[News] The “Lima Group” Pretence to Be an International Body Is Irresponsible and Dangerous - Venezuelans have chosen their president democratically
Anti-Imperialist News
news at freedomarchives.org
Thu Jan 10 12:48:12 EST 2019
venezuelanalysis.com <https://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/14214>
The “Lima Group” Pretence to Be an International Body Is Irresponsible
and Dangerous
By Nino Pagliccia - Venezuelanalysis.com - January 10, 2019
------------------------------------------------------------------------
/*Sixty years ago Canada did not break diplomatic relations with Cuba
while the OAS expelled Cuba from the organization after the triumph of
the Cuban Revolution. Today the OAS remains firm with its mandate of no
interference while Canada is leading an illegitimate splinter of OAS
countries, self-anointed as Lima Group, to push for regime change in
Venezuela. That is irresponsible and dangerous.*/
At this time sixty years ago Cuba had just won its revolution through a
popular uprising that overthrew a dictator. Two years later in 1961 the
US masterminded a false flag invasion of Cuba that failed. Later, in
1962 the Organization of American States (OAS) turned against Cuba and
expelled it from the organization isolating the country until 2009 when
the OAS invited Cuba to join again. Cuba declined. The US has maintained
a progressively squeezing unilateral trade and financial blockade on the
island since 1960.
Since that January 1, 1959 Canada has taken mostly an independent stance
on Cuba and has maintained diplomatic and commercial relationships with
the country. Even today when the US government places Cuba as a member
of the "troika of tyranny" together with Nicaragua and Venezuela, the
Canadian government is practicing a formal association with the Cuban
government still overtly declared socialist. It may well be in order to
protect the extensive interests built over time without the competition
of US businesses. But that is a different topic.
Today in a different socialist revolution in Venezuela we have a
reversed situation.
Hugo Chavez has won the presidency of Venezuela through democratic
ballots in 1999, as current president Nicolas Maduro did in 2013. All 25
elections at different levels in the last twenty years have been
democratic and constitutional with participation of opposition parties.
This is an undeniable truth despite misinformation from the compromised
media and governments.
Unlike its past position towards Cuba, the OAS has repeatedly refused to
condemn Venezuela even under the strongest pressure from Washington. The
organization has seen fit to abide by the OAS Charter of 1948 that in
Article 19, Chapter IV states: "/No State or group of States has the
right to intervene, directly or indirectly, for any reason whatever, in
the internal or external affairs of any other State. The foregoing
principle prohibits not only armed force but also any other form of
interference or attempted threat against the personality of the State or
against its political, economic, and cultural elements/."
Breaking that explicit mandate and contrary to its independent position
with respect to Cuba sixty years ago, Ottawa has been instrumental in
the creation of the so-called Lima Group with the sole mission of regime
change in Venezuela.
For the record it has to be emphasized that the "Lima Group" is not an
international organization. It's just an /ad hoc/ group of governments
with no other purpose than to promotes the overthrow of the legitimate
Maduro government.
In that context its latest declaration that calls to not recognize
Maduro’s presidency beginning with the inauguration ceremony on January
10, and to impose various other forms of “punishment”, cannot to be
taken as a formal resolution issued by an established international body
like the OAS or the UN. Unfortunately, the Venezuelan opposition
conveniently chooses to take it that way. For example, the self
appointed members of the “Supreme Court of Justice” in exile issued
their own call to “recognize the Lima Group resolution.” That is
extremely misleading, irresponsible and dangerous.
The “Lima Group” of 13 governments (out of 33 OAS member States),
signatories of the declaration (Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile,
Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay,
Peru y Saint Lucia), is totally illegitimate in its pretension to be an
international body. The group wants to achieve outside the OAS what it
could not achieve within the OAS. Ultimately, it will have to be held
accountable as the foreign ideological instigator of any violence that
might occur in Venezuela.
Despite the above necessary explanation of a clear international illegal
act that tramples on the sovereignty of another country, it is important
to broaden the perspective of the situation by highlighting two points.
First of all, the Mexican government, although member of the “Lima
Group”, has not endorsed its document. More sensibly, it justified its
abstention by requesting that an open dialogue be established with the
government of Venezuela instead of imposing isolation and threats.
Mexico was another country that maintained diplomatic relations with
Cuba 60 years ago. It seems to be more consistent than Canada.
Secondly, by a reported count, it appears that the majority of countries
in the world will accept the legitimacy of Nicolas Maduro’s presidency
and will recognize his government for the next six years. In fact, a few
heads of State may even attend the inauguration ceremony on January 10
in Caracas.
In concluding however, not for one second anybody should expect that the
elected president of Venezuela, or of any other country for that matter,
must be declared legitimate by any foreign State. That privilege belongs
only to the six million 244 thousand Venezuelans, representing 32% of
the total number of people with the right to vote, with more than 4
million votes ahead of the candidate who came in second, and with a
voter participation of 48%. By all accounts Venezuelans have chosen
their president democratically for the next six years. That is the
meaning of self-determination.
/The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not
necessarily reflect those of the Venezuelanalysis editorial staff./
--
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