VENEZUELA, FLAG OF

horizontally striped yellow-blue-red national flag with an arc of seven white stars in the centre. When displayed by the government, the flag incorporates the national coat of arms in its upper hoist corner. The flag's width-to-length ratio is 2 to 3. In 1797 Manuel Gual and Jos Mara Espaa, plotting to overthrow Spanish rule in what is now Venezuela, proposed a complex flag with the colours white, yellow, blue, and red. In 1801 the revolutionary leader Francisco de Miranda chose red, yellow, and blue for his flag, although five years later he favoured black, red, and yellow. Various arrangements of the colours later appeared, as did different explanations for their symbolism. Miranda was unsuccessful in liberating Venezuela, but Venezuelans honour him as the creator of their national flag. When independence was proclaimed on July 5, 1811, the flag had unequal yellow-blue-red stripes and a white canton showing a complex emblem. Variations of that design were used during the continuing war with Spain. On October 6, 1821, the tricolour was adopted by Gran Colombia, a nation that was later subdivided into Venezuela, Colombia (including Panama), and Ecuador. Throughout the 19th century there were variations in the number of stars (a symbol introduced in 1817) and in the national coat of arms. In part this reflected struggles between those favouring a centralist or a federalist form of government. The current Venezuelan flag was determined by law on March 28, 1864. Its arc of seven stars represents the original seven provinces. The coat of arms, used by government and military authorities, features a wheat sheaf; a white horse; a panoply of swords, spears, and flags; two cornucopias; and branches of laurel and palm tied with a ribbon. Whitney Smith Government and social conditions Government The Venezuelan constitution prescribes a government based on republican, democratic, and federalist principles. It is divided into executive, legislative, and judicial branches, none of which may prevail over the others. The 1961 constitution provides for popular elections of the bicameral congress and of the president, to be held at five-year intervals. The Congress consists of a Senate and a Chamber of Deputies. The Senate is made up of two senators from each state and the Federal District; a few additional senators are elected on the basis of minority representation, and former presidents are awarded lifetime seats in the chamber. The number of deputies for each state and the two federal territories is based on proportional representation. Numerous offshore islands under Venezuelan control are federal dependencies. Executive power is exercised by a directly elected president, who is head of state and of the armed forces. He may not serve consecutive terms. The elections are contested by political parties, whose existence is guaranteed by the constitution; two major parties have dominated Venezuelan politics: Democratic Action (Accin Democrtica; AD) and the Social Christian Party (Partido Social Cristiano; COPEI). Each state and federal territory is headed by a governor who is appointed by the president. State legislative assemblies are unicameral bodies composed of two elected representatives from each of the state's countylike districts. Regarding the day-to-day administration of local affairs, authority is vested in the municipal councils, which function in the capital of each administrative district. In a move to decentralize national authority, the municipal councils have been awarded considerable autonomy over revenue distribution to their districts although they are not empowered to raise revenue locally. Venezuelans generally enjoy a high degree of individual liberty. Civil and human rights are protected by a strong and independent judiciary. National in character, the judicial structure has no autonomous state courts. At the highest court level is the Supreme Court of Justice, an independent body, which adjudicates civil, criminal, and political cases. Its members are elected by Congress. A judiciary committee appoints members of the lower courts. Protests have grown over the lack of equal civil and human rights protection for the nation's Indian population. Education, health, and welfare Modernization and the integration of the country's urban network in the 20th century has brought considerable improvement in the provision of education and of health and welfare services and in governmental support for training and technical skill acquisition, particularly in the major cities.