U.S. HANDS OFF VENEZUELA! Statement from Socialist Organizer, 2014-03-30 [http://socialistorganizer.org/u-s-hands-off-venezuela-statement-from-socialist-organizer]:
Washington is up to its dirty tricks again in Venezuela.
It began February 18, 2014, in Toluca, Mexico, at a Trinational North American Leaders Summit focused on promoting the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP), a “free trade” pact that would seriously hurt working people in all countries concerned. At that gathering, President Obama stated cynically that, “instead of trying to distract attention from their own failures by making false accusations against U.S. diplomats, the Venezuelan government should focus on addressing the legitimate grievances of its own people.”
Obama’s statement followed the expulsion of three U.S. embassy officials from Caracas and was immediately understood across the continent for what it was — support for “regime change” in Venezuela. Obama’s formulations were almost identical to ones used by the central leaders of the opposition in Venezuela who had decided — with U.S. funding and political backing — to take to the streets and commit acts of violence and vandalism aimed at destabilizing the government of President Nicolás Maduro.
U.S. government funding for the opposition in Venezuela is, in fact, public knowledge. According to Mark Weisbrot (The Guardian, February 18), “There’s been $90 million in the U.S. federal budget since 2000 for funding opposition activities inside Venezuela, with $5 million alone in the 2014 budget. And this is almost certainly the tip of the iceberg, adding to the hundreds of millions of dollars of covert support over the past 15 years.”
Washington’s railings against Venezuela became much harsher one month later. On March 27, speaking at a press conference for the Latin American media, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs Roberta Jacobson made the most threatening declaration to date by a top administration official, stating that as far as Washington is concerned “all options are on the table if the Venezuelan government fails to make democratic room for the opposition.”
Jacobson stated that the Obama administration is strongly considering imposing sanctions against Venezuela “if there is no dialogue in Venezuela, if there is no democratic room for the opposition.” (El Universal, Mexico, March 28)
This argument is totally bogus; it is but a thinly veiled cover for stepped-up intervention in the internal affairs of the Venezuelan people, a further violation of their right to self-determination.
On February 16, the Mercosur governments (Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Venezuela) released a statement on “the recent violent acts” in Venezuela and derided the “attempts [by the opposition] to destabilize the democratic order.” The governments stated “their firm commitment to the full observance of democratic institutions and, in this context, reject[ed] the criminal actions of violent groups that want to spread intolerance and hatred in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela as a political tool.”
On February 28, President Maduro convened a National Peace Conference in an attempt to defuse the highly charged political situation, but the gathering was boycotted by the U.S.-funded Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD). These forces have acknowledged publicly that they are incapable of winning elections in the framework of the Venezuelan Constitution, so they must resort to other, extra-legal means — that is, provoking chaos through street violence and blockades (in which 36 people have already been killed) — to achieve their objectives.
Even the Organization of American States (OAS), which is dominated by the United States and has traditionally backed all U.S.-funded coup d’etats and assassination attempts of foreign leaders, rejected a proposal on March 7 by the U.S. representative to assemble a “Commission of Inquiry” to investigate the “failure by the [Maduro] government to create a democratic space for the opposition in Venezuela.” The United States had only two supporters for its motion: Canada and Panama.
And on March 24 a Commission of UNASUR (Union of Nations of South America), in which the U.S. has no seat, arrived in Venezuela to facilitate a “dialogue” between the government and the opposition. The delegation met with the coalition of opposition parties.
Never mind that Washington is more and more isolated in the Americas over its policy in Venezuela. The Obama administration — which has never even officially recognized the April 2013 election of President Nicolás Maduro — is readying to charge ahead with sanctions, if not more.
On March 13, U.S. General John Kelly, the highest authority of the Southern Command of the U.S. Armed Forces testified before the War Affairs Committee of the Senate in Washington about the crisis in Venezuela.
Kelly gave a detailed account of how the Venezuelan army and police have reacted to the two-month violence provoked by the right-wing opposition. He then went on to suggest that “probably there are pressures, arguments and disagreements within the armed forces of Venezuela on the state of the country.”
Much of the Latin American press took note at the time of the fact that it was a general in the U.S. Marine Corps, not a civilian specialist or a diplomat, who was brought in to testify before the Senate committee. Many in the media went on to warn that this scenario was ominously reminiscent of the period leading up to the April 2002 (failed) coup — organized and financed by the U.S. government — against then-President Hugo Chávez.
And sure enough, on March 25 President Nicolás Maduro announced that three Venezuelan Air Force generals had been arrested on charges of plotting a military coup. Maduro stated that the generals had been the subjects of an investigation after junior Air Force officers who had been asked to join in the conspiracy alerted the government.
The Spanish daily El País, which openly supported the coup against Chávez on April 11, 2002, wrote the following in an editorial dated March 28: “The feeling of instability felt across the country is so great that no one can discard an action of this type [referring to a coup d'etat].”
Working people in the United States have no interest in backing Washington’s intervention and threats against the democratically elected government of Venezuela.
Workers in Venezuela have made important gains in the unfolding revolutionary process — gains that are unacceptable to the banksters in Wall Street and their hired hands in Washington. A recent Manifesto Against the Pro-Imperialist Coup Plot issued by two dozen unions in the Venezuelan region of Maracaibo summarizes these gains as follows: national health care and Social Security for all, decent guaranteed pensions for all, strict labor laws to protect workers, and, most important, State control/ownership over the nation’s resources such as petroleum, iron, aluminum, electricity, and more.
This is what’s involved: It’s an attempt by the corporate elite in this country and their lackeys in Venezuela to turn back the clock and undo all the gains made by the workers and people of Venezuela through bitter struggles, which includes their valiant defeat of a previous U.S.-funded attempted coup against Hugo Chávez.
The Manifesto of the trade unions in Maracaibo underscores the fact that a central reason for the economic crisis in Venezuela’s — aside from the disruption and sabotage by sectors of the Venezuelan ruling class — is the country’s continued subordination to international finance capital. Because Venezuela is still paying back the foreign debt to the international bankers, there are few remaining dollars in the state coffers to import needed goods or to repay national companies.
The unions signing the Manifesto “call upon compañero Nicolás Maduro to go beyond the expulsion of U.S. ambassadors and functionaries involved in these provocations [and] break with imperialism by not repaying the foreign debt in order to address a platform of demands that express the nation’s defense. The income from the nation’s oil production belongs to the people, not the capitalists.”
This task, of course, is the task of the Venezuelan workers and people themselves.
For our part, the best help that we who live in the belly of the beast can offer the embattled workers and people of Venezuela is to stay the hand of our own imperialist government. This is why we here in the United States must raise our voices loud and clear — in whatever manner is most appropriate, including mass protests in the streets — to demand:
- U.S. Hands Off Venezuela!
- Obama: Recognize the Democratically Elected Government of Nicolás Maduro!
Sunday, March 30, 2014
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
"Venezuela: When Some of the Most Important News Comes in the Form of Corrections"
2014-03-26 by Mark Weisbrot for the "Center for Economic and Policy Research" [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/the-americas-blog/venezuela-when-some-of-the-most-important-news-comes-in-the-form-of-corrections]:
It says something about overall media coverage of a subject when some of the most important news appears in the form of corrections. On February 26, the New York Times corrected a false statement in a news report that had incorrectly referred to Globovision as “[t]he only television station that regularly broadcast voices critical of the government” [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/the-americas-blog/new-york-times-corrects-false-statement-on-venezuela]. This was false, and it was easy to show that other major television stations regularly broadcast opposition views [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/the-americas-blog/does-venezuelan-television-provide-coverage-that-opposes-the-government].
Today the Times corrected an even more important false statement that appeared in an op-ed by jailed Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo López [http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/26/opinion/venezuelas-failing-state.html?hp&rref=opinion]. López had written that “more than 30” protesters had been killed in Venezuela in the recent protests. In fact the “more than 30” number cited by López includes all protest-related deaths, a fraction of whom appear to be protesters [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/the-americas-blog/venezuela-who-are-they-and-how-did-they-die-new]. Although it has not been mentioned in major media coverage, a compilation of press reports indicates that the protesters themselves – not security forces – are responsible for about half of the deaths [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/the-americas-blog/venezuela-who-are-they-and-how-did-they-die-new]. These include six national guardsmen who were shot, five additional people apparently shot while trying to remove barriers erected by protesters, and seven people who were killed apparently from crashing into protesters’ barriers (including two motorcyclists beheaded by wire strung across the road).
This correction is extremely important because most people who see the daily death toll from protests in Venezuela understandably assume that these are people killed by state agents [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/the-americas-blog/should-the-media-report-on-who-is-killing-whom-in-venezuela-when-death-tolls-are-reported]. Although the reporters are not intending to mislead, we can see the effect of this reporting in that López himself, and whoever edited, placed, or provided other assistance with the op-ed for him also were very much mistaken. The net result of this widespread false impression is to greatly strengthen the opposition strategy, supported by many politicians and pundits in the U.S., to portray Venezuela as a violent, repressive, and illegitimate government.
Although it is impossible to give a completely accurate accounting of who has been killed by whom in the six weeks of protests, the fact that only a small fraction of the fatalities were caused by security forces, and about half by the protesters themselves, should make people think about whether this is really a story about a “violent” government trying to repress “peaceful” protesters. The Attorney General has also stated that there are 60 investigations of human rights abuses by security forces and that at least 15 have been jailed [http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/03/23/uk-venezuela-protests-idUKBREA2M0IZ20140323].
The prior error and correction about the news media in Venezuela was significant in the same way, as I have detailed elsewhere [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/the-americas-blog/new-york-times-corrects-false-statement-on-venezuela]. In general, op-eds are given more leeway with respect to facts than news reports, so it is good that the Times recognized this as a significant factual error and promptly corrected it.
The New York Times' Public Editor Margaret Sullivan, who has shown a great deal of independence and integrity in reviewing the content of the paper, yesterday looked at the question, “Does The Times Take Sides in Venezuela Reporting?” [http://publiceditor.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/03/25/does-the-times-take-sides-in-venezuela-reporting/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0]. I don’t have the time or space here to review the Times’ reporting on Venezuela over the past 15 years, but there is one complaint that she seems to agree with: [begin excerpt] Another reader, Paul Karlin, complains that The Times’s news and opinion coverage is “remarkably biased” against the Maduro government. He has sent me a number of examples of perspectives – critical of the American approach to Venezuela – that he finds lacking on the Times Op-Ed pages; it’s a reasonable point. [end excerpt]
It sure is. In the 15 years since Hugo Chávez was elected president of Venezuela, the New York Times has offered many op-eds from an opposition viewpoint on Venezuela, including 3 in just the last month. But only after Chávez died last year did the Times’ print edition offer its first, and to date, only op-ed on Venezuela from another perspective, by Brazilian ex-president Lula Da Silva [http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/07/opinion/latin-america-after-chavez.html]. This contrasts with almost every medium-sized to large newspaper in the United States – e.g. the LA Times, Boston Globe, Miami Herald, and Washington Post, and scores of other mainstream and even right-wing city newspapers, which all published at least one op-ed offering another side of the story during the Chávez years.
It says something about overall media coverage of a subject when some of the most important news appears in the form of corrections. On February 26, the New York Times corrected a false statement in a news report that had incorrectly referred to Globovision as “[t]he only television station that regularly broadcast voices critical of the government” [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/the-americas-blog/new-york-times-corrects-false-statement-on-venezuela]. This was false, and it was easy to show that other major television stations regularly broadcast opposition views [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/the-americas-blog/does-venezuelan-television-provide-coverage-that-opposes-the-government].
Today the Times corrected an even more important false statement that appeared in an op-ed by jailed Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo López [http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/26/opinion/venezuelas-failing-state.html?hp&rref=opinion]. López had written that “more than 30” protesters had been killed in Venezuela in the recent protests. In fact the “more than 30” number cited by López includes all protest-related deaths, a fraction of whom appear to be protesters [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/the-americas-blog/venezuela-who-are-they-and-how-did-they-die-new]. Although it has not been mentioned in major media coverage, a compilation of press reports indicates that the protesters themselves – not security forces – are responsible for about half of the deaths [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/the-americas-blog/venezuela-who-are-they-and-how-did-they-die-new]. These include six national guardsmen who were shot, five additional people apparently shot while trying to remove barriers erected by protesters, and seven people who were killed apparently from crashing into protesters’ barriers (including two motorcyclists beheaded by wire strung across the road).
This correction is extremely important because most people who see the daily death toll from protests in Venezuela understandably assume that these are people killed by state agents [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/the-americas-blog/should-the-media-report-on-who-is-killing-whom-in-venezuela-when-death-tolls-are-reported]. Although the reporters are not intending to mislead, we can see the effect of this reporting in that López himself, and whoever edited, placed, or provided other assistance with the op-ed for him also were very much mistaken. The net result of this widespread false impression is to greatly strengthen the opposition strategy, supported by many politicians and pundits in the U.S., to portray Venezuela as a violent, repressive, and illegitimate government.
Although it is impossible to give a completely accurate accounting of who has been killed by whom in the six weeks of protests, the fact that only a small fraction of the fatalities were caused by security forces, and about half by the protesters themselves, should make people think about whether this is really a story about a “violent” government trying to repress “peaceful” protesters. The Attorney General has also stated that there are 60 investigations of human rights abuses by security forces and that at least 15 have been jailed [http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/03/23/uk-venezuela-protests-idUKBREA2M0IZ20140323].
The prior error and correction about the news media in Venezuela was significant in the same way, as I have detailed elsewhere [http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/the-americas-blog/new-york-times-corrects-false-statement-on-venezuela]. In general, op-eds are given more leeway with respect to facts than news reports, so it is good that the Times recognized this as a significant factual error and promptly corrected it.
The New York Times' Public Editor Margaret Sullivan, who has shown a great deal of independence and integrity in reviewing the content of the paper, yesterday looked at the question, “Does The Times Take Sides in Venezuela Reporting?” [http://publiceditor.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/03/25/does-the-times-take-sides-in-venezuela-reporting/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0]. I don’t have the time or space here to review the Times’ reporting on Venezuela over the past 15 years, but there is one complaint that she seems to agree with: [begin excerpt] Another reader, Paul Karlin, complains that The Times’s news and opinion coverage is “remarkably biased” against the Maduro government. He has sent me a number of examples of perspectives – critical of the American approach to Venezuela – that he finds lacking on the Times Op-Ed pages; it’s a reasonable point. [end excerpt]
It sure is. In the 15 years since Hugo Chávez was elected president of Venezuela, the New York Times has offered many op-eds from an opposition viewpoint on Venezuela, including 3 in just the last month. But only after Chávez died last year did the Times’ print edition offer its first, and to date, only op-ed on Venezuela from another perspective, by Brazilian ex-president Lula Da Silva [http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/07/opinion/latin-america-after-chavez.html]. This contrasts with almost every medium-sized to large newspaper in the United States – e.g. the LA Times, Boston Globe, Miami Herald, and Washington Post, and scores of other mainstream and even right-wing city newspapers, which all published at least one op-ed offering another side of the story during the Chávez years.
Monday, March 24, 2014
"VENEZUELA: The Obama Administration Foments Destabilization"
2014-03-24 by Sumara Ribeiro from "ILC":
Nicolas Maduro, legitimately elected president of Venezuela as per its Constitution, was elected in April 2013, we should recall, with a slight majority of votes. Until this day, the election's result have not been ecognized by the U.S. government, which has never shelved its coup-plotting strategy.
In an interview with the newspaper O Estado de São Paulo, Venezuelan Congresswoman Corina Machado, a representative of the bourgeois elite (which, until the election of Hugo Chávez, concentrated in its hands the largest share of oil revenue, while the people lived in abject poverty), acknowledged that the Venezuelan Constitution makes available countless legal opportunities for the "opposition" forces to replace the current government.
But Machado goes on to admit that by such legal means, the "opposition" will never succeed. And given that Maduro will not go away spontaneously, the "opposition" has decided to overthrow the government through actions "in the streets," she explains. By what methods? Promoting disorder and violent provocations (all of which are praised to the skies by O Estado de São Paulo). In fact, at this writing, the violent actions have already killed 28 people -- be they supporters of the right wing, or Chavista activists, or government representatives.
Maduro called for dialogue and a peace conference, but these were boycotted by the "opposition."
With the solid backing of imperialism -- and of all imperialism's spokespersons on the continent -- the Venezuelan "opposition" is not pulling back; in fact, they are doing doing everything to exploit the difficult economic situation facing the country.
Defend the majority of the people and the nation -
The fact is that Venezuela has been struggling for months in a state of economic chaos due to the shortage of basic staple foods and supplies and high inflation (56% in 2013). Precarious work affects nearly 50 % of the economically active population, and youth are the most affected sector.
The economy is based 80% on the exploitation of oil, but Venezuela is witnessing a continuous decline in its oil production, which has caused a sharp decrease in the inflow of dollars. Faced with this situation, the Maduro government (Chávez's successor at the head of the Venezuelan State) felt obliged to devalue the bolivar -- the national currency.
Despite the fact that its financial resources have been weakened, the Venezuelan government has preferred to give priority to paying back the debt to the international bankers, rather than increase domestic spending, thus exacerbating the shortage.
The Wall Street Journal (February 14) reports that, "Venezuela has paid back the foreign bondholders religiously. At the same time, however, the government owes US$50 billion to private companies that provide services to the Venezuelan economy." This report was confirmed by the Venezuela's Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez, who said: "The country has always kept and will always keep all of its commitments to paying back the foreign debt." (Financial Times, February 25)
On various occasions in the past, the Chávez government has had to take significant measures to defend the Venezuelan nation against imperialism -- all of which were supported by the masses.
The gravity of the situation today requires that the Venezuelan government take further steps in this direction; otherwise it will be faced with a serious risk of destabilization of the country.
Current events in Venezuela, but also in the whole region, show once again that the nations of Latin America cannot guarantee their sovereignty, freedom, and democracy -- all wrested through bitter struggles against dictatorships that the U.S. government imposed on the continent over many decades -- without standing up to imperialism and breaking the links which subordinate their economies to international financial capital. If the Venezuelan government were to take such a course, it would be sure to have massive popular support.
What is at stake in the unfolding situation today is the sovereignty of the Venezuelan people; it is their right to decide their own destiny.
Any organization defending the interests of workers and peoples, sovereignty, and democracy must provide unconditional support to the workers, peasants and youth of Venezuela and their legitimately elected government against any and all forms of foreign intervention/destabilization and against any new attempted coup.
Nicolas Maduro, legitimately elected president of Venezuela as per its Constitution, was elected in April 2013, we should recall, with a slight majority of votes. Until this day, the election's result have not been ecognized by the U.S. government, which has never shelved its coup-plotting strategy.
In an interview with the newspaper O Estado de São Paulo, Venezuelan Congresswoman Corina Machado, a representative of the bourgeois elite (which, until the election of Hugo Chávez, concentrated in its hands the largest share of oil revenue, while the people lived in abject poverty), acknowledged that the Venezuelan Constitution makes available countless legal opportunities for the "opposition" forces to replace the current government.
But Machado goes on to admit that by such legal means, the "opposition" will never succeed. And given that Maduro will not go away spontaneously, the "opposition" has decided to overthrow the government through actions "in the streets," she explains. By what methods? Promoting disorder and violent provocations (all of which are praised to the skies by O Estado de São Paulo). In fact, at this writing, the violent actions have already killed 28 people -- be they supporters of the right wing, or Chavista activists, or government representatives.
Maduro called for dialogue and a peace conference, but these were boycotted by the "opposition."
With the solid backing of imperialism -- and of all imperialism's spokespersons on the continent -- the Venezuelan "opposition" is not pulling back; in fact, they are doing doing everything to exploit the difficult economic situation facing the country.
Defend the majority of the people and the nation -
The fact is that Venezuela has been struggling for months in a state of economic chaos due to the shortage of basic staple foods and supplies and high inflation (56% in 2013). Precarious work affects nearly 50 % of the economically active population, and youth are the most affected sector.
The economy is based 80% on the exploitation of oil, but Venezuela is witnessing a continuous decline in its oil production, which has caused a sharp decrease in the inflow of dollars. Faced with this situation, the Maduro government (Chávez's successor at the head of the Venezuelan State) felt obliged to devalue the bolivar -- the national currency.
Despite the fact that its financial resources have been weakened, the Venezuelan government has preferred to give priority to paying back the debt to the international bankers, rather than increase domestic spending, thus exacerbating the shortage.
The Wall Street Journal (February 14) reports that, "Venezuela has paid back the foreign bondholders religiously. At the same time, however, the government owes US$50 billion to private companies that provide services to the Venezuelan economy." This report was confirmed by the Venezuela's Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez, who said: "The country has always kept and will always keep all of its commitments to paying back the foreign debt." (Financial Times, February 25)
On various occasions in the past, the Chávez government has had to take significant measures to defend the Venezuelan nation against imperialism -- all of which were supported by the masses.
The gravity of the situation today requires that the Venezuelan government take further steps in this direction; otherwise it will be faced with a serious risk of destabilization of the country.
Current events in Venezuela, but also in the whole region, show once again that the nations of Latin America cannot guarantee their sovereignty, freedom, and democracy -- all wrested through bitter struggles against dictatorships that the U.S. government imposed on the continent over many decades -- without standing up to imperialism and breaking the links which subordinate their economies to international financial capital. If the Venezuelan government were to take such a course, it would be sure to have massive popular support.
What is at stake in the unfolding situation today is the sovereignty of the Venezuelan people; it is their right to decide their own destiny.
Any organization defending the interests of workers and peoples, sovereignty, and democracy must provide unconditional support to the workers, peasants and youth of Venezuela and their legitimately elected government against any and all forms of foreign intervention/destabilization and against any new attempted coup.
Thursday, March 13, 2014
Stand against unjust & unsound economic warfare against Bolivarian Venezuela
"2 New bills in Congress: Sanctions against Venezuela"
2014-03-13 message from Alliance for Global Justice:
As we feared, advocates of "regime change" in Venezuela, buoyed by the nearly unanimous passage of anti-Venezuela resolutions in both houses of Congress, are now pushing for bills that would require sanctions to be placed against the democratically elected government of President Nicolas Maduro. This is an extremely dangerous situation that could quickly escalate. Supporters of peaceful relations between our two countries are starting from a deficit position to confront the lies and disinformation that have created a false perception about the Venezuelan reality. The progressive press, by its inattention to the advances that the Bolivarian Process has gained for the poor majority in Venezuela, is equally responsible for the current dangerous situation. Below are links to two alerts issued by the Alliance for Global Justice in recent days and a link to a Huffington Post article by Dan Kovalik. Please use the information to contact your two Senators and Representative to let them know that you oppose sanctions and continuing efforts funded by US "democracy promotion" funds to break the constitutional order to overthrow the democratically elected government in Venezuela. Make clear that you expect an answer, and particularly with Democrats, make clear that your support for them in the next election will be strongly influenced by their position on this issue.
[http://all4globaljust.tumblr.com/post/79271818522/emergency-alert-action-for-venezuela-required-today]
[http://all4globaljust.tumblr.com/post/79185988937/us-on-brink-of-ordering-sanctions-against-venezuela]
[http://afgj.org/in-defense-of-venezuela]
---
By Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Nelson, and Mr. Kirk):*
S. 2142 <http://www.cq.com/bill/113/S2142>. A bill to impose targeted sanctions on persons responsible for violations of human rights of anti-government protesters in Venezuela, to strengthen civil society in Venezuela, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
---
By Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN (for herself, Mr. Diaz-Balart, Mr. Sires, Mr. Salmon, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Mr. DeSantis, Mr. Deutch, Mr. Garcia, Mr. Bilirakis, and Ms. Frankel of Florida):
H.R. 4229 <http://www.cq.com/bill/113/HR4229>. A bill to seek international sanctions against the Government of Venezuela with respect to foreign persons responsible for or complicit in ordering, controlling,
or otherwise directing, the commission of serious human rights abuses against citizens of Venezuela, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary, Ways and Means, and Financial Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
"San Francisco demonstration shows solidarity with Venezuela's Bolivarian Revolution; Rally held on one-year anniversary of tragic passing of Hugo Chavez"
2014-03-12 from "ANSWER" coalition [http://www.answercoalition.org/national/news/san-francisco-demonstration-Venezuela-solidarity.html]:
On March 5, activists and community members gathered in San Francisco's Mission District to express their solidarity with the Bolivarian Revolution in Venezuela and the revolutionary government of President Nicolas Maduro. The rally was held on the one-year anniversary of the tragic passing of Hugo Chávez, who led the Bolivarian Revolution to power in 1998 and became an international hero of all oppressed people struggling to be free.
Since Feb. 12, right-wing gangs have been provoking violent altercations throughout Venezuela, which have resulted in fatalities. At the San Francisco demonstration, people chanted "Chávez vive! Maduro sigue!" ("Chávez Lives! Maduro Continues!") The crowd rallied around a banner that paid homage to Chávez’s legacy and anti-imperialist struggle. A second banner called on the U.S. government to free the Cuban Five, the unjustly imprisoned heroes fighting for Cuba’s sovereignty.
Around five right-wing counter-protesters tried to loudly interrupt the demonstration, but their lies were discredited by revolutionary Venezuelans. Many Venezuelans who now reside in California came to speak and discredit the notion, spread by right-wing media in both the United States and Venezuela, that the Venezuelan people are against Maduro and the revolutionary process. They pointed out that Venezuela has a higher school enrolment rate than the United States because the Venezuelan education system focuses on educating the poorest of the poor. They dispelled the lie that people were starving in Venezuela, which in fact has seen food insecurity plummet as a result of the revolution.
The impressive turnout demonstrated that many in the United States are not fooled by the imperialist media's lies and distortions about the situation in Venezuela.
On March 5, activists and community members gathered in San Francisco's Mission District to express their solidarity with the Bolivarian Revolution in Venezuela and the revolutionary government of President Nicolas Maduro. The rally was held on the one-year anniversary of the tragic passing of Hugo Chávez, who led the Bolivarian Revolution to power in 1998 and became an international hero of all oppressed people struggling to be free.
Since Feb. 12, right-wing gangs have been provoking violent altercations throughout Venezuela, which have resulted in fatalities. At the San Francisco demonstration, people chanted "Chávez vive! Maduro sigue!" ("Chávez Lives! Maduro Continues!") The crowd rallied around a banner that paid homage to Chávez’s legacy and anti-imperialist struggle. A second banner called on the U.S. government to free the Cuban Five, the unjustly imprisoned heroes fighting for Cuba’s sovereignty.
Around five right-wing counter-protesters tried to loudly interrupt the demonstration, but their lies were discredited by revolutionary Venezuelans. Many Venezuelans who now reside in California came to speak and discredit the notion, spread by right-wing media in both the United States and Venezuela, that the Venezuelan people are against Maduro and the revolutionary process. They pointed out that Venezuela has a higher school enrolment rate than the United States because the Venezuelan education system focuses on educating the poorest of the poor. They dispelled the lie that people were starving in Venezuela, which in fact has seen food insecurity plummet as a result of the revolution.
The impressive turnout demonstrated that many in the United States are not fooled by the imperialist media's lies and distortions about the situation in Venezuela.
Thursday, March 6, 2014
Bolivarian solidarity from the People of Washington, D.C., and Albuquerque, N.M.
"Events in support of Venezuela’s Bolivarian Revolution continue; Reports from Washington, D.C., and Albuquerque, N.M."
2014-03-06 from "ANSWER Coalition" [http://www.answercoalition.org/national/news/demonstrations-in-support-Venezuela-Bolivarian-Revolution.html]:
Ever since the U.S. government-backed campaign of violent destabilization began in Venezuela last month, people around the world, including in the United States, have taken to the streets in solidarity with President Nicolas Maduro and the country’s ongoing revolutionary process. This has taken on even more significance with the one-year anniversary of the late President Hugo Chavez’s death on March 5. You can also read reports from similar actions in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 15, again in D.C. on Feb. 19, Chicago on Feb. 22 and Los Angeles on Feb. 23.
Albuquerque, N.M. -
Despite harsh winds and rain, people gathered on Central Avenue in front of the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque March 1 in an informational picket line to express solidarity with the Bolivarian Revolution.
Called by ANSWER New Mexico and endorsed by several progressive organizations including Stop the War Machine, Veterans for Peace and Stop $30 Billion to Israel, the demonstrators held signs demanding that the United States stop intervening in the affairs of the sovereign nation of Venezuela with the aim of overthrowing the democratically elected government of Nicolas Maduro.
Leaflets documenting more than 12 years of support by the United States for a coup d'etat against first Hugo Chavez and now Nicolas Maduro were handed out to passersby and were well received.
Signs stating "We stand in solidarity with the Bolivarian Revolution" and "USA/CIA hands off Venezuela" were visible, and many drivers honked their horns in solidarity.
Washington, D.C. -
On March 5, a diverse group of about 150 packed Bolivarian Hall to honor the memory of Hugo Chavez on the one-year anniversary of his death. The Bolivarian Hall, dedicated to the Revolution which shares its name, was packed full of supporters of President Nicolas Maduro and the people of Venezuela.
To celebrate Chavez's life and memory, Gabriel Torrealba, the Venezuelan First Secretary of Consular Affairs, presented a timeline of Chavez's life, which matches the one at Chavez's burial place outside Caracas. Torrealba recounted Chavez's life, outlining the tremendous advances for the Venezuelan masses under the Bolivarian Revolution along the way. It was abundantly clear that among the crowd—members of the working class from Washington to El Salvador to Venezuela—Chavez's memory is as potent and inspirational as it was during his lifetime.
Beginning under his leadership, Bolivarian Venezuela courageously broke free from the rule of exploiters, both foreign and domestic, as Chavez helped set into motion Venezuela's trajectory as a centerpiece for resistance to U.S. designs for domination in Latin America. Chavez's leadership helped pave the way for the formation of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA), a trade organization built around the interests of Latin American countries, rather than those of the United States and Canada, meant to challenge NAFTA, the OAS and other imperialist institutions.
Bolivarian Venezuela also extended solidarity to Cuba during the depths of the Special Period, when the country came under especially intense attack by the United States as it faced economic crisis after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. As Cuba was forced to weather an economic siege led by the most right-wing elements in Washington, Venezuelan trade represented a lifeline, offering much-needed access to global trade and offering oil at discounted prices.
Chavez's displays of friendship were not limited to Cuba: under his leadership, Venezuela offered to ship 1 million barrels of oil and $5 million to New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. His legacy is one of friendship and anti-imperialist unity in Latin America.
The event at the Bolivarian Hall paid tribute to Chavez's history of courageous service to the people and the revolution. The event, ending with a reception featuring music from Chavez's home region in the plains of southern Venezuela, helps preserve the legacy of one of the most important figures for the people of Venezuela and the world.
¡Hugo Chavez Presente!
2014-03-06 from "ANSWER Coalition" [http://www.answercoalition.org/national/news/demonstrations-in-support-Venezuela-Bolivarian-Revolution.html]:
Ever since the U.S. government-backed campaign of violent destabilization began in Venezuela last month, people around the world, including in the United States, have taken to the streets in solidarity with President Nicolas Maduro and the country’s ongoing revolutionary process. This has taken on even more significance with the one-year anniversary of the late President Hugo Chavez’s death on March 5. You can also read reports from similar actions in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 15, again in D.C. on Feb. 19, Chicago on Feb. 22 and Los Angeles on Feb. 23.
Albuquerque, N.M. -
Despite harsh winds and rain, people gathered on Central Avenue in front of the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque March 1 in an informational picket line to express solidarity with the Bolivarian Revolution.
Called by ANSWER New Mexico and endorsed by several progressive organizations including Stop the War Machine, Veterans for Peace and Stop $30 Billion to Israel, the demonstrators held signs demanding that the United States stop intervening in the affairs of the sovereign nation of Venezuela with the aim of overthrowing the democratically elected government of Nicolas Maduro.
Leaflets documenting more than 12 years of support by the United States for a coup d'etat against first Hugo Chavez and now Nicolas Maduro were handed out to passersby and were well received.
Signs stating "We stand in solidarity with the Bolivarian Revolution" and "USA/CIA hands off Venezuela" were visible, and many drivers honked their horns in solidarity.
Washington, D.C. -
On March 5, a diverse group of about 150 packed Bolivarian Hall to honor the memory of Hugo Chavez on the one-year anniversary of his death. The Bolivarian Hall, dedicated to the Revolution which shares its name, was packed full of supporters of President Nicolas Maduro and the people of Venezuela.
To celebrate Chavez's life and memory, Gabriel Torrealba, the Venezuelan First Secretary of Consular Affairs, presented a timeline of Chavez's life, which matches the one at Chavez's burial place outside Caracas. Torrealba recounted Chavez's life, outlining the tremendous advances for the Venezuelan masses under the Bolivarian Revolution along the way. It was abundantly clear that among the crowd—members of the working class from Washington to El Salvador to Venezuela—Chavez's memory is as potent and inspirational as it was during his lifetime.
Beginning under his leadership, Bolivarian Venezuela courageously broke free from the rule of exploiters, both foreign and domestic, as Chavez helped set into motion Venezuela's trajectory as a centerpiece for resistance to U.S. designs for domination in Latin America. Chavez's leadership helped pave the way for the formation of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA), a trade organization built around the interests of Latin American countries, rather than those of the United States and Canada, meant to challenge NAFTA, the OAS and other imperialist institutions.
Bolivarian Venezuela also extended solidarity to Cuba during the depths of the Special Period, when the country came under especially intense attack by the United States as it faced economic crisis after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. As Cuba was forced to weather an economic siege led by the most right-wing elements in Washington, Venezuelan trade represented a lifeline, offering much-needed access to global trade and offering oil at discounted prices.
Chavez's displays of friendship were not limited to Cuba: under his leadership, Venezuela offered to ship 1 million barrels of oil and $5 million to New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. His legacy is one of friendship and anti-imperialist unity in Latin America.
The event at the Bolivarian Hall paid tribute to Chavez's history of courageous service to the people and the revolution. The event, ending with a reception featuring music from Chavez's home region in the plains of southern Venezuela, helps preserve the legacy of one of the most important figures for the people of Venezuela and the world.
¡Hugo Chavez Presente!
Wednesday, March 5, 2014
Stop U.S. Intervention in Venezuela
2014-03-05 statement from "Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism (CCDS)" [https://portside.org/print/2014-03-05/stop-us-intervention-venezuela]:
Sensational headlines in the U.S. of opposition protests in Venezuela amid escalating violence have dominated the coverage of the corporate mainstream media over the past three weeks. This is part of a multipronged strategy by the U.S. government and multinational corporations to destabilize Venezuela politically and economically and pave the way for another coup attempt as was the case in 2002 during the Bush administration. These same policies have continued with the Obama Administration despite denials that it is backing the opposition. Such denials lack credibility given the results of extensive investigative reporting on U. S. funding for and training of leaders of the Venezuelan opposition and recent leaks of extensive communication between U.S. officials and right wing opposition leader, Leopoldo Lopez.
None of the mainstream media narrative accurately reflects the complex reality of Venezuela. U.S. news and analyses are routinely distorted, manipulated, and even manufactured to support the corporate media's narrative which is that student-led protests have been violently repressed amidst severe government repression of speech and press in Venezuela. Anti-government protests that appear to engulf the country are in reality mainly in the wealthiest neighborhoods of Caracas.
According to a report by Mark Weisbot of the Guardian, there have been eight confirmed deaths but no evidence that they were caused by a repressive government crack-down. Actually a number of security officers have been arrested for crimes. And there has been random protestor-on-protestor violence, a far cry from a government policy of brutal force to squash dissent.
The mainstream media's narrative also includes sensational distortions and misinformation regarding Venezuela's economic situation. The economy is portrayed as being on the verge of collapse, due to bad policies and mismanagement of the Venezuelan government. The fact is that the government of President Maduro has continued the humanitarian “Bolivarian” policies of his predecessor, Hugo Chavez, whose untimely death one year ago, is commemorated today, March 5th. Their government policies have reduced poverty dramatically and channeled the country’s resources to improve employment, education, health care and housing for the majority of Venezuelans.
Maduro’s government has won two national elections within the last year including 75 percent of municipal government offices two months ago. It is a legitimate, democratically-elected constitutional government. The policy of the U.S. government is an attack on democracy and constitutional government in Venezuela.
The Venezuelan government faces many political and economic challenges. The CCDS stands in solidarity with the heroic workers and poor of Venezuela as they tackle these challenges.
The CCDS joins with peace and justice organizations in demanding:
* An end to all U.S. government support, overt and covert, for the Venezuelan opposition as it constitutes an unacceptable and immoral intervention in the politics and economy of a sovereign nation
* An end to all covert efforts to sabotage Venezuela's economy and cause suffering among the Venezuelan people.
Sensational headlines in the U.S. of opposition protests in Venezuela amid escalating violence have dominated the coverage of the corporate mainstream media over the past three weeks. This is part of a multipronged strategy by the U.S. government and multinational corporations to destabilize Venezuela politically and economically and pave the way for another coup attempt as was the case in 2002 during the Bush administration. These same policies have continued with the Obama Administration despite denials that it is backing the opposition. Such denials lack credibility given the results of extensive investigative reporting on U. S. funding for and training of leaders of the Venezuelan opposition and recent leaks of extensive communication between U.S. officials and right wing opposition leader, Leopoldo Lopez.
None of the mainstream media narrative accurately reflects the complex reality of Venezuela. U.S. news and analyses are routinely distorted, manipulated, and even manufactured to support the corporate media's narrative which is that student-led protests have been violently repressed amidst severe government repression of speech and press in Venezuela. Anti-government protests that appear to engulf the country are in reality mainly in the wealthiest neighborhoods of Caracas.
According to a report by Mark Weisbot of the Guardian, there have been eight confirmed deaths but no evidence that they were caused by a repressive government crack-down. Actually a number of security officers have been arrested for crimes. And there has been random protestor-on-protestor violence, a far cry from a government policy of brutal force to squash dissent.
The mainstream media's narrative also includes sensational distortions and misinformation regarding Venezuela's economic situation. The economy is portrayed as being on the verge of collapse, due to bad policies and mismanagement of the Venezuelan government. The fact is that the government of President Maduro has continued the humanitarian “Bolivarian” policies of his predecessor, Hugo Chavez, whose untimely death one year ago, is commemorated today, March 5th. Their government policies have reduced poverty dramatically and channeled the country’s resources to improve employment, education, health care and housing for the majority of Venezuelans.
Maduro’s government has won two national elections within the last year including 75 percent of municipal government offices two months ago. It is a legitimate, democratically-elected constitutional government. The policy of the U.S. government is an attack on democracy and constitutional government in Venezuela.
The Venezuelan government faces many political and economic challenges. The CCDS stands in solidarity with the heroic workers and poor of Venezuela as they tackle these challenges.
The CCDS joins with peace and justice organizations in demanding:
* An end to all U.S. government support, overt and covert, for the Venezuelan opposition as it constitutes an unacceptable and immoral intervention in the politics and economy of a sovereign nation
* An end to all covert efforts to sabotage Venezuela's economy and cause suffering among the Venezuelan people.
Rally in Solidarity with Venezuela
Wed. March 5, 5pm
24th and Mission Sts., San Francisco
Joint Outdoor Rally:
* Vigil/Celebration of Comandante Hugo Chávez's revolutionary legacy
* Celebration of the Return to Cuba of Fernando González of the Cuban Five
Cuba and Venezuela are bound together in a sister/brotherhood which has inspired a new Latin American unity and growing independence from U.S. imperialism.
Today, Venezuela's Bolivarian Revolution is under renewed attack by U.S.-financed fascist forces trying to destabilize the government. It is critical to come support Venezuela's revolution, especially on March 5, the first anniversary of Comandante Chávez's death.
Cuban Hero Fernando González has finally been freed from U.S. prison after serving an unjust 15 year, 5 month, 15 day imprisonment, simply because he was defending Cuba from U.S. terrorist attack. Three of the Five are still in U.S. prison and we continue to fight for their freedom.
Co-sponsors: AIM-West, ANSWER Coalition, BALASC, Bolivarian Circle of No. Calif., FMLN-No. Calif., FSLN-No. Calif., Committee for Political Education, Haiti Action Committee, Marcha Patriótica Colombia-Calif., National Committee to Free the Cuban Five, NICCA, Party for Socialism and Liberation, SOAW-San Francisco, Task Force on the Americas, Workers World Party.
24th and Mission Sts., San Francisco
Joint Outdoor Rally:
* Vigil/Celebration of Comandante Hugo Chávez's revolutionary legacy
* Celebration of the Return to Cuba of Fernando González of the Cuban Five
Cuba and Venezuela are bound together in a sister/brotherhood which has inspired a new Latin American unity and growing independence from U.S. imperialism.
Today, Venezuela's Bolivarian Revolution is under renewed attack by U.S.-financed fascist forces trying to destabilize the government. It is critical to come support Venezuela's revolution, especially on March 5, the first anniversary of Comandante Chávez's death.
Cuban Hero Fernando González has finally been freed from U.S. prison after serving an unjust 15 year, 5 month, 15 day imprisonment, simply because he was defending Cuba from U.S. terrorist attack. Three of the Five are still in U.S. prison and we continue to fight for their freedom.
Co-sponsors: AIM-West, ANSWER Coalition, BALASC, Bolivarian Circle of No. Calif., FMLN-No. Calif., FSLN-No. Calif., Committee for Political Education, Haiti Action Committee, Marcha Patriótica Colombia-Calif., National Committee to Free the Cuban Five, NICCA, Party for Socialism and Liberation, SOAW-San Francisco, Task Force on the Americas, Workers World Party.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)