By Maria Paez Victor
POPULAR RESISTANCE
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(Photo: Beatrice Murch)
Joseph Conrad insightfully wrote in his book Lord Jim: “You shall judge of a man by his foes as well as by his friends“. The same can be said about a nation. So, it should be a clue to any observant person, that the forces of the extreme right, and those who are hoodwinked by them, lead the charge against Venezuela, with a relentless hybrid war and smear campaign.
The USA and its allies are at the head of this campaign. Their motives lie undoubtedly in the desire to take control of the nation’s immense oil reserves, plus its gas, gold and lithium. As well, the USA is imposing collective punishment on Venezuelans with illegal sanctions for daring to assert their sovereignty in deciding that only they, the Venezuelan people, in fair elections, can determine their governance.
Can anyone doubt that the forces of the extreme right are ascendant in geopolitics?
In the USA, the extreme right grows bolder and stronger each day. Under the leadership of Trump, a narcissistic man whose speeches are tinged with rage and absurdities, they violently mobbed Capitol Hill in Washington while denying the results of the election won by Biden. The world looks on in astonishment and dismay as Trump is poised to win the presidential elections on Nov. 5, especially now that he can drape himself with the cloak of martyrdom. His core supporters are very forgiving, or have highly selective memories, or are simply infatuated by the self-proclaimed savior from the continuing decline of their country. During Trump’s last presidency, illegal sanctions against Venezuela became extreme and he threatened military invasion. The Venezuelan vice-president Delcy Rodríguez, in defining fascism stated that: “…it not only manifests itself in expression of hatred, violence and death but also forms of economic fascism, such as the US criminal blockade imposed against Venezuela.”[1]
The hopeful exceptions in Europe are those of the UK and France whose recent elections amazingly sidelined the far right. But it seems everywhere else we see extreme right parties – some could be considered as openly fascist – rise in Spain, Germany, Estonia, Serbia, Finland, Hungary, Italy and Switzerland. Some of these parties form the government or part of it, some have legislative representatives where before they had few or none, and some are in opposition nipping at the heels of governments. But their presence is palpable, and menacing. The far right in the European Union always vote to malign and attack Venezuela.
In Canada, the main opposition party, the Conservative Party, is moving further right under a mediocre leader, Poilievre, who leads the polls against the Liberal Justin Trudeau. The strategy of Poilievre is typical of the far right that hide their real aims under an ad hominem campaign: that is, very scarce in providing solutions and virulently blaming and insulting the person of Trudeau. It is proving so effective that if the Liberal Party was smart, it would replace Trudeau and deflate the campaign of the Conservatives.
Both the Liberal and the Conservative parties of Canada, in their rush to kowtow to their powerful southern neighbour, have unjustly and mean-spiritedly lashed out against Venezuela, a nation that has not harmed Canada nor any Canadians. They have imposed illegal sanctions, organized and led the now defunct Lima Group, a cabal of far-right governments that pushed for “regime change” in Venezuela, broke diplomatic relations with Venezuela so that not even consulates are allowed, and denied the right of Canadian/Venezuelans to vote in the last Venezuelan presidential elections and upcoming one.
In Latin America, Brazil’s would-be dictator, the erratic Bolsonaro, led an attack on the Brazilian Congress a lá Trump. While in power, he managed to sideline both Dilma Rousseff and Lula with legal injustices of lawfare. He is not in power now but is still not a political pariah and not behind bars, as he should be. His disdain for the Venezuelan government was such that only the Brazilian army was able to persuade him against invading Venezuela.
In Argentina, Javier Milei is a prime example of an extremist leader with a disordered mind, saying publicly: “I’m the king of a lost world! I’m the king and I will destroy you!”[2]. Melei is bent on dismantling social rights and attacking anyone who opposes him. He has taken it upon himself to insult the Venezuelan government and president whenever he can. The Argentinian embassy in Caracas has become a haven of the far right.
So, in this sea of rising far right extremism, there is a country in open defiance that fights the violence and deceptions of fascism, the racist elites and the predatory corporations. A government that is on the side of the working classes, that zealously protects their social benefits and welfare and their Human Rights and champions the environment. That country is Venezuela, whose Constitution, on its first page, proclaims itself a democratic society, participatory, multiethnic, and pluricultural, with the values of liberty, solidarity and the common good.
The far-right forces, backed by Washington and the fascist, racist Venezuelan elites, have never ceased to try to destabilize the nation and overthrow the government. In 2014 they were responsible for a series of virulent street violence that led to 43 deaths, 878 injured and millions in damages. In 2017 they continued with 121 deaths and 1,958 injured, including the horrendous death of a young man, Orlando Figuera, who because of his dark skin, “looked Chavista” and was burned alive on the street.
These violent events were portrayed by the world media as “protests” carried out by “people who wanted democracy”, and even “students”, when in fact they were carried out by thugs and criminal gangs, paid in dollars. I myself actually witnessed on the street a man dolling out dollars to a bunch of “protesters”. The supposed, rules-based, “international community” totally ignored these violations of the peace and Human Rights of the Venezuelan people, and some even had the gall to blame the government for the opposition’s violence. They just keep gushing out the lies.
Currently, in this presidential year, the violence is simmering. The Attorney General has denounced at least five attempts to murder the president,[3] and a series of sabotages of the nation’s electrical system. A Colombian guerrilla group, which is in the midst of peace negotiations, revealed that far-right leaders of Venezuela had asked them to carry out violent acts on the border to disturb the coming elections. [4] These events have been linked to the darling fascist “candidate” of Washington, Maria Corina Machado, and is being investigated.
The presential elections are on the 28th of July. There are 9 candidates from opposition parties. The candidate of Washington, Maria Corina Machado, cannot run because in 2014 she was barred for malfeasance (refusing to disclose the origin of donated funds) and representing a foreign government – Panama – while being a deputy of the National Assembly. Later in 2023 this barring from office was reimposed by the Comptroller General and ratified by the Supreme Court of Venezuela because Machado called on the USA to invade Venezuela.[5] Her stand-in is unknown to the public – an elderly political hack, Edmundo Gonzalez.
Machado is a scion of two very wealthy elitist families. They are elites that have traditionally obtained their wealth by being the willing vassals of the USA, which allowed them to join in the looting their own country, and in recent years, have been partners in crime with Colombian narco-gangs and other criminals. Machado enthusiastically believes in using violence to gain power, including repeatedly asking the USA to invade Venezuela. [6] Gonzalez for his part, is implicated in the financing and logistics of the death squads in El Salvador.[7]
What is there for the world media to object to about Venezuela? A nation beleaguered by far-right groups and governments, struggling to keep its sovereignty, its resources and to protect its people. Why does so much of the world media back far-right forces linked to violence and plunder? Are news outlets, journalists and newspapers being paid to do so?
Since its inception the Bolivarian governments of Chávez and Maduro, have nurtured social rights and benefits, championed indigenous rights and women’s rights, poured state funds effectively and efficiently, into food security, education, health services, infrastructure, and an astounding public housing program that in 7 years has built 5 million units.
The canard invariably levelled at Venezuela, is that Nicolas Maduro is authoritarian. This is without foundation, but it is the imperial script and is repeated ad nauseum. These accusers have obviously never been to Venezuela, never visited the 40,035 Communal Councils spread all over the country that hold in their hands the development of their communities. They have never attended a meeting of any of the 1,401 Communes and have never attended any meeting of the Presidential Counsel of the Communes (Consejo Presidencial de las Comunas) whereby the President is advised directly by the communes, as part of his cabinet.
As well, those who say there is an authoritarian regime in Venezuela are completly ignorant of the 28,791 registered social movements in the country that carry out a whole host of varied social and political activities. The country is a hot bed of free, creative, democratic participation. This stimulates its artistic communities in a clear and wonderful fashion. Nobody “reins in” the free-spirited actors, artists, dancers, or musicians. The Bolivarian Revolution has been enhanced and advanced by the unleashing of creative talents that previously had been blocked by elites.
Once I was passing by Caracas’ largest theatre which had been “in possession” of the upper-class elites. Previously, “ordinary” people were not welcomed nor could afford the entry tickets; therefore, I was pleasantly surprised to see a very long line-up of “ordinary” people waiting to be let in. It turned out that they were lining up to hear a classical music concert featuring the music of Mahler. The theatre now is a favorite venue for all sorts of popular events where the people are welcome and they know it.
The people of Venezuela are very music- literate. The musical education program “El Sistema” has a lot to do with this. “El Sistema” is now world famous, more than 25 countries have established musical education programs directly based on it. Venezuela’s National System of Orchestras and Chorus boasts 443 centres, 120 juvenile orchestras and 60 children’s orchestras, with the participation of approximately 350,000 youths.
Heart-warming Venezuelan achievements such as this are rarely covered in the mainstream media while this week, for example, they rush to publicize the arrest of Machado’s ‘head of security’ for violence against women, and blame the authorities. You have to wonder about their motives.
Venezuela is definitely “contra mundum”, that is, against a world where fascism, with its violence, rapaciousness, lies, disregard for peace, nature, human rights and welfare is on the rise.
That is a world worth opposing.
Venezuela is at the vanguard of the defence of democracy, socialism and humanity itself. Its struggle is not just to defend a government, a president or a party, but a political and social system based on the Human Rights of the people, and their peaceful coexistence with others in the region and the world.
That is a world worth defending.
APPENDIX
Maria Páez Victor is a sociologist, born in Venezuela and educated in Caracas, New York, Mexico City, England and Canada. For several years she taught the sociology of health and medicine as well as health and environmental policies at the University of Toronto. Páez Victor has national and international experience in policy analysis and impact assessment, with expertise in the areas of health, environment, and energy. Links: International Manifesto Group https://internationalmanifesto.org/
Notes:
[2] https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/may/23/javier-milei-buenos-aires-argentina
[6] “Presidente Maduro denunció que EEUU diseñó planes para atentar en su contra”, aporrea, 20 April 2024; https://www.aporrea.org/imprime/n392224.html
[7] https://ultimasnoticias.com.ve/noticias/politica/revelan-pasado-sanguinario-de-edmundo-gonzalez/;https://www.laradiodelsur.com.ve/edmundo-gonzalez-urrutia-tuvo-vinculado-a-escuadrones-de-la-muerte-en-el-salvador/
- In cynicism and power, the US propaganda machine easily surpasses Orwells Ministry of Truth.
- Now the fight against anti-semitism is being weaponised as a new sanctimonious McCarthyism.
- Unless opposed, neither justice nor our Constitutional right to Free Speech will survive this assault.
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