Action--U.S. Hands Off Venezuela. Please join in. [Chicago, 7-27] [Archive]

ckaihatsu

26th July 2017, 14:06

[EmergencyResponseforUSAttackonIranorSyria] U.S. Hands Off Venezuela leaflet. Please join distribution Thurs 4:30-6

Hi, Here is the leaflet from the M19 Anti-War Coalition that we will have for Thursday evening rush downtown. The aim is to try to inform and mobilize as many people as we can to oppose the attacks on Venezuela by the U.S. government. If you can join in with us, please let us know.

U.S. Hands Off Venezuela!

It is the responsibility of Americans to oppose the U.S. government’s illegal interventions in other countries who have not attacked the U.S. That is international law, which the U.S. has signed. Check out the UN Charter.

So we should all be opposing the U.S. government’s efforts to bring about regime change in Venezuela—especially at a time when there is so much hysteria being raised about alleged Russian interference in the U.S. political process.

The U.S. government and wealthy Venezuelans are opportunistically taking advantage of Venezuela’s serious economic problems, such as the sudden loss of half of its annual income when international oil prices fell dramatically and have still not gone up to previous levels.

The U.S. has tried for years to create chaos and de-stabilize the Bolivarian government in Venezuela—through lying propaganda spread by the corporate-owned media, through sanctions, through financing of right wing opposition forces who have been using violent demonstrations to try to get back into power, and through U.S. military threats including backing the 2002 attempted coup.

Since April, Venezuela’s capital, Caracas, and other cities have faced daily violence orchestrated by U.S.-backed forces, who caused the deaths of a number of people and destruction of government buildings, buses, and other public property. This new round of violence started the day after the U.S.-dominated Organization of American States (OAS) illegally adopted a motion to discredit the government of Venezuela.

Meanwhile, a record one million Venezuelans rallied on April 19 to celebrate the historic victory over the Spanish empire led by Simon Bolivar. They were expressing their determination to defend their independence and not allow any other empire to take control. Venezuelans are conscious that right now the U.S. empire is threatening Venezuela with a coup fomented by wealthy Venezuelans financed and backed by the U.S.

But President Trump continues the government’s long-standing, aggressive policies:

On July 17 Trump promised "swift and strong economic actions" if Venezuela proceeds with elections for the National Constituent Assembly on July 30. Trump demonized the democratically-elected President Maduro and the Venezuelan government as not being in favor of democracy whe, in fact, Venezuela's free and fair elections and participatory democracy enable the people to exercise more political power than we, the people, have in the U.S.

Recently, Trump hosted Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos in Washington, who then sent Colombian army tanks to the border with Venezuela. Trump also hosted wealthy Venezuelans such as Lilian Tintori and Julio Borges, who asked Trump to help bring about regime change to restore their class to power. Since then, in June, the Trump government ordered the Southern Command to carry out military practice for intervention, with 2500 U.S. troops and assistance from Mexico and other Latin American allies, and the governments of France, Canada, and Britain.

The Trump administration tries to justify its attempts at regime change through the same outrageous logic that Obama used when he claimed that Venezuela is an “unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security of the U.S.” Just what is Venezuela supposed to be threatening? Could Venezuela’s independent development be a threat to U.S. control over Latin America?

Corporate media repeats the government’s lie that it only has a humanitarian aim to alleviate the suffering of the Venezuelan people. The media fails to tell us that U.S. and Venezuelan corporations have hoarded goods, creating shortages in this time of economic hardship.

Let’s consider how the wealthy have lost out when Venezuelan workers have benefited from major changes in the last 18 years since the Bolivarian revolution in human rights, democracy, and uniting with others in Latin America for independence from the U.S. corporate rulers.

For example, government spending has shifted away from support for the rich. Social investment has gone up from 37% of the state budget to 61%. Venezuela’s Great Housing Mission has built 1.5 million new public units since 2011, and plans to have another 540,000 new homes by the end of 2017. The government blocked attempts to privatize and turn the units over to landlords and speculators. When 80% of Venezuelans used the free public health care system, private insurers lost out.

What about U.S. claims that Venezuela has a problem honoring human rights?—The facts are that poverty in Venezuela in 1999 stood at 44%. Today poverty has been reduced to 27%. Undernourishment has been reduced from 21% in 1998 to 2% today. Today over 95% of Venezuelans eat three times a day. Illiteracy has been eradicated, infant mortality has dropped by 1/3, and unemployment has been reduced by 2/3. These gains and participatory democracy are threatened by the U.S.-backed opposition to the government.

Why hasn’t the corporate-owned media informed us about elections in Venezuela? International monitors, including former President Carter, reported that Venezuelan elections are among the fairest in the world. But the U.S. government, and the corporations behind it, are not happy that Venezuelans elected first Hugo Chavez and then Nicolas Maduro, two outspoken critics of U.S. imperialist crimes around the world as well as of U.S. crimes against Venezuela.

And U.S. banks and corporations are not happy that Venezuela has been uniting countries in the Caribbean and South America to develop their own independent banking system, and break free from the IMF and World Bank--with loan terms that require governments to deprive the people of social necessities.

Why haven’t we been informed about Venezuela’s developing participatory democracy where working people receive government funds and directly decide what neighborhood projects would be most beneficial? On July 30 people will elect a Constituent Assembly of 545 members, further empowering the people to decide how to solve their problems. This is being done through direct, universal, and secret voting. Candidates are nominated by their peers in constituency groupings such as indigenous people, students, peasants, fishermen, communes and community councils, and workers in oil, mining, basic industries, education, etc.

The bottom line is that when the U.S. interferes in the business of other people’s countries, and their right to choose their own path of development, blood is spilled. And, if the U.S. succeeds, U.S. banks and corporations get to make super-profits with the help of the wealthy inside the countries.

Whatever problems Venezuela or any other country has, we cannot allow the U.S. ruling class to use this as an opportunity to expand its imperial power. The people of each country want to be free to solve their own problems. We Americans are struggling to do just that. We wouldn’t welcome interference by another country.

American working people have no quarrel with the Venezuelan people and nothing to gain from the U.S. government’s illegal and immoral interference in Venezuela. We will not allow the government to commit crimes against other countries in our name. Our job is to work to establish an anti-war government here that will be truly of, for, and by the people.