Continuing student-led, anti-government protests are causing great disruption in the country which is severely affecting transport and, therefore, services provided by moving companies and others.

The protests are by local people who erect road barricades that they call ‘guarimbas’.  These have been a feature of the of the disruption since it started early in February but, at then they were little more than temporary piles of rubbish that would be set alight at night or could easily be removed by the security forces. As the dispute has continued, however, these blockades have taken on a more permanent style made out of bricks, timber and barbed wire.

The blockades are affecting people’s ability to get to work and moving companies’ ability to get to their customers.  The problem has been ongoing for six weeks and shows no sign of improving. Any mover with shipments on route to Venezuela should advise their clients that their goods could be delayed.

The protestors have adopted these guerrilla-style tactics to draw attention to the crime rate in Venezuela which, they claim, is the highest in Latin America; and the high inflation rate which has been growing rapidly since the start of 2013 and is now close to 60%.