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<h1 class="title">U.S. President Barack Obama Brands Venezuela a
"Security Threat," Implements New Sanctions</h1>
<div class="submitted">
<p class="byline"> By <span class="author">Lucas Koerne<br>
<b><small><small><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://venezuelanalysis.com/news/11256">http://venezuelanalysis.com/news/11256</a></small></small></b><br>
</span> </p>
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<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Caracas, March 9, 2015 (</strong><a
href="http://venezuelanalysis.com/"><strong>Venezuelanalysis.com</strong></a><strong>)
– </strong>U.S. President Barack Obama issued an executive
order this Monday slapping Venezuela with new sanctions and
declaring the Bolivarian nation an "<span>unusual and
extraordinary threat to the national security". </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The sanctions target seven
individuals accused by the White House of alleged human rights
violations and "public corruption", freezing their assets and
barring entry into the U.S.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The figures include Justo Jose
Noguera Pietri, President of the state entity, the Venezuelan
Corporation of Guayana (CVG) and Katherine Nayarith Haringhton
Padron, a national level prosecutor currently taking the lead in
the trials of several Venezuelan political opposition leaders,
including Leopoldo Lopez. </p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The executive order is the latest in
a series of U.S. sanctions imposed on Venezuela over the past few
months. On February 3, the Obama administration expanded the list
of Venezuelan officials barred from entering the U.S., which now <a
href="http://venezuelanalysis.com/news/11181">includes the Chief
Prosecutor Luis Ortega Diaz</a>. </p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">"Venezuelan officials past and
present who violate the human rights of Venezuelan citizens and
engage in acts of public corruption will not be welcome here, and
we now have the tools to block their assets and their use of U.S.
financial systems," announced White House spokesman Josh Earnest.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The U.S. has failed thus far to
disclose evidence that might bolster its claims of human rights
violations, leading Venezuelan and other regional leaders to
condemn what they regard as the arbitrary and <a
href="http://venezuelanalysis.com/news/11184">political
character of U.S. sanctions</a>. </p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">While regional bodies such as the
Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) have called for dialogue,
Washington has so far refused to support negotiations or to
recognise the organisation's stance.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span>"We will continue to work
closely with others in the region to support greater political
expression in Venezuela, and to encourage the Venezuelan
government to live up to its shared commitment, as articulated
in the OAS Charter, the Inter American Democratic Charter, and
other relevant instruments related to democracy and human
rights," reads the latest White House statement. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The order goes on to call for the
release of all "political prisoners" allegedly held by the
Venezuelan government, including "dozens of students". </p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The Venezuelan government, for its
part, maintains that all of those arrested are in the process of
facing trial for criminal offences linked to violent <a
href="http://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/10942">destabilization
efforts spearheaded by the opposition</a>.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Former Caracas Metropolitan Mayor
Antonio Ledezma was arrested last month on charges of conspiracy
and sedition related to the February 12 thwarted "Blue Coup"
attempt. A Venezuelan judge found sufficient evidence linking the
opposition <a href="http://venezuelanalysis.com/news/11238">figure
to air force officials involved in the coup</a> as well as to
rightwing terrorist leaders such as Lorent Saleh, who was <a
href="http://venezuelanalysis.com/news/11228">extradited by
Colombian authorities to face charges last year</a>.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The other high profile Venezuelan
opposition leader currently facing trial is Leopoldo López, who
was indicted for his role in leading several months of violent
opposition protests last year with the aim of effecting <a
href="http://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/11211">the "exit", or
ouster, of the constitutional government</a>. Known as the
"guarimbas", these violent protests and street barricades caused
the death of 43 people, the majority of whom <a
href="http://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/10580">were security
personnel or Chavistas</a>.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Ledezma and López, together with
far right leader Maria Corina Machado, were active in the 2002
coup against then president Hugo Chávez, which succeeded in
temporarily ousting the Venezuelan leader until he was restored by
a popular uprising.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">All three opposition leaders also
signed a "National Transition Agreement" released on the day prior
to February's "Blue Coup" attempt, describing the government of
Nicolas Maduro as in its "terminal phase" and declaring the need
to "name new authorities" without mentioning elections or other
constitutional mechanisms. Many political commentators interpreted
the document as an open call for a coup against the president. </p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The Venezuelan government has
charged the U.S. government with hypocrisy on the issue of human
rights, and in particular the mass repression and incarceration of
Afrodescendent communities in the U.S. </p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">On February 28, President Maduro
announced new measures imposing a reciprocal travel visa
requirements on U.S. citizens seeking to enter Venezuela as well
as mandating a reduction in U.S. embassy staff to levels that
match the <a href="http://venezuelanalysis.com/news/11245">number
of Venezuelan personnel in Washington</a>.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Maduro also announced the creation
of an "anti-terrorist list" of individuals barred from entering
Venezuela, which will include former U.S. officials such as George
W. Bush and Dick Cheney, who have reportedly "committed human
rights violations." </p>
Venezuelan Foreign Minister, Delcy Rodriguez, has confirmed that the
Bolivarian government will soon issue an official response to the
order.
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