Geraldine’s Lament: Gift of Home No Cure for Venezuela Shortages

Geraldine is tired of hearing that she should be grateful for the apartment the Venezuelan government gave her last year. With the elevator out of action, water leaking through the ceiling and no gas supplies, she wishes she had never moved in. The 31-year-old mother of two said she was given keys, but not ownership papers, for the apartment in Caracas after spending three years in a government shelter for those left homeless by torrential rains in 2010. She now spends much of her day lining up for the few subsidized goods left in the shops, before climbing the eight floors to her flat and cooking on a small electric stove. More…