Venezuela

Law Enforcement and Crime
Parliamentary elections were held on December 6, 2015 to elect the representatives of the National Assembly, the fourth elections since the 1999 constitution. The political landscape leading up to the elections was heavily influenced by the severe economic crisis faced by the country, as well as a series of protests that took place in 2014, after which former Chacao mayor was detained and sentenced to 14 years in prison. The crackdown on political opponents induced sanctions from the United States in an effort to stop Maduro's government from trying to undermine a meaningful political transition in Venezuela. The result of the election was a decisive defeat for the PSUV Socialists, which lost control for the first time since 1999. The opposition came to power with two-thirds of the vote, and chose Henry Ramos to lead the new National Assembly on January 3, 2016, despite attempts from Maduro's administration to interfere. For example, the following day, using the special powers granted to him by decree, Maduro eliminated the Assembly's control over nomination and removal of bank directors through a legal reform.

Economy
Hugo Chavez created a state-led economic model that decayed throughout the 2010's. In the second half of 2014, Venezeula's petroleum export price plunged as the nation suffered an economic slowdown, the highest inflation in the Americas and shortages of many basic products. President Nicolas Maduro, who took office in April 2013 after the death of Chavez, described the chronic product shortages as the product of an "economic war" led by opposition leaders and private companies. Production lines were halted due to delays in the country's currency system that left it unable to import the necessary raw materials. Maduro routinely accused Empresas Polar, the largest food and beverage producer in the country, of slowing production or hoarding goods to spur product shortages in the struggling economy. In response, several employees of Pepsi-Cola Venezuela were detained in an "arbitrary" manner after halting operations at one plant for lack of raw materials on December 19, 2015