The government of Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez will expropriate its first farm, taking Venezuela straight down Zimbabwe road.  The grab was announced this morning and will happen Saturday. The chavistas' first target is a British—owned cattle ranch. The move is a bold beginning for the chavista communists who will roll out both military and police forces for the seizure, beginning the first in a series.

The communists' mendacious rationale is that a British company, Vestey Group, did not have proper title to 3000 hectares of its 13,000—hectare cattle ranch. So they are taking it all. But the owners of the land are fighting this action and maintain that the land has a clear title and deed since 1830. Two previous governments reafirmed ownership in the 1970's after two previous expropriation attempts.

Clearly, in a land without much history of title deed, this is going to be an easy strategy for seizing land, anyone's land, in the name of 'the people.' Property rights have been officially killed off this week in Venezuela.

It is noteworthy that these communists are going for the most productive land in the country. 64% of Venezuela's undeveloped land is government land, but there is no interest in redistributing that real estate to 'the people' in Venezuela. The chavistas claimed they were only interested in 'idle' farmland, but this was a pure communist lie worthy of Lenin. They want the best for themselves and are taking it now.

Indeed, they had the Mugabe scenario of targetting things of value all planned out very well. And now they've struck, going head to head with the British government which has stated it will defend the interests of its nationals. Will the British succeed? Almost certainly not. But the chavistas wanted this confrontation. Because if they succeed in stealing this British farm, against the full weight of opposition of the British government, they can pretty well succeed in seizing anyone's land.

And that is their communist redistributionist plan.

A.M. Mora y Leon 01 05 05