-video in Spanish here, and summary of main points here.
There is a documentary that follows the April 2002 events from the perspective on what Chavez did that April 11, "La Cadena". It is about the forced broadcast made by Chavez to hide the massacre of the pacific march on Miraflores.
The infamous apartheid like system of the Tascon and Maisanta lists
The compilation of various documents from Miguel.
The video "La Lista" and my reviews in English and Spanish by invitation at Hispalibertas.
The El Nacional review of Perez Oramas.
The original video itself can be seen here.
Diverse Human Rights pages
Of course, from Amnesty International to the Human Rights Watch page, without forgetting local organizations such as prestigious COFAVIC, the Venezuelan government comes only too often lacking in its Human Rights record.
OTHER FOLKS WITH VENEZUELA MORE OR LESS IN THEIR MIND (Please send links that should be added here)
And of course to be fair there must be links to pro-Chavez sites. I do pride myself of having been the first opposition blog to have listed pro Chavez links; a situation that has now changed. However extremely rare is the pro Chavez page or blog that links to any of the sites listed above. The readers might draw their own conclusion
Aporrea (Beat up, bruise! as in the imperative mode of the verb; the only interesting one if you can read Spanish. Predicts the future)
And of course the full time propaganda agencies, ALL at tax payer expenses, the National Radio coverage, RNV, and the rather deficient official news agency, ABN (both in Spanish).
Without forgetting the "official" newsletter in English.
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Map of Venezuela to help you locate the different locales mentioned through the blog (click here for a more detailed map)
The pics and march map below date from the epic days of the December 2002/January 2003 "El Paro", when the opposition was strong and decided.
Forgive me if for sentimental reasons I leave them there. It was a huge and pacific period and thus should be celebrated as long as we feel that our freedom is endangered, to remind us that what we were once.
Map indicating the paths of some great marches through Caracas during the strike, some with more than half a million folks.
Dotted areas indicate a rally at end of march.
Blue halos indicate the starting points of "Media March" which pictures are the ones you see.
Click on any picture for a bigger version.
Marching toward Hotel Melia, 01/31/03, 5 PM.
Small yellow square under the Pepsi ball is the big stage.
Looking back to the coming wave (01/31/03).
A special thanks to JoAnne Schmitz for the suggestions and help in setting this blog up.
North but up to date enough to offer its brightest students a chance at a real academic career. The college I visited had a good atmosphere, students looking like students, spending their break on the well tended grass fields. If the buildings show a little bit of aging, they are clean and not run down the way we see many buildings at the UCV in spite of its best efforts. Simply put, maybe the Mexican government does not give the UNAM as much money as it should or that one would like to receive, but I have a clear idea that the UNAM gets proportionally much more from the Mexican system than what the UCV gets from the Venezuelan one. And certainly the UNAM staff cannot be accused of being close to the Mexican ruling class..... I also sensed that faculty at the UNAM was more accountable to results than the one at the UCV, but that is another discussion and even if chavismo is right in pointing such "productivity" problems, its offered solutions are not solutions and will only aggravate the problem of the decaying level of Venezuelan higher education.
