[News] Venezuela: a Threat to US Energy Hegemony?
Anti-Imperialist News
news at freedomarchives.org
Thu May 18 11:44:59 EDT 2017
https://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/13132
Venezuela: a Threat to US Energy Hegemony?
By Raul Burbano- Common Frontiers, May 18th 2017
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Since the election of Hugo Chavez in 1999, Venezuela has achieved
impressive gains in health care, education, and reduction in poverty,
while at the same time wrestled economic and political control from the
country’s elite. Today, soaring inflation, a shrinking economy and a
hyper-politicized environment are contributing to unprecedented
challenges economically and politically - threatening to undo some of
the achievements of the past. These challenges can be attributed to many
factors, some structural, such as an oil-dependent economy, and a
complex monetary arrangement which has given rise to “bachaqueros
<https://www.caracaschronicles.com/2016/05/13/bachaquero-buy-flip-hustler/>”
who resell price-controlled items at hugely inflated prices on the
black market. Other challenges are more politically driven - they stem
from the existence of a hardline sector of the opposition aligned with
U.S. interests who oppose the Socialist government's policies of
resource nationalism and wealth redistribution.
The international media with its biased coverage of the conflict in
Venezuela has failed to adequately report on violent actions against
government supporters by extremist sectors of the opposition. It has
however, diligently perpetuated the opposition narrative that the crisis
in Venezuela is the sole responsibility of the Maduro government, a
dictatorship on the brink of collapse resorting to violence against
peaceful protesters in a desperate bid to hold on to power. These
allegations have little merit, and are similar to accusations made
against former president Hugo Chávez. The hardline opposition has never
accepted the electoral legitimacy of the Bolivarian governments, and its
violent demonstrations have had the full support and backing of the U.S.
government. In 2014 alone, U.S government documents show that Obama's
administration channelled $5M dollars to opposition groups to help
“strengthen” and “protect”
<https://www.state.gov/documents/organization/208290.pdf> democracy in
Venezuela. The Trump administration, in turn, has provided unprecedented
political support to jailed opposition leader, Leopoldo López
<https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/832016501657968640?lang=en> ,
who has been found guilty of public incitement to violence and
association to commit a crime. There has been close coordination between
opposition-led National Assembly leaders and White House national
security advisor H.R. McMaster on how to address the political impasse
in Venezuela.
The international media also puts the blame for the economic crisis
facing Venezuela firmly on the government's shoulders. They fail to
mention the role of business producers of goods who regularly hoard
basic items to create shortages and public discontent. Some believe the
economic war contributed to the PSUV’s defeat during the 2015
parliamentary elections - due to the lack of black beans. Black beans
are a staple of the Venezuelan diet and for some time before election
day these had disappeared completely but the day after voting they were
back on supermarket shelves.
Similar to the crisis that precipitated the short-lived 2002 coup
against Chávez, leaders of the hardline opposition have made it clear
that their goal is “regime change”. Henry Ramos Allup of the opposition
Democratic Action party and former National Assembly president declared
on the first day he assumed that position that they would remove Maduro
from power within six months
<http://www.latimes.com/world/mexico-americas/la-fg-venezuela-congress-20160105-story.html>.
The opposition referred to their march in October 2016 as the “Taking
of Venezuela” (La Toma de Venezuela), an inflammatory title. During that
march Jose Alejandro Molina Ramirez, a policeman, was killed by
opposition gunfire and two others injured; which contradicts the
opposition message that their marches are “peaceful”.
*Extremist Elements within the Opposition*
The opposition has failed to penetrate beyond its narrow base which is
predominately wealthy and middle-class Venezuelans. Their political
demands for early elections do little to address the needs of the
working class poor who are being increasingly affected by the economic
crisis. A recent survey by independent polling firm Hinterlaces
indicates that 66% of the population
<http://www.investigaction.net/en/venezuela-does-the-opposition-want-a-remake-of-the-coup-against-allende/> does
not agree with the opposition focus on removing the president and feels
it lacks any vision on how to solve the economic challenges facing the
country.
Julio Borges, the president of the opposition controlled National
Assembly, has openly called on the military to take action by becoming
part of “the solution” and backing the opposition. He led the 2016,
constitutionally illegal initiative to open a “political and criminal
trial"
<http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/10/venezuela-opposition-votes-put-maduro-trial-161025181844551.html> against
the democratically elected president, Maduro. He has consistently
appealed to the Organization of American States to intervene in the
internal affairs
<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/venezuela-and-the-oas-the-logic-of-withdrawal_us_590389c8e4b084f59b49f8b5> of
Venezuela, even though this is expressly forbidden by that
organization's charter, Article 1. of which states that: “The
Organization of American States has no powers other than those expressly
conferred upon it by this Charter, none of whose provisions authorizes
it to intervene in matters that are within the internal jurisdiction of
the Member States” .
In a bid to remove President Maduro, the opposition triggered a recall
referendum which under the constitution allows for a recall of any
elected official, including the president. Due to divisions within the
opposition, they launched the signature drive too late in 2016 to have
the recall vote in the same year which the opposition demanded. They
also submitted a large quantity of invalid signatures including
signatures from over 11,000 deceased persons and those of more than 3000
minors according to The National Electoral Council (CNE).
The hardline opposition inspired street protests have intensified in
violence over the past few weeks, including deadly street barricades
<http://www.venezuelasolidarity.co.uk/from-2014-violent-barricades-to-venezuelan-assembly-right-wing/> ,
setting of government food-storage building on fire with Molotov
cocktails,
<http://www.latinorebels.com/2017/04/27/venezuela-one-more-dies-in-demonstration-and-national-assembly-threatens-ombudsman/> an
attack on a maternity hospital in the El Valle neighbourhood, violent
clashes <https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/13045> with state security
forces, and attacks against government supporters
<http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/Socialist-Venezuela-Student-Leader-Killed-After-Backing-Maduro-20170506-0022.html>.
More than 42 people have been killed since April 4th many of them
during violent opposition clashes with state security forces: eight
people were electrocuted during a looting incident; five killed by state
security forces; fifteen have died directly or indirectly as a result of
the opposition protesters and the rest are still unaccounted for.
Recently, public workers at the Vice Presidency office and National
Police Force along with others were targeted and their safety
compromised when a group of far right hackers known as “Sons of Bitches”
stole their personal data and made it public. This comes on the heels of
the murder of two government workers shot dead by sniper fire while
participating in pro government rallies, and the assassination of labour
leader, Rexol Alexander Acevedo Navas
<https://www.el-carabobeno.com/asesinado-tres-tiros-dirigente-sindical/>,
member of United Socialist Party of Venezuela.
*A Strong Participatory Democracy*
The opposition has sought to paint Maduro as a “dictator” who fears
general elections. Venezuela has one of the strongest and most active
democracies in the region having carried out 20 elections in 17 years
<https://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/11760> (presidential, regional,
municipal and referenda). It has a strong direct democracy that empowers
grassroots groups through communes and communal councils. The councils
can undertake community development projects as chosen by the community.
Leaders must be elected by the community and decisions are made through
popular assemblies. Currently, there are 46,566 registered communal
councils in the country
<https://www.greenleft.org.au/content/venezuela%E2%80%99s-communes-form-front-line-difficult-revolutionary-struggle>.
It was expected the country would hold regional elections in 2016 but
the National Electoral Council (CNE) postponed them because of
opposition demands to deal with the recall referendum. The opposition
used the postponement to highlight yet another example of the lack of
democracy in the country. Although President Maduro has called for
regional elections <https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/13048>, opposition
leaders have responded with continued street protests.
During the 2015 National Assembly electoral process, the opposition
expressed fears of unfair and rigged elections. They were joined by the
Secretary General of the Organization of American States, Luis Almagro
who condemned Venezuela's electoral process as “unfair” and
anti-democratic. Yet the opposition alliance managed to win a stunning
victory taking a majority in the National Assembly.
The opposition is demanding that presidential elections be moved up
which some consider a violation of the constitution. A recent poll
suggests that 65%
<http://hinterlaces.com/65-esta-de-acuerdo-en-esperar-elecciones-presidenciales-de-2018/>of
Venezuelans prefer to wait and have them in 2018 when they are scheduled
to occur.
*National Assembly in Violation of the Constitution*
In January 2016, the opposition controlled National Assembly was held in
contempt of the constitution by the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) over
fraud charges involving opposition deputies from the state of Amazonas
who were recorded illegally offering payment for votes. When the TSJ
ordered the National Assembly to hold elections to replace the corrupt
deputies, the legislative ignored the order and refused to remedy the
situation.
The most recent political impasse between the country's two major
institutions took place when the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the
Venezuela’s state oil firm PDVSA, which was seeking to establish a joint
venture with Russian oil company Rosneft to generate investment in the
struggling economy. The opposition controlled National Assembly blocked
<http://www.cnbc.com/2017/03/31/reuters-america-update-1-venezuela-court-move-may-facilitate-russian-investment-spook-other-oil-majors.html> the
investment opportunity, while its president, Julio Borges, a leading
opposition member of the Justice First party sent letters to investors
and bankers, lobbying them <https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/13076> not
to invest or extend credit to the government. The TSJ ruling stated that
while the legislature continues to violate the constitution, it would
stand in where necessary to ensure the “rule of law” or until the
situation is resolved.
The decision generated intense debate among many in Venezuela. Some,
like constitutional lawyer Hermann Escarra
<http://www.telesurtv.net/opinion/Hermann-Escarra-El-Poder-Judicial-es-el-custodio-del-Estado-constitucional-de-derecho-20170331-0003.html> and
Ombudsman Tarek William Saab denied the courts acted unconstitutionally
but others like Attorney General Luisa Ortega Díaz strongly criticized
the ruling. Although the ruling was immediately reversed, the opposition
still called for street protests, many of which turned violent.
Coincidentally, concerns over Venezuela’s’ joint venture with the
Russian state owned oil company aren’t unique to the Venezuelan
opposition but also shared by the US administration. US senators Marco
Rubio and Ben Cardin recently introduced legislation entitled “the
Venezuela Humanitarian Assistance and Defense of Democratic Governance
Act” to “help” the Venezuelan people overcome the crisis and prevent the
merger with Rosneft. The administration sees the merger as a threat to
their national energy security and fear the joint venture could allow
Rosneft to gain “control of U.S. energy infrastructure
<https://www.rubio.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?id=257C91E2-807B-441B-B671-9CF5A8C72B1A>”.
Venezuela's state-owned oil company PDVSA, owns U.S. Oil Company Citgo
based in Texas which has refineries, gas stations and infrastructure in
the US. The legislation also earmarks $9.5 million for opposition groups
working to “defend human rights” in Venezuela.
Opposition members of the National Assembly have begun to threaten
Ombudsperson Saab unless he agrees to give them the green light to
remove TSJ judges. The ombudsperson accused Freddy Guevara from the
opposition Popular Will party of making “criminal threats”
<http://www.latinorebels.com/2017/04/27/venezuela-one-more-dies-in-demonstration-and-national-assembly-threatens-ombudsman/> against
his office. Multiple offices of the national human rights watchdog have
been attacked nationwide and the local Ombudsman’s office in Valencia
was firebombed by “masked opposition militants
<http://www.eluniversal.com/noticias/politica/tarek-william-saab-denuncio-quema-defensoria-valencia_650833>”.
*Opposition Lacks Alternatives*
Despite the economic challenges facing many Venezuelans, this opposition
coalition, the Democratic Roundtable, appears to be narrowly focused on
removing Maduro from office and “making the economy scream
<http://nsarchive.gwu.edu/NSAEBB/NSAEBB8/nsaebb8i.htm>”. Since taking
control of the National Assembly, the coalition has put forward no real
proposals to address the economic challenges facing the country.
Instead, it appears they have used their legislative control to block
economic initiatives intended to help the economy, preferring to create
a climate of regulatory uncertainty to scare off potential investors.
This could lead to the cutting off of access to foreign currency -
undermining the economy further and forcing Venezuela to default on its
international payments.
*On-Going Dialogue*
Last year the intergovernmental regional organization, the Union of
South American Nations (UNASUR) undertook to lead an initiative for
national dialogue. The opposition set preconditions for dialogue with
the government. As a demonstration of good faith and in stark contrast
to the media narrative that the Maduro government is dead set against
negotiations, he agreed to some of the opposition demands. The
government released opposition leader Carlos Melo and two other accused
of planning terrorist acts. The government agreed to the opposition’s
demand for Vatican participation in the dialogue, and that the talks be
held in Caracas rather than the island of Margarita.
After several meetings the Vatican sponsored peace talks came to an
abrupt end when the opposition walked out - accusing the government of
negotiating in bad faith. In an open letter, the opposition made it
clear that the chapter for dialogue was closed and would not be
re-opened again
<http://www.infobae.com/america/america-latina/2017/01/26/el-comunicado-de-la-oposicion-venezolana-comunico-que-se-baja-definitivamente-del-dialogo-con-el-regimen-de-nicolas-maduro/>.
They called on their supporters to intensify street protests.
Most recently, the Pope called on all sides to engage in dialogue and to
reject violence. He also criticized the opposition as “divided
<https://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2017-04-30/pope-calls-for-venezuelan-negotiated-solution-to-curb-violence>”
citing their “resistance to dialogue”.
The opposition coalition has been divided on whether or not to engage in
negotiations, more extreme elements see negotiations with the government
as treason. María Corina Machado, a former National Assembly legislator
and founder of the US funded NGO Súmate
<https://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/789> criticized the opposition
coalition for its error in engaging in dialogue stating “dictatorships
don’t hold dialogues
<https://www.el-carabobeno.com/maria-corina-machado-dialogo-gobierno-suspenderse/>”
and called for street mobilizations.
Maduro continues to call for the opposition to resume negotiations and
welcomes the Pope’s offer to help mediate. The opposition has refused to
engage, even after the government fulfilled another one of their demands
for dialogue - calling for the CNE to set a date for regional elections.
*Constituent Assembly
*
In a bid to address the country’s political standoff, Maduro has invoked
article 347 of the constitution calling for a National Constituent
Assembly
<https://eliasjauavzla.wordpress.com/2017/05/06/constituyente/> which
will be responsible for re-drafting the 1999 constitution. The assembly
will be composed of 500 directly elected delegates, half of which will
be elected from among the country’s social movements. Part of the goal
seeks to institutionalize important aspects into the Magna Cara such as
building a “post-petroleum” economy to address climate change and new
expressions of local government.
Opposition leaders criticized the initiative, accusing the president of
trying to outmanoeuvre them in the legislature. Despite the staunch
criticism, the opposition had in the past advocated for a Constituent
Assembly as a solution to resolve the country’s problems. Opposition
leaders like Henrique Capriles, Leopoldo Lopez, Freddy Guevara and Maria
Corina Machado, all signed a joint statement demanding a Constituent
Assembly be called.
The majority of people in Venezuela want to move forward in a peaceful
manner to resolve their differences while demanding respect for their
sovereignty. However, extremist elements in the opposition have declared
themselves in open rebellion against the democratically elected
president, rejecting further negotiations and calling for street
mobilizations. The International media and their unconditional support
for the opposition is fueling the fire, telling half-truths and
inadvertently condoning violence and exacerbating the conflict.
By making Venezuela ungovernable the opposition coalition is betting
on foreign interference to pressure the government to resign, thus
allowing them to regain power - something they have failed to achieve
democratically at the ballot box for the past 17 years.
/Raul Burbano is the program director of Common Frontiers
<http://www.commonfrontiers.ca/aboutus.html>, a multi-sectoral working
group which confronts, and proposes alternatives to, the social,
environmental and economic effects of economic integration in the Americas./
--
Freedom Archives 522 Valencia Street San Francisco, CA 94110 415
863.9977 www.freedomarchives.org
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