Struggle To Determine The Future of Venezuela
The waters have not been settling down in Venezuela lately. When the ruling and opposition parties announced that they had won the presidential elections held on July 29, 2024, there was an uprising in the country.
Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez said in a statement on his social media account, "We will not allow the country to return to the darkness of 2014, 2017 and 2019. Do not take a wrong step,"he said.
In order to understand the current position of the country astrologically, we need to look at how it has come from the past to the present.
Venezuela was one of the richest countries in Latin America in the 1960s and 70s. The national income per capita was higher than in Spain, Israel and Greece, and the wages of workers were also higher than in other Latin American countries.
This landscape changed dramatically when oil prices fell suddenly and rapidly in the 1980s. "Venezuela's economy is spiraling out of control, burdened by mismanagement, corruption and debt."
Food and medicine shortages, poverty, crimes that threaten public order, and the safety of citizens' property and lives have increased. As a result, some of the public began to react against this situation. While protest actions intensified, social polarization increased further with the administration's opposing measures.
So how did the situation get to this day?
1502-1515 The beginning and officialization period of colonization
Venezuela was the country colonized by Spain in 1522, and in 1811, it became the first region to declare independence from Spain. However, the date when the country first began colonization is stated to be 1502 (1)
If we look at the indicators from an astrological perspective; On that year, we see that two slow-moving planets change signs and are in a square aspect (Pluto - Uranus => waxing square). Jupiter, which moves relatively faster among the slow-moving planets, magnifies the effect of the energy with its opposition to Pluto.
It is known that the colonization process, which started in 1502, became official in 1515 (with the establishment of the South American Settlement), which points to Pluto's approximately 13-year journey in Sagittarius, which symbolizes expansion, opportunities, and growth. It is quite remarkable that the colonization years of 1502-1515 coincided with the course of Pluto in Sagittarius. (Chart 1)
Another interesting astrological indicator is that while the Plt-Uranus square moves toward a 120 angle, all social and collective planets support each other with a sextile aspect. This celestial alignment may symbolize the establishment of a new social order in the country (1515).
The fact that three slow-moving planets changed signs in the same year is another factor that should draw our attention; Uranus=>Taurus, Saturn=>Sagittarius, and Pluto=> Capricorn
We can briefly explain the energy of the two earth signs, revealed by the collective planets, as a pragmatic change in the use of earth resources.
If we evaluate this energy change according to the time spirit of the period, we can say that while it disrupts existing political systems and administrations (Pluto Capricorn), it also removes the autonomy and sovereignty of many tribes, kingdoms, and states by imposing colonialism through force and oppression (Saturn Sagittarius). In this way, traditional rulers and leaders were marginalized or replaced by colonial administrators, local authority was eroded, and established systems of governance were disrupted. This political turmoil created lasting scars of instability and conflict in post-colonial Africa and South America (Uranus Taurus).
The waxing square and trine phases of planetary cycles manifest themselves as the testing of crisis periods when an idea begins to manifest itself, the flowering and acceptance of the idea or seed in question after difficulties and struggle. It even starts to motivate societies.
When we consider the situation specifically for the country, the adventure that started with Pluto's ingress into Capricorn marks the beginning of Spain's dominance over the country. We can say that the conjunction of the Pluto-Saturn in Capricorn in the first years of official colonization (1518) is the symbolism of the steps of being a colonial country for nearly 300 years.
In a process ranging from gold mining to slavery, the enslavement policy that started with the native people continued with Africans over the years. As a result, society was structured into two categories: Spanish landlords and locals who raised livestock. Even in the Venezuelan example, we observe the energy of the Pluto-Saturn aspects that change the deep cultural structuring of societies.
1811
It would not be wrong to say that the events that took place in Europe at the time formed the seeds of Venezuela's declaration of independence. When the Napoleonic Wars in Europe weakened Spain's imperial power, in May 1808 Napoleon appointed his brother Joseph Bonaparte as King of Spain. With the subsequent defeat of France, Venezuela decided to declare its independence, as did the Spanish states.
The new Junta was forced to maintain an alliance with the group representing free blacks and even free slaves, and it was the beginning of the Venezuelan War of Independence. After two more years of war, the country gained independence from Spain in 1811. Venezuela continued to exist as part of Colombia, along with the present-day countries of Colombia, Panama, and Ecuador.
We see that the colonization process, which started with the Pluto-Uranus square (1502), ended with the Pluto-Saturn square in 1811. This time, Jupiter in Gemini increases the pressure by opposing Saturn. The same T-Square energy also appears in the independence chart. (Chart 2)
While the Pluto-Uranus cycles are defined as structures built on ruins, the Pluto-Saturn cycle finds its place in symbolism as deep cultural change, cleansing, and resurrection.
The Uranus-Pluto trine in the 1811 chart is striking. We can interpret the waning trine aspect as the motivational power of the seed (idea) bearing fruit and becoming a motivating factor in society. The conditions that force it to prove its value make it necessary to present the basis of the idea to the world and defend itself against it.
When the Pluto-Uranus waxing square moves to the waning trine aspect (120), we see the first steps of liberation being taken. We can say that a structure that enslaves society and colonizes countries no longer finds a place in the collective. We are moving towards a period in which the idea in question must consolidate itself and re-emerge with a different face.
After breaking away from Spain in 1811, Venezuela existed as part of the Republic of Colombia for a while until declaring full independence in 1830.
1830 Full Independence
In the Independence chart (1830), the same planets (Pluto-Uranus) take their place on the scene with the waning sextile. If we add the partile square of Pluto and Jupiter, we can understand the destructive effect and the intensity of the desire for independence. (chart 3)
If we look more carefully at the energy of 1830; We see that Uranus has entered the sign of Aquarius (uprise and rebellion), which it rules, and Pluto has settled in the sign of Aries (war, conflict).
During this period, we observe the dominant impact of destructive uprisings and the search for freedom in countries around the world. Some of the important titles can be listed as follows.
• Establishment of a bourgeois kingdom in France under Louis Philippe with the July Monarchy Revolution,
• Belgium's declaration of independence,
• Polish uprising,
• Declaration of Brazil's freedom,
• Political divisions in Afghanistan may be a good example of the effects of the Pluto-Uranus-Jupiter in aspect.
During the same period, Saturn's course in Leo is a sign that the government may pursue an autocratic policy. Venezuela, which was shaken by repressive governments and political turmoil, is recorded as a country ruled by military dictatorships until the mid-20th century.
When we take a quick look at the country's history, we see that Venezuela appears as a country that reacts to Pluto-Uranus cycles. Especially if Jupiter is also in the equation...
2014 to Present
The year 2014, which Defense Minister Lopez mentioned on his social media account, also coincides with the conjunction of Transiting Uranus and natal Pluto. Since the Jupiter-Pluto-Uranus T square formed in transit triggers the natal Pluto in the 1830 chart, the pressure on the country will inevitably increase. (chart 4)
Transiting Pluto conjunct with the Uranus-Pluto midpoint (16 Capricorn) in the 1811 chart of the country. Venezuela's sensitivity to the Uranus-Pluto cycles is once again emphasized in both charts. (chart 5)
In 2014, the USA initiated an economic embargo on Venezuela because the Venezuelan government used violence against protesters. On the one hand, the US embargo and on the other hand, the rapid decline in oil prices accelerated the economic collapse of Venezuela, which relies on oil for nearly 95 percent of its exports.
Other dates highlighted by Minister Lopez which were 2017 and 2019 may be related to Saturn's moves towards conjunction with Pluto in the sky. We also observe the Saturn-Pluto conjunct in Capricorn in the first years of colonization in 1518. It would not be wrong to say that the country is in a new structuring process. There are signs that the current system is changing.
In August 2024, just like in previous years, riots broke out in the country along with the presidential election crisis. While the police used tear gas to disperse the demonstrators, at least 16 people have died so far during the demonstrations, according to the French news agency Agence France-Press (AFP).
The human rights organization Penal Forum in Venezuela also noted that 46 people were arrested during the protests.
The most prominent astrological symbolism in the August 2024 transit is, of course, the Uranus-Pluto combination (Trs Pluto conjunct Natal Uranus) and the square of Transit Uranus to Natal Saturn. The presidency of Maduro, who took over the country after the death of Chavez, in 2013, now encounters resistance in the last elections. (Chart 6)
Transiting Neptune's opposition to the natal Sun, which symbolizes the leader of the country may indicate that the confusion in elections and the victory is viewed with suspicion. It also symbolizes the gradually diminishing charisma of the leader and the disorientation of the government.
Likewise, when Transiting Uranus- Algol (fix star) conjunction challenges authority (natal Saturn). The simultaneous transiting Pluto-natal Uranus conjunction symbolizes radical change, the desire for liberation, and even unexpected developments.
Also according to the first independence chart of 1811, while Transit Saturn is conjunct natal Pluto, Transit Pluto is moving towards a square to natal Uranus.
We see the same planetary effects on stage during the 2024 elections. At the end of this year, Pluto will go back to the last degree of Capricorn for the last time and make a trine to the Sun of the 1830 chart. It is hard to say that things have calmed down completely for Maduro yet. Since Neptune continues to overshadow events, we can say that authority is slowly losing its power.
The transiting Uranus natal Saturn square, which will occur for the second time in 2025, and the upcoming transiting Pluto natal Uranus conjunction are indicators that the Maduro government's rule is heading toward its end. The Pluto-Uranus exact conjunction will occur in 2027.
With Uranus ingress into Gemini in 2026, natal Uranus will be triggered by aspects from both transiting Pluto and Uranus. It would not be wrong to say that a serious wind of change will blow in Venezuela, as Neptune will simultaneously move from Aries to conjunct natal Pluto.
The new energy that emerges with the change of sign of the generational planets marks the beginning of a new long-term adventure.
Aquarius Uranus liberated the Venezuelan people from being colonized, now with Pluto ingress Aquarius, the Venezuelan people may experience a different liberation.