Bolivar of Broken Dreams

Urena, Venezuela—soldiers prevent Venezuelans from crossing into Colombia on December 18. The country is in the grips of a catastrophic economic crisis: Inflation is rampant, cash is scarce and many are struggling to pay for food. Days earlier, the government pulled 100-bolivar notes, its largest bills, from circulation and closed the border to stop “mafias” allegedly smuggling cash out of the country. The result: riots and a rush to the border. Soldiers used tear gas on looters in Maracaibo, Venezuela’s secondlargest city, and some protesters lit 100bolivar notes on fire.