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Venezuela

The EU Avoids Treating Guaido As ‘President’ Of Venezuela

The European Union avoided referring to the opposition politician Juan Guaido as Venezuela's "acting president" once the mandate of the National Assembly over which he presided expired on Tuesday. "Venezuela urgently needs a political solution to end the current impasse through an inclusive process of dialogue and negotiation leading to credible, inclusive, and democratic processes," said Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. He added that the EU will maintain its engagement with all Venezuelan political and social actors, including  "Juan Guaido and other representatives of the outgoing National Assembly elected in 2015."

I Observed Venezuela’s Elections Firsthand

On election day, Sunday, December 6, we began a tour of election sites. Typically, the voting takes place at a school, with five to ten classrooms designated as “mesas,” and each voter goes to his or her designated mesa.” The voting process was quick and efficient, with bio-safety sanitation at each step. Voters first showed their identity cards and confirmed their identity with fingerprint recognition. Step two was to cast a ballot on a touchscreen computer and receive a paper receipt. Step three was to verify that the receipt matches the voting choice and deposit the receipt in a ballot box. Finally, voters would sign and put their fingerprints on the voting registry. The entire process took about three minutes.

US Blockade Prevents Venezuela From Funding COVAX

Venezuela’s Health Minister Carlos Alvarado on Sunday said that the economic blockade imposed by the United States is preventing his country from funding the COVAX initiative led by the World Health Organization (WHO). He recalled that his country offered to place US$18 million into the COVAX fund, but as a result of the U.S. blockade, Venezuela has not "been able to free those resources to pay the fund." Alvarado added that the U.S. sanctions have affected other vaccination programs previously conducted through the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) revolving fund. "We have not been able to pay the revolving fund, therefore, we have not been able to buy vaccines through that fund," the Health minister said...

Alex Saab Case: ‘One Of The Most Egregious Examples Of Jurisdictional Overreach’

Baltasar Garzón, former Spanish judge who is the defense attorney for Venezuelan diplomatic envoy Álex Saab, reiterated during an interview with the Colombian newspaper El Espectador that his client is a special envoy of the Government of Venezuela who works as a diplomatic agent for commercial and trade purposes, and that he was illegally detained by the Cape Verdean authorities in a process that violated international law in addition to violating his rights that are inherent to diplomatic immunity established in global laws. The interview was offered by Garzón on the occasion of completion of 6 months of Saab’s arbitrary imprisonment in the African country—which began on June 12, 2020.

US Airports Are Portals For Disease Spread

I recently traveled to Venezuela to be an observer for its National Assembly election and was struck by a stark difference between the ways Venezuela and the United States are handling the COVID-19 pandemic. My experience at the airport in Caracas, Venezuela, gave me a taste of what a coordinated public health approach looks like in practice, compared to the disjointed politicized approach in the United States. Airports in the United States are currently serving as uncontrolled portals of disease spread. Venezuela demonstrates it doesn’t have to be this way and that mitigating the spread of infection can be done in an empowering and compassionate way, rather than an oppressive way.

Trump Enacts Sweeping New Sanctions On China, Iran, Venezuela

On its way out the door, the Trump administration is ramping up another round of aggressive, punishing sanctions against a host of countries. On Friday, the State Department announced new sanctions against Iran, the People’s Republic of China, and Venezuela. And today, it tightened the grip of the decades-long blockade on Cuba and increased sanctions on Nicaragua. In the case of Iran, the measures were aimed at its oil industry and went so far as to sanction Vietnamese companies helping with the international supply of Iranian hydrocarbons. “Today, thanks to the success of our sanctions, Iran is looking to come back to the negotiating table to get relief,” Trump’s Special Representative for Iran and Venezuela, Elliott Abrams, asserted, adding (falsely) that the Iranian nuclear program remains focused on weaponry, not civilian usage.

The (In)Visible Hand, Scarcity, Venezuela, And The PlayStation 5

As Christmas approaches around the world, lines get longer, prices fluctuate, and everyone wants to get their hands on the seasons hottest gift or toy for their loved ones. This holiday seasons most sought after gift appears to be either a Sony PlayStation 5 or a Microsoft Xbox Series S/X, with price ranges from $299-$499 depending on the model. However, as of this writing in December 2020, it is almost impossible to acquire any of the models for anything less than several hundred more than the suggested retail price, with some scalpers and speculators selling them for thousands of dollars on online marketplaces. It is estimated by some that these speculators have made almost 30 million dollars on a reported 60,000 resold consoles.

Venezuela Advances In Case Against The US Before International Criminal Court

The International Criminal Court (ICC), in its annual report, confirmed the deposit of evidence by Venezuelan authorities regarding the lawsuit (Venezuela II) against United States officials for committing crimes against humanity as a result of the blockade and the coercive measures imposed on the Caribbean country. The information was released by the Foreign Affairs Minister of Venezuela, Jorge Arreaza, who indicated that the ICC continues to study the demand made by the Venezuelan government. “In her annual report, the #CPI Prosecutor confirms that she received the voluminous report from Prosecutor G @TarekWiliamSaab, as part of the cooperation.

Former Presidential Candidate Capriles Calls On US To End ‘Interim Presidency’

Former two-time presidential candidate Henrique Capriles has demanded a change of strategy for the Venezuelan opposition. In an interview with the BBC, Capriles argued for a “reconstruction” of the opposition following last Sunday’s government victory in National Assembly (AN) elections. He claimed that the current plan led by US-backed Juan Guaido is “finished” and stressed that Washington’s stance will be “crucial.” “The new [Biden] administration has to understand that this plan has run its course and it cannot keep the status quo: the [Guaido] ‘interim presidency’,” Capriles said, adding that the opposition could “disappear as an alternative” if there is no change of course.

Free Elections In Venezuela Are A Blow To Regime Change

Venezuela held legislative elections on December 6 and, as has become the norm, the U.S. and sectors of the opposition that boycotted the election are claiming fraud without presenting evidence. The coalition of parties supporting President Maduro won 68% of the vote and a supermajority in the National Assembly. All the evidence suggests the elections were free and fair. However, turnout was only 31%, a participation rate that was hampered by a partial opposition boycott of the election.  This call to abstain was made by Juan Guaidó and his allies, but a different faction of the opposition participated fully.

We Don’t Listen To The Dying Government Of Donald Trump

The night before the National Assembly elections in Venezuela, President Nicolás Maduro spoke to a group of visitors at Miraflores Palace in Caracas. He recounted how he had been a member of the Constituent Assembly, which was formed in 1999 and set up the legal framework for Venezuela’s political system. Maduro told the visitors that he had been a member of the National Assembly during its first and second terms (2000-2005 and 2005-2010 respectively), and he was the president of the National Assembly during its second term before being asked to take on the post of foreign minister.

US Observers Endorse Venezuela’s Election Legitimacy

U.S. political actors observing Venezuela's parliamentary elections Sunday ratified the process' legitimacy, despite the U.S. administration's attempts to discredit it. After visiting several voting centers in Caracas, New York Public University professor Danny Shaw highlighted the people's massive turnout on Election Day. Taking part as an observer in these elections "has been an interesting experience. I was in the Parish Coche, in Liberator municipality, and what I found there was massive participation, very prepared authorities, and sophisticated technologies," Shaw assured.

Elections And The Path To Socialism In Venezuela

On December 6, Venezuelans elected a new National Assembly with a left political majority. This election, which was well-run and legitimate despite what the imperialist media and countries say, reconstitutes the Venezuelan parliamentary body with participation from both the ruling and opposition parties. It marks the end of an era during which the National Assembly was a tool of the right wing agenda and US regime change efforts. To facilitate understanding of the current election and political climate in Venezuela, Vijay Prashad of Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research and Paul Dobson of Venezulanalysis provide their insight and analysis.

US Media, Politicians Rage After Venezuela Defies US Empire

President Nicolas Maduro and his United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) are celebrating today, after a clear victory in yesterday’s National Assembly elections. The elections, boycotted by many major right-wing opposition groups, but still participated in by over 100 political parties, ended with the PSUV and its allies receiving an estimated 67.6% of the votes cast, meaning they will control a two-thirds supermajority of the 277-seat National Assembly, the only major body that was controlled by anti-government forces.

Socialist Alliance Victory In Venezuela’s National Assembly Is A Failure Of US Regime Change Policy

The victory of Maduro’s political alliance in Sunday’s parliamentary election means that despite the Covid pandemic, economic hardships and sanctions by the US, Venezuelans voted for the continuation of the Chavista Revolution. A little over a year ago, we were told by the US government and the always-compliant OAS (Organization of American States) that Evo Morales’ re-election in Bolivia was the product of election fraud. No proof was ever given, and eventually, even the New York Times, which had initially been happy to spread the fraud claims, was forced to admit that there appeared to be no evidence that the election was somehow improper. 

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Keep independent media alive. 

Due to the attacks on our fiscal sponsor, we were unable to raise funds online for nearly two years.  As the bills pile up, your help is needed now to cover the monthly costs of operating Popular Resistance.

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