martes, 30 de septiembre de 2014

CONCURSO: Gran Casting en Caracas CERTAMEN TOP MODEL TV VENEZUELA TRAS LA BÚSQUEDA DE NUEVAS REINAS DE LAS PASARELAS

Karina Braun


CONCURSO:

Agradecimiento. Lic. Acela Santamaria
Lic. Ana Teresa Delgado de Marín / Diario Caribazo
Fotos. Cortesía

El próximo Sábado 04 de Octubre el certamen Top Model TV Venezuela realizará una jornada especial de casting, a fin de seleccionar jóvenes modelos entre los 4 y 18 años de edad, en la sede de la Organización Mini Venezuela ubicada en la Mezanina Quinta Hortensia, Cruce de Primera Avenida con Tercera Transversal de Los Palos Grandes, (Frente a la panadería Nugantina Deli), y en el horario comprendido entre 10:00 am y 4:00 pm




Será una oportunidad para agencias, modelos y diseñadores que deseen presentar sus propuestas, en el marco de un novedoso certamen cuya imagen es la bella y talentosa animadora, modelo y empresaria Karina Braun . Rumbo a la elección de las nuevas reinas del Top Model TV 2015, - el venidero mes de Marzo- en tres categorías: Mini, Infantil y Juvenil. Vale señalar que las ganadoras del certamen se harán acreedoras de atractivos premios entre los que figuran un contrato por un año, para participar como modelo en programas de televisión y campañas publicitarias a través de diferentes medios, igualmente serán imagen de los certámenes promovidos por la Organización Mini Venezuela, productos de belleza de las empresas patrocinantes, un exclusivo portafolio de fotografías para impulsar su carrera, así como la oportunidad de desfilar en pasarelas nacionales e internacionales. 




Entre los requisitos para las personas interesadas en el casting figuran lucir vestuario casual, presentar foto tamaño postal, con o sin experiencia previa en modelaje y los menores de edad deberán asistir acompañados de sus padres y/o representantes.

Para una mayor información favor comunicarse a través de los números telefónicos (0212) 285.93.08 / 0426. 513.91.05 / 0426. 513.90.57. o bien a través de la página oficial :


twitter: @orgminivzla 

Facebook: organizacionminivenezuela 

instagram @orgminivenezuela.














Lanzamiento: JOICO La línea profesional para el Cuidado del Cabello



Lanzamiento:

Agradecimiento: Lic. Maribel Slaimen @maribelslaimen
Ms Plus Comunicaciones @mspluscomunica
Fotos. Cortesía

(Venezuela) Este 29 de Septiembre, Distribuidora Dipacar C.A. invitó a personalidades, clientes y medios especializados, a un exquisito Almuerzo, en el Hotel Renaissance de Caracas, para presentar su nueva categoría para el cuidado del cabello:




JOICO

Joico, presenta la innovación científica que transformará el cuidado del cabello para siempre. Desde hace más de 35 años Joico ha revolucionado la industria de salón combinando belleza y ciencia para lo último en el cabello sano. Siempre a la vanguardia de la moda y la innovación. Joico ofrece productos para el cabello profesional de clase mundial. Une el poder del ADN y lo último en biomimesis para presentar la mayor novedad en la historia: complejos de péptidos biológicamente avanzados; la fórmula más poderosa y específica para reparar el cabello.




“El futuro de la ciencia del cabello hará girar las cabezas”, este es el lema de la marca, ofreciendo un cuidado para el cabello suntuoso que da resultados a un precio razonable.


Guillermo Flores Educador de Joico Internacional


El encuentro contó con la participación de todo el equipo ejecutivo del Grupo Dipacar C.A, integrado por Sr. Reinaldo Saraiva (Vicepresidente de Dipacar para la categoría de cabello) Sr Nelson Rotel (Vicepresidente para el área de Cosméticos y Fragancias) Sra. Massiel Avendaño (Gerente de Marca) 


Massiel Avendaño, Reinaldo Saraiva y Doralys Manrique


Quienes Compartieron con los invitados toda la presentación de la nueva línea JOICO y brindaron por su éxito en el mercado Venezolano.

La animación estuvo a cargo de la bella y exitosa Caterina Valentino.


Caterina Valentino


Asistieron personalidades como Alexandra Braun, Karina Braun, Adrian Delgado, Francois Weffer, Rosamaría Matteo, Ray Avilez, Shia Bertoni entre otros.


Adrian Delgado, Karina Braun y Francois Weffer

Alexandra Braun, Ray Avilez y Karina Braun 

Francois Weffer y Shia Bertoni

Guillermo Flores y Caterina Valentino

Rosamaria Matteo

Alexa Braun, Anateresa Delgado y Karina Braun.

 
Alexandra Braun                                                 Maribel Slaimen

 
Ysabel Velásquez De León                                       Guillermo Flores

Luisa Bencomo, Mirian Suarez y Marling Vivas

Ray Avilez y Maria Rosa Rullo

El equipo de trabajo en el Lanzamiento de Joico

En este evento se contó con la presencia del Educador exclusivo para Latinoamérica de JOICO el Sr. Guillermo Flores. Quien presento los productos y las nuevas tendencias en peinados.




 










PERFUME: TOUS ROSA


PERFUME:

Agradecimiento. Lic. Jenner Méndez
Producciones Corporativas JM0810 @italianjenner
Fotos. Cortesía

Se dice siempre que un aroma es capaz de transportarnos a tiempos felices pero ¿Es posible que, además, ayude a propiciarlos? Rosa cree que sí. Por eso, ha creado esta fragancia que quiere compartir con todas las mujeres que piensan que la llave de la felicidad está en su poder. Ya antes de abrir el estuche que encierra Rosa tenemos constancia del conjuro que nos propone.




Decía Proust que la rosa es la diosa de las flores, no porque sea la más bella, sino porque su perfume es capaz de crear en cada persona su mundo soñado. Con una primera impresión de bergamota y ruibarbo; su corazón de violeta y frambuesa y por fin su rastro de musk, cashmeran y vainilla.

Estoy segura de que esta rosa que ahora tenemos entre las manos nos llevará muy lejos. Exactamente a donde cada una elijamos ir.

La fragancia es Floral Musk y parte de la tradición de la rosa pero con un toque moderno, activo.




· Notas de Salida: Bergamota, Ruibarbo y Acorde ozónico.

· Notas de Corazón: Absoluto de Rosa de Mayo VMF, Violeta y Frambuesa.

· Notas de Fondo: Musk, Cashmeran y Vainilla.

Esta fragancia ha sido creada directamente por Rosa Oriol de Tous, fundadora y directora creativa de la marca.









LANZAMIENTO: Exclusiva trae lo último en tecnología, mascotas y bienestar


LANZAMIENTO:

Agradecimiento: Lic. Maribel Slaimen @maribelslaimen
Ms Plus Comunicaciones @mspluscomunica
Fotos. Cortesía

(Venezuela) Este mes, el Grupo Editorial Exclusiva trae gran variedad de revistas para su público de lectores venezolanos. Con productos dedicados a salud, bienestar, mascotas y animales y entretenimiento y tecnología, Exclusiva ofrece una amplia gama para todos los gustos e intereses, posicionándose en numerosos puntos de comercialización del país como una de las opciones favoritas de todos aquellos que disfruten leer.




Este mes, la revista E-Pets, enteramente dedicada a las mascotas y a los animales, trae en su portada de octava edición al elegante caballo cuarto de milla, como un preámbulo para aquellas personas que se encuentren interesadas en el mundo equino. Igualmente, para el cuidado de los animales domésticos, esta edición ofrece lo más reciente del gurú canino, César Millán, y lo último en cuidado y protección para mascotas.




Por otra parte, E-Integral lanza al mercado su trigésima primera edición de la revista. Y para continuar con su notable éxito en el área de bienestar y salud, brinda a sus lectores lo más actual en cuanto a los avances de la medicina y el cuidado personal. Asimismo, en esta nueva edición, E-Integral dedica un espacio a un tema de gran relevancia para muchos hombres y mujeres hoy en día: Cómo lidiar con el divorcio sin perjudicar a los más pequeños de la casa.

Y para los amantes del entretenimiento y la actualidad, llega la quincuagésima segunda edición de la revista Exclusiva, con un especial sobre lo más reciente en gadgets y dispositivos de tecnología de punta. Con la bellísima modelo y presentadora Michelle Ciotti en la portada, esta nueva edición promete para todos aquellos que son fanáticos de la tecnología.

Las revistas del Grupo Editorial Exclusiva están ya en circulación y pueden encontrarse en kioscos, librerías y otros puntos de comercialización en el país. De igual manera, puedes disfrutar de sus exclusivos productos de calidad y gozar de descuento. Suscríbete a través de (0212) 731-1912/ 731-3802 o enviando tus datos al correo suscripción@revistaexclusiva.com.










EVENTO-EVENT: La Academia Dabke y Ole se alza en el tercer lugar en el Festival Nacional de Danza Folklorica, Arabe y Egipcia 2014


EVENTO-EVENT:

Agradecimiento: Lic. Maribel Slaimen @maribelslaimen
Ms Plus Comunicaciones @mspluscomunica
Fotos. Cortesía

(Venezuela) El pasado domingo 14 de Septiembre en la sala José Félix Ribas del Teatro Teresa Carreño llegó a su final el Festival Nacional de Danza Folklórica, árabe y egipcia 2014 en el que participaron diferentes escuelas de danza árabe radicadas en nuestro país.





En la categoría grupal se alzó con el tercer lugar el Ballet de la Academia Dabke y Olé. Rosa Hernández, Angela Meléndez, Sara Pacheco, Mery Ochoa, Irka Depablos, Jennifer Colls, Carina Rojas y Silay Maccuar fueron las encargadas de presentar una Danza Nubia llena de movimientos relajados con la energía corporal consagrada hacia la tierra.


  

Dabke y Olé es una academia que cuenta con 10 años de experiencia promoviendo la cultura y la danza árabe desde lo folklórico hasta lo más moderno, dirigida por Silay Maccuar quien dentro de toda su formación cuenta con el título de Licenciada en Artes mención Artes Escénicas.




Felicitamos a la Academia Dabke y Ole, y les deseamos éxitos a las siguientes presentaciones. 




“Al duende hay que despertarlo en las últimas habitaciones de la sangre”












GENTE VIP: MISS VENEZUELA BY RIZWAN SHAFI

Miss Carabobo


GENTE VIP:

BY RIZWAN SHAFI

Agradecimiento: Lic. Ana Teresa Delgado de Marín / Diario Caribazo

www.sitaramagazine.com.ve / @delgadoanat / @sitaraweb
Fotos. Cortesía


I take this opportunity to share my view point regarding the best top Venezuelan model to be considered as “Miss Venezuela Universe”. I am thankful to “Ms Anateresa Delgado” for encouraging and providing me a platform from where I could express my opinion. All around the globe, it is a known fact that Venezuela is not only famous for hospitality but also for her glamour & beauty. In the world of glamour, Venezuelan models qualify to be the best amongst the modeling fraternity across the globe. It would not be an exaggeration if I declare Venezuelan models to be a clout which defines the very concept of beauty as conceived by “John Keats”. As far as this competition for “MissVenezuela Universe” is concerned, I must admit that it has been very difficult for me to choose the best. However, like every competition we have to select the most appropriate and deserving candidate. Therefore, in my humble opinion “Miss Margareth Isava” deserves to be the winner. I was immensely impressed by her stunning beauty, dazzling style and spectacular looks. The architect of her magnificent beauty has crafted her so delicately that she can mesmerize any individual on earth. To me, she is not just perfect but defines the true essence of the word “perfection”. Apart from her beauty, it is also interesting to note that she is proficiently pursuing her education in the field of “International Commerce”. This perfect combination of beauty and intellect is an exquisite hallmark in the arena of modeling. Her keen interest in sports particularly “Volley ball” and “Skating” shows how much dynamic she is and adds yet another dimension to her brilliant set of personality traits. Since I have already highlighted the difficulty for selecting the best, it would be unfair if I do not mention another beautiful model “Mariana”. She is gorgeous, attractive, stylish and elegant. I must admit that her splendor has made the competition quite tough and intricate. Anyway, I wish all the models the very best and hope that the most deserving comes out as the winner. 






                         






MÚSICA: En el marco de la Décima celebración de la Herencia Hispana Daniel Martín lleva su música este domingo al International Mall



MÚSICA:

Agradecimiento. Grisell Patty - Media & PR Daniel Martin
Lic. Ana Teresa Delgado de Marín / Diario Caribazo
Fotos. Cortesía

MIAMI, FL – El cantautor cubano, Daniel Martín, intérprete del éxito “El COCO”, se presentó en vivo el Domingo 28 de septiembre, en el marco de la Décima Celebración Anual de la Herencia Hispana, evento organizado por el Internacional Mall en conjunto con la Ciudad de Doral.

Desde la 1 -7pm, en el distinguido Centro Comercial la comunidad pudo disfrutar y experimentar las diversas culturas y singularidad de más de 20 países de América Central, América del Sur y el Caribe a través de shows musicales y culturales, presentaciones de moda, exposiciones de los países y delicias culinarias. El tema de este año, 'Discovery', celebró la diversidad de culturas dentro de la comunidad hispana. 

Daniel, quien es conocido por su trayectoria dentro del pop tropical, deleitará al público con su participación en el Escenario Caribeño, demostrando el sabor y contagioso ritmo latino.

El cantante y compositor, quien ha escrito temas para grandes intérpretes de Latinoamérica, Europa y Estados Unidos, actualmente graba su tercer álbum titulado "Fiesta DM", trabajo musical que realiza tanto en inglés como en español, dentro del género Dance Music y cuyo tema promocional es "Dance in América". 

Dentro de sus trabajos musicales, se encuentran su segundo álbum titulado " Latin King", donde destaca el tema promocional "El Coco", canción esta que se ha ubicado en los primeros lugares del Ranking Latino. Sus producciones siempre han sido una mezcla de todos los ritmos latinos pues, representar esta cultura a lo largo y ancho de los Estados Unidos es de gran valor para el joven cantante, quien dice llevar muy adentro la música y su cultura.

Ha participado en grandes producciones, entre los que destaca conciertos de Madonna, así como también con ganadores y nominados a los Premios Grammy entre otros gigantes del escenario. Participó en varios premios, entre ellos, los Billboard Latino.
Varios de sus temas, se han ubicado muy bien en los charts, como es el caso de "Distancia cruel" y "Te quiero", posicionándose este último en el Top Ten por 26 semanas, pasando a ser un gran hit en países como Colombia, Perú y Ecuador, país donde recibió dos nominaciones en los Premios Antena 3, como Mejor Artista Revelación y Mejor Canción Tropical. 

Ya en el 2014 Daniel Martín arranca la gira internacional "The Escap3 Tour", acompañado de dos talentosas cantantes, la puertorriqueña, Vanelis Vásquez, conocida por sus innumerables éxitos tropicales y la estadounidense, Alexis Salgado, cuyos temas de género Dance, han logrado ubicarse en la cartelera Billboard. Esta gira arrancó el pasado mes de agosto en la ciudad de Miami y tendrá como destino varias ciudades de los Estados Unidos, entre ellas, Los Ángeles y culminando en la ciudad de Nueva York, además de países como Italia y Brasil.

Dentro de los planes inmediatos, además de los ya mencionados, la carrera del también modelo y actor, continúa en ascenso, pues ya se prepara para participar en su primera película en inglés. 

Redes sociales: 

www.danielmartinmusic.com / Facebook: DanielMartinLatinKing / Twitter: @DMartinNEWS / Instagram:@danielmartinmusic





EVENTO-EVENT: *En la Carpa del Eurobuilding ASOCIACIÓN DE DIPLOMÁTICOS PREPARA SU TRADICIONAL KERMESSE PARA EL 2 DE NOVIEMBRE


EVENTO-EVENT:

Por. Lic. Ana Teresa Delgado de Marín / Diario Caribazo
Fotos. Cortesía

(Venezuela) La Asociación de Diplomáticos de Venezuela prepara su tradicional Kermesse para el Domingo 2 de Noviembre donde se exhibirán y venderán diversos productos y gastronomía de diferentes países acreditados en Venezuela.

La presidenta de la Asociación Laura de Linder, esposa del Embajador de Alemania y la Vicepresidenta Ferida de Al-Issa, esposa del Embajador de Iraq, anunciaron que el tradicional evento estará lleno de sorpresas y lo recaudado será para ayudar a 9 instituciones benéficas de nuestro país.

(En la gráfica Laura de Línder, Presidenta de la Asociación de Diplomáticos en Venezuela y la Vicepresidenta Ferida de Al-Issa.








martes, 16 de septiembre de 2014

MÚSICA; CORI MALVESTUTO hace el lanzamiento de su disco “ME DESHABITO”


MÚSICA:

Agradecimiento. Lic Soniberth Jimenez 
Evenpro @evenpro
www.evenpro.com
Lic. Ana Teresa Delgado de Marín / Diario Caribazo
Foto. Cortesía

La cantautora venezolana pone a disposición del público su producción discográfica el 20 de septiembre

(Venezuela) Después de más de 25 años cantando acompañada de su guitarra, Cori Malvestuto ha decidido compartir sus composiciones en un contexto más amplio con el lanzamiento de su disco “Me deshabito”, que se realizará este sábado 20 de septiembre.

En este trabajo, la artista nos presenta temas de amor con hermosos arreglos acústicos y mezcla de ritmos. Cori canta desde adentro y su mensaje es tan íntimo como genuino, se sumerge en sus letras y va dando cuenta del caleidoscopio de emociones y sentimientos. “Hoy” es el primer single promocional de “Me deshabito”.

“La música es el aroma de mi esencia, una tentación sublime, un placer irrenunciable. He cantado mi vida con nada de adornos y con ciertas pausas”, comenta Cori Malvestuto. “Me deshabito está hecho de mí, haciéndome, sintiendo, siendo. Venido desde adentro, es la entrega de un bien de mi intimidad”, completa la cantautora venezolana.

Concierto y gira

De la mano de su productora Buscando a mi Gente, Cori realizará una gira de conciertos muy curiosa y especial por toda Suramérica. Viajará en una camioneta kombi transformada en casa rodante y escenario móvil, llevando su guitarra, su enérgica voz, sus canciones, su generosidad y su pasión por la vida y por la música por una travesía de 30.000 kilómetros. Desde ese singular escenario rodante, donde se despliegan las telas, las luces y el sonido, ofrecerá sus conciertos a viva voz por Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Perú, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay y Brasil.

Además de promocionar durante el viaje “Me Deshabito”, su nueva producción discográfica, la artista junto a Verónica Otero, productora de Buscando a mi Gente, hará una búsqueda documentada de nuevos talentos, la actual generación de cantautor@s de Suramérica, con quienes irán haciendo contacto y conciertos conjuntos por la ruta. 

La gira comienza el 20 de Septiembre en Venezuela y Cori ofrece el concierto de apertura en El Limón, ciudad aragüeña donde vive la artista. 

Le acompañará en este concierto un importante ensamble de músicos integrado por: Jhibaro Rodríguez (Guitarra), Iván Briceño (Piano), William Montesinos (Piano), Moicelí Medina (Violín), Isaías Fernández (Violín), Isaac Loreto (Cello), Edgar Aponte (Percusión), Wilfredo Angulo (Clarinete), Sebastián Angulo (Clarinete), José Prada (Cello), Yonni Díaz (Viola), Magda Gallardo (Flauta dulce) y José Antonio Serven (Contrabajo). Además el reconocido tenor venezolano Guillermo Domínguez tendrá una participación especial en uno de los temas cantando a dúo con la artista.

La cita es este sábado 20 de Septiembre a las 6.30 pm en la calle Andrés Eloy Blanco, frente a la Galería de Arte, diagonal a la plaza Bolívar, en El Limón. Un concierto a cielo abierto y de libre acceso al público. 

Escucha la canción “Hoy” de Cori Malvestuto en el siguiente enlace 









CINE: Lanzados afiches del nuevo film de ALI ZAFAR

Kill Dil - Ali Zafar

CINE:

Agradecimiento. Lic. Ana Teresa Delgado de Marín / Diario Caribazo
Fotos. Cortesía

La casa productora Yash Raj Films lanzó este lunes los primeros afiches de la muy esperada película “Kill Dil” o “Matar a Corazón” protagonizada por Ali Zafar, Parineeti Chopra y Ranveer Singh. Fueron lanzados 3 posters individuales de los protagonistas.

Kill Dil es la historia de dos asesinos Dev (Ranveer Singh) y Tutu (Ali Zafar) y lo que sucede cuando conocen a Disha (Parineeti Chopra). Lo que sigue es Amor, Decepción y Aventura.

La película se estrenará a mediados de Noviembre.








NEWS: Fundación Europea nombra a Carlos Ocariz como mejor Alcalde del mes "El primero en Venezuela en obtener este reconocimiento mundial "


NEWS:

Agradecimiento. Prensa Alcaldía Sucre @AlcaldiadeSucre
Alcalde Ocariz @Carlos Ocariz 
Lic. Ana Teresa Delgado de Marín / Diario Caribazo
Foto. Cortesía

La Organización Europea 'The City Mayors Foundation' otorgó el galardón por considerar que, a pesar de las dificultades, los resultados del trabajo de Ocariz en materia de seguridad, participación, educación y empleo, lo hacen el más destacado del resto de los Alcaldes del mundo

(Venezuela) - El alcalde del municipio Sucre del estado Miranda, Carlos Ocariz, fue premiado mundialmente como el mejor Alcalde del mes de septiembre, por parte de una Fundación de origen inglés, The City Mayors Foundation. La organización considera que pese a los obstáculos y a la complejidad de la jurisdicción que gobierna, el mandatario local se ha destacado y ha demostrado méritos suficientes para recibir este reconocimiento.

'The City Mayors Foundation' es una asociación independiente, creada en el año 2003, que premia la labor de las autoridades municipales de todo el mundo. En su página web: www.citymayors.com se define como una fundación establecida “para promover, fomentar y facilitar un buen gobierno local”. Ha otorgado el galardón a representantes de países cuyas tendencias políticas van desde la izquierda hasta la derecha.

En un país con altos niveles de violencia, en Sucre se logró la disminución en 43% la cifra de homicidios; la construcción y masificación de espacios deportivos, recreativos y culturales de calidad tanto en zonas populares como en clase media; la ejecución del presupuesto participativo donde las comunidades priorizan, deciden y ejecutan la inversión municipal, la implementación de ferias de empleo para crear oportunidades, así como la inversión en materia tecnológica que permite el acceso a wifi gratuito abierto en muchas partes del Municipio, la implementación de programas sociales innovadores, que redujeron la deserción escolar y aumentaron la escolaridad, fueron aspectos fundamentales en el proceso de selección para el mejor burgomaestre de septiembre.




Tann Von Hove, representante de 'The City Mayors Foundation' aseguró que "El Alcalde Ocariz merece este reconocimiento internacional, por los pasos que ha tomado para hacer de Sucre una comunidad donde todos los ciudadanos tengan la oportunidad de trabajar por sus logros personales en un ámbito seguro. Yo creo que el énfasis del Alcalde en seguridad, educación y creación de puestos de trabajo, puede, eventualmente, permitir a Sucre competir con las mejores ciudades de Latinoamérica".




Ocariz es el primer Alcalde de Venezuela en obtener este premio, precedido por Michael Häulp, de la ciudad de Vienna, en Austria, representando al Partido Socialdemócrata de Austria, quien obtuvo el premio el mes de Agosto. En Enero de 2014 Carolina Tohá, Alcaldesa de Santiago, en Chile, se hizo merecedora de este galardón; ella representa al Partido por la Democracia, con ideología centro izquierdista. En Junio de 2013, el reconocimiento lo recibió Miguel Mancera, de Ciudad de México, miembro del Partido Revolución Democrática (PRD), fundado en 1989, con una ideología política de izquierda.





ACTUALIDAD: Interview with Carlos Ocariz, Mayor of Sucre_Venezuela

Mayor Ocariz - Sucre - Venezuela

ACTUALIDAD:

Agradecimiento. Prensa Alcaldía Sucre    @AlcaldiadeSucre
Mayor Ocariz @Carlos Ocariz  
Foto. Cortesía

City Mayors: In 2008, your defeat of the candidate from the late President Hugo Chávez’s United Socialist Party in the predominantly working class municipality of Sucre against caught political commentators in Venezuela and abroad by surprise. What were the reasons for your victory over one of Chávez’s allies?

Mayor Ocariz: At the outset, let me provide a brief background on Sucre. Sucre is one of the region’s most populous municipalities, with over one million residents, including the most populous “barrio” in Latin America, located in the area known as Petare. The geographical and political importance of Sucre makes any election one of national interest. The municipality is located in the capital city of Caracas, and is part of Venezuela’s Miranda state, composed of a mix of middle class and lower income neighborhoods. Seventy-five percent of our city’s residents live in popular sectors, where Hugo Chávez captured a hope that would quickly become a political capital. The slow but systematic fading illusion that began with our victory has already become a clear and effective popular force.

By 2008, Chávez had been in office for 10 years. He had won reelection by a landslide two years before, and had to show strength and power in local elections, especially one year after losing a referendum that would have changed the constitution and allowed any public official to be elected indefinitely. For the United Socialist Party, there was no room for mistakes. To date, Chávez had not lost any election in Sucre.

There were many reasons that contributed to our victory. I remember that one of the most prominent writers from the Chavismo movement wrote an article that roughly said, “The destiny of the Bolivarian revolution in Latin America depends on our victory in Sucre.” That kind of summarizes the significance that our municipality had back then, and has right now.

So our campaign started. Not surprisingly, the disadvantage was notorious. As we handed citizens flyers proposals about how to improve public services, personal security and roads, our opponents tried to buy votes by giving away washing machines, microwaves, refrigerators and mattresses. Though our people needed those things, they never sold their consciences. We won using the only two weapons we had: our dream of a better future, and non-stop hard work. We walked around the entire municipality, made up of 50 neighborhoods and 2100 “barrios”, which allowed us to understand the realities of our people first hand. We understood that beyond efficiency; decentralization, the active participation of residents in politics, and government transparency were key elements to improve the quality of life in Sucre.

That 2008 epic campaigned destroyed the myth that working class people were automatically chavistas. We are proud to say that in 2008, we showed that making clear proposals and having a vision for the city trumped the old political game of patronage and negative campaigning.

The reasons for our success are summarized in disciplined and consistent work. I was elected Member of the National Parliament for this town from 2000 to 2005, and always mixed the legislative work with community social work. Through hard work, we have crafted the conditions needed for depolarization, and transparent and genuine participation of the organized community.

Proof of our success are the eight elections won in the municipality since we took office (Local in 2008, constitutional reform in 2008, constitutional amendment in 2009, parliamentary in 2010, primary in 2012, presidential in 2012, regional in 2012, presidential in 2013, and municipal in 2013).


Sucre

City Mayors: During your first term, crime has significantly fallen in Sucre, while it has gone up in the rest of the country. How was the reduction achieved and could any measure you took be duplicated in other cities?

Mayor Ocariz: When we arrived at City Hall in 2008, we received a very violent city. Sucre’s homicide rate at the time was 72 per 100,000 habitants, and the trend was in the rise. We knew from the very beginning that fighting violent crime had to be our first priority.

We are proud of the crime reductions we have achieved since taking office. In 5 years as mayor, homicides have decreased by 45 percent when compared with 2008 statistics. We have achieved this, despite the fact that during this same period, crime in Venezuela as a whole has increased by 20 percent. Moreover, year after year we have reduced crime rates in Sucre by an average of 10 percent. We believe this is the highest inter-annual crime reduction rate in the world.

To achieve this dramatic reduction of violent crime in our city, we first set out three clear goals and strategies.

First: we set out to revamp Sucre’s police force. We devoted a significant amount of the city’s budget to modernizing the police force equipment, technology and training. We doubled the salaries of our policemen and policewomen. We opened a new police academy as a way to train more police in a more professional way. As a result of the increase in numbers of police, we have had a more intense police patrol presence in the streets. All of our police squad cars are now equipped with GPS devices to be able to monitor the checkpoints in the city in real time. We created a plan of “Hot Spots” that involves taking the empirical evidence and conducted patrols in specific areas, chosen by the evidence analyzed. We are pioneers in the implementation of this program, using the data base of homicides instead of emergency calls. Our program has been applied with great success and is being studied by various universities including Harvard, Columbia, George Washington, Cambridge and the University of the Andes in Colombia.

At the same time, we realized that just greater police presence would not, by itself, solve the city’s crime problems. We knew that we had to create more and better public spaces, including constructing and rehabilitating sports complexes and other areas for entertainment that would give our residents, especially our youth, greater opportunities for positive leisure. We have made over 35 tennis courts with artificial turf and recovered over 200 sports facilities. We have invested the most in the poorest neighborhoods, where we now have thousands of children and young people studying and practicing sports. Sport and education are our best weapons against violence. We developed plans to improve traffic mobility, backflow, and plans for citizenship education. This, in some cases, has reduced traffic by up to 35 percent.

Third: we knew we had to integrate the community into solving these problems. In Sucre, we identified our neighbors as the key actors in conflict resolution. We have generated methodologies where communities are involved in security, allowing proposals to arise from these spaces. Examples are the partnership we had with the private security of the municipality, and the creation of community policing.

I am convinced that the actions we have taken can be replicated in other municipalities in our country and in the world, taking into account the elements mentioned, including the importance of having an appropriate number of police, of creating educational, sporting and cultural spaces for children and youth, and integrating the community in the resolution of conflicts.





City Mayors: At the time of your first election, you also promised to improve education. You were particularly concerned about the shortage of teachers, student truancy and poor school infrastructure. Has the provision of education improved since 2008, bearing in mind that the Municipality of Sucre manages less than 20 per cent of schools in the city?

Mayor Ocariz: In our country, there is a lot of social inequality. The gap between social classes is very pronounced, and in our opinion, the best way to reduce that gap is to improve public education, making it fairer and safer. In Sucre, we are convinced that a young man who studies and is able to practice sports, is someone who will stay away from the path of crime.

We work on the basis of excellence. We have made great efforts to depoliticize education, and to make sure our teachers, doctors and police are the best paid in the country. We know that to have a more just society, we must provide quality education to future generations.

All public policy should be measurable elements to assess their performance. In our town, we have reduced the dropout rate – currently at 2 percent in our local schools. We have also increased attendance and the academic performance of our students. This we have achieved through the following mechanisms.

First: Form a team of committed quality teachers. We have improved their salaries and invested in their training. We have better teachers because we generate incentives to encourage greater commitment and greater quality.

Second: Improve educational facilities. Turn municipal schools in modern spaces. We involved parents and guardians in the process of recovery and rehabilitation of schools, thus turning them into part of the solution. The family is the fundamental unit of society, so we have promoted school-community organic links, involving parents and guardians in the education of their children.

Third: Implement social programs. We designed four social plans for education, thus ensuring that our students have the tools to improve their learning. We provide snacks, we give school supplies to those without the economic means, we support mothers in need with scholarships if their children meet a high level of attendance, and offer support to children who are visually or hearing impaired to optimize their learning. To low-income youth, we offer them the opportunity to pursue university studies in private institutions. Currently, more than 840 young people have benefited by this plan.

Our goal is to continue to strengthen our youth so they have the right tools and skills to become successful future leaders of Sucre and Venezuela.


City Mayors: Sucre consists of some middle-class areas but also Petare, which includes Venezuela’s largest slum area. Do you find it difficult as a mayor to reconcile and serve the interests of both affluent and poor citizens?

Mayor Ocariz: Venezuela suffers from a democratic crisis. Public institutions lack autonomy, affecting the natural dynamics of the various levels of government.

In Sucre, we have developed a model that has proven we can reconcile citizens who think differently. Our secret is that we seek to permanently break the polarization and work for everyone regardless of their origin or political stripes. We seek to be righteous in the implementation of the budget so that everyone has the same opportunities.

We handle a tool called participatory budgeting, where we divide the municipality into 42 sectors and assign a budget to each sector, relative to their proportion and level of poverty. The neighbours of each of these sectors decide and run the budget, and are accountable to the state. The budget seeks to create participatory citizenship and allows for the treatment of problems to be the same in middle class and in popular sectors.

Local politics is the real type of politics, which is why we have tried to generate the appropriate channels to depolarize our society, and together find solutions to the problems of each of the areas.


City Mayors: In a recent essay, your former colleague Daniel Lansberg-Rodriguez estimated that nearly three-quarters of Sucre’s population fall into the lowest two economic classifications, the poor and the very poor. What does your administration do or can do to improve living and economic conditions in poorest areas of your city?

Mayor Ocariz: One way or another, local policies are affected by national policies. From our office, we have worked to formalize the informal, providing tools and opportunities for low-income people to improve their quality of life.

A country develops to the extent that it has strong private enterprises that generate jobs and wealth. However, there must be certain conditions, especially a climate of trust. Our country lacks the confidence to attract new investors, there are no legal institutions, and the legal rights of private property are often violated.

We formed a Triumvirate joined by the community, the municipality and private enterprise. In the latter, we believe faithfully, and generate mechanisms to strengthen it. Thus, we have promoted job fairs, creating spaces that encourage employment and formalization of merchants. To date, we have conducted 11 job fairs in Sucre where that have allowed over 45,000 people to approach, evaluate options and get jobs. Initiatives such as this one do not cost the state anything, but they serve as a bridge to help people get a job.

We are also promoting the regularization of land tenure. Most of Sucre’s residents have lived for decades in areas they do not own. We are seeking to achieve social justice by allowing people to have access to property. We estimate to be able to deliver more than 7000 titles this year.

Finally, we have improved public services at the grassroots level, building many sports, recreational spaces, increasing the quality of education and health services, in order to generate citizenship. 





City Mayors: People living in slum areas like Petare rely heavily on the informal economy, including street peddling, to make ends meet. In many large Asian and South American cities stationary peddlers – or buhoneros as they are called in Venezuela – operate to their own rules, with mayors finding it difficult to control their activities. How have you dealt with the problem?

Mayor Ocariz: The situation of informal workers in Sucre and throughout Venezuela is a result of the situation facing the country as a whole. The economic crisis the country is impacting Venezuelans of all social classes forcing many of our citizens to take to the informal economy as a way to make ends meet. In Sucre, we have a particular area where the informal merchants are highly concentrated. The so called – Redoma de Petare – is a highly congested area through which a million people cross every single day. Approximately 2,000 informal merchants gather daily in that area.

To address this issue, we have been working diligently to take merchants from the informal sector into the formal economy. We have done this by organizing, learning their needs, and offering them the tools necessary to formalize their businesses, including training in entrepreneurial skills. So far 2,000 of these merchants have been given this training.

At the same time, we have created formal market areas where these informal merchants can sell their goods. We built a market that provides a safe and clean space for informal merchants to sell their goods. In this way, we have started the process of taking merchants out of the streets, thus opening spaces around the busy Redoma area. This process to help informal merchants move into the formal economy has been a difficult and complex one. But we are proud to have opened channels of dialogue and to have addressed the issue through peaceful means – something that has not been the case in previous administrations.


City Mayors: The political landscape in Venezuela has long been dominated by the ruling United Socialist Party. Have you, as an opposition mayor, established a working relationship with the government?

Mayor Ocariz: As mayor, my duty is to solve the problems of our city in every entity within the Venezuelan government, whether local, regional or national regardless of my ideological posture. That is why we have made important coordination efforts with all levels of government. In some cases, coordination has been possible. In others, it has been an uphill battle. In one particular issue where some cooperation has been possible is in the security front. Some of the successes achieved on the security front have been due to coordination with other government entities.

It has been difficult, however, because while we firmly believe in working with everyone to achieve progress regardless of political ideology, we often confront obstacles placed by the central government in coordinating actions and improve results for our citizens.


City Mayors: More than 70 percent of Venezuelan mayors belong to the ruling United Socialist Party. Only 15 out of 337 mayors are members of your own Justice First party. How well do you work together with your colleagues from the ruling party and other opposition parties?

Mayor Ocariz: In December 2013, Venezuela held municipal elections across the country. While the ruling national party won most of the mayoral races, the opposition candidates were victorious in the most important cities of the country. The population of these large cities is where most Venezuelan’s live. Therefore, we can say that across the country there is a plurality of political parties represented in local governments.

Just like we have made an effort to achieve greater coordination with the central government, we have done the same with the different city halls across the national, regardless of how they lean politically. What we have strived to do while in office, that of removing politics from the administration of the city, we have done when dealing with other mayors. Sometimes it’s complicated but we have permanently sought to lower the political divisions in the country because we firmly believe it’s the best way to achieve progress for all Venezuelans.


City Mayors: In March this year, you and other mayors founded the Association of Mayors for Venezuela. But it has only 70 members who are presumingly all members of opposition parties. Will the new Association be in any position to influence government policy?

Mayor Ocariz: The Venezuela Mayors Association was born out of a need to join efforts and fight for the democratic principles that its elected officials share and the defense of our citizens. Venezuela’s political institutions are weaker as every day passes and the central government actively seeks to concentrate more power in itself.

The association we have created is composed of 76 Venezuelan mayors, representing diverse political parties and independents. Together, we work toward protecting the independence of local governments, their autonomy and rights. In Venezuela, we experience arbitrary detentions such as the one’s suffered six months ago by two of our fellow mayors – Enzo Scarano and Daniel Ceballos. These two colleagues remain in detention as political prisoners of the government. Through these arbitrary actions, the national government aims to plant fear among those who oppose it. Mayors Scarano and Ceballos were democratically elected on December 8, and without the appropriate due process as required by law, they remain detained as political prisoners. Their judicial trial is being conducted without any semblance of transparency typically found in any democratic society.

These two mayors, however, are not the only political prisoners at the hands of our national governments. There are dozens of cases of political leaders, students, former military officials and many others who have been forced to leave the country, and who have been subjected to arbitrary detentions and threats.

The Association of Mayors has also spoken out forcefully with respect to the budget crisis faced by many cities across Venezuela. This crisis is a result of the central government’s unwillingness to disburse funds to city governments. We believe that by joining forces, we can raise awareness more effectively about these issues. 


City Mayors: What are your priorities for your second term in office?

Mayor Ocariz: We have four clear priorities for our second term. First, is to build on the progress we have achieved in reducing violent crime in our city, by further reducing the homicide rate by 50 percent. We are convinced we can reach this goal by bolstering the successful strategy we have followed thus far.

Secondly, we want Sucre to have the most efficient solid waste collection system in the country. As a result, we have initiated a complex process to revamp our trash collecting system. This effort has been challenging in no small part because of the political obstacles raised by the central government against our efforts in this area. Despite challenges, we are making significant progress and are sure Sucre will be the cleanest city in all of Venezuela very soon.

Thirdly, we are about to undertake an ambitious effort to formalize land ownership for many of our citizens by granting them official deeds to their homes. We want thousands of Venezuelan families to own the homes in which they live. City Hall has been providing legal advice and support to make land ownership a reality for many of Sucre’s families. This is one area in which we do have a sharp ideological difference with the national government. We support private ownership and property as a way to create and foster wealth and progress.

Last, we will continue to develop and strengthen the participatory budget progress which has served our communities so well since being implemented.

City Mayors: Daniel Lansberg-Rodriguez described your re-election in 2013 and the support you received from middle class voters as well as from residents in the slum areas of Petare as proof that there is an alternative political model to the one provided by Venezuela’s ruling United Socialist Party. Has your re-election made a move into national politics more likely?

Mayor Ocariz: In five years we have shown clear, tangible and positive results thanks to a profound commitment to improve Sucre. We have also sought to share our experience – both positive and negative – with our fellow mayors, because at the end of the day, Venezuela will be a better country if our cities are better places to live. In the last electoral campaign, in December 2013, opposition candidates running for mayor won in 76 cities across the country. Some of the proposals advanced by opposition candidates involved emulating some of the initiatives implemented in Sucre such as how we have been able to increase revenues by making the cities tax offices closer to our communities. We have also successfully implemented digital and social media channels to improve communications and access to our residents, something that others have also sought to copy.

The quality of our service for Sucre’s residents is not tied to any political ideology. We work equally for everyone without political distinction. The central philosophy at the heart of our success is seeking to end the political polarization in our society. The best way to do that is simply by showing results. We want Sucre to be a model of excellence, results and reconciliation.

City Mayors: New York City’s most famous mayor, Fiorello La Guardia, once said: “A Mayor who cannot look fifty or seventy years ahead is not worthy of being in City Hall.” How do you see the future of Sucre?

Mayor Ocariz: I share Mayor La Guardia’s opinion.

When I started my political career many years ago, I remember a United Nations report, which affirmed Sucre was the most dangerous city in the world. It stated that of all the cities in the world, Sucre was the one where a person had the highest probability of being murdered. When I sought to become mayor and changing the difficult situation of our city, many people did not believe change was even a possibility. We have proven wrong, as evidenced by the decrease in homicide rates and other violent crime. Today, we are the municipality that most has improved in reducing violent crime. We still have much to do in this area, but our success shows that change is indeed, possible. That is why we have no doubt that in 50 or more years down the road, our municipality will be one characterized as peaceful and bursting with progress.

Sucre will be a place where the private sector is stronger, with more jobs being generated and where our citizens will not have to turn to the informal economy to make ends meet. We envision a cleaner city with more green spaces, and recreational and sporting venues. All of our citizens will be able to walk during the day and night without fear of being a victim of crime and our street, the city will be clean and our residents will be able to proudly hold title to their home.

Sucre has always been a reflection of Venezuela. Therefore, Sucre’s brighter future I foresee will be shared by a more prosperous Venezuela.