Gustavo Coronel
Today,
February 18, Cuban puppet Nicolas Maduro, imprisoned Leopoldo Lopez, a
young Venezuelan fighting for freedom and democracy in a peaceful
manner, charging him with sedition and “unawareness” of the
Constitution. This man could not be more cynical, as the Venezuelan
Constitution in article 350 makes it imperative for citizens to try to
restore lost democracy in the country.
Venezuela,
under dead Hugo Chavez and now, under his successor, elected in a
fraudulent and illegitimate manner, has been run into the ground.
International airlines are no longer flying normally into the country
since they are owed more than $3 billion. International reserves are
scrapping the bottom in spite of high oil prices for many years.
National debt is six times higher than before the regime arrived in
power 15 years ago. 12 newspapers have shut down due to lack of paper, a
maneuver by the regime to suppress freedom of speech. Half of the
industries existing in 1998 have disappeared. Corruption in the state
oil company and most other state owned companies runs wild. There is an
acute shortage of basic foods and goods, from toilet papers to essential
medical supplies.
This
desperate situation has led thousands of demonstrators to march
peacefully in at least 12 Venezuelan cities during the last 8 days. The
magnitude of these peaceful marches has shaken the regime, to the
point that they have arrested the visible leader of the marches, young
Leopoldo Lopez, charged with crimes that, in fact, have been committed
by the regime.
Nobel
Peace prize Oscar Arias has protested these abuses of power by the
regime. But he is not the only one: the UN High Commissioner, the
European Union, Secretary of State John Kerry, U.S. Congressman Marco
Rubio, president-elect Bachelet from Chile, Human Rights organizations
in several places of the world, all have protested the criminal posture
of the Venezuelan regime. In a dozen world capitals there have been
protests in solidarity with the Venezuelan peaceful, civic insurgence.
Venezuela
has been colonized by Castro’s Cubans. There are at least 60,000 Castro
Cubans in the country, controlling all aspects of national life, thanks
to the treason of the Cuban puppet Nicolas Maduro and that of Chavez
before him. The Venezuelan regime provides Cuba with over 100,000
barrels of oil per day that Cubans do not pay for, another act of
treason on the part of the ideologically colonized Venezuelan regime.
How
has this happened? About $ 600 billion of Venezuelan money has gone to
buy political loyalty in the Venezuelan military and from some of the
very poor, as well as in countries like Bolivia, Nicaragua, Argentina,
Ecuador, Belarus, or handed out to terrorist organizations all over the
world: FARC, Hezbollah, Hamas and ETA. This money, which could have
been utilized to develop the country in an efficient manner, has been
used by the regime to cement its political survival. At least $25
billion have gone into Cuba, to support the Castro brothers.
Today
the Venezuelan people are in a battle mood against the regime. It is
not a war, since the protesters are unarmed while the Cuban and
Venezuelan soldiers who serve the regime are armed to the teeth. Deaths
have taken place and dozens of wounded. Hundreds have been imprisoned.
This is a confrontation between the citizens and the Cuban- controlled
regime. And this confrontation deserves the same attention from regional
democracies and particularly from the United States as the struggles of
the Syrians and Ukrainians for their democracy.
I
ask the government of the United States to take a clear stance in
connection with the Venezuelan situation. There is Castro-Cuban takeover
of a previously democratic country. There is a repressive government in
Venezuela. It is intolerable that this situation has developed without
the OAS or the government of the United States taking a stand in defense
of freedom and democracy in Venezuela.
How?
For example,
If
the U.S. government imposes an embargo on the Venezuelan oil barrels
being imported into the country, although this number is now much less
significant than 15 years ago, such a move would accelerate the fall of
the dictatorial, communist Venezuelan regime and would eliminate Cuba’s
stronghold on the South American continent.
No comments:
Post a Comment