That a UN official, separate from any commitment to the Venezuelan Government, exposes the negative effects of the economic, commercial and financial blockade, undoubtedly constitutes an important step in the international recognition of the illegality of such measures.
In effect, the illegal coercive measures implemented by the White House slowed the development of the country due to the severe impact on its economy, caused by the 99% fall in foreign exchange earnings in recent years.
In addition, the implementation of such actions affected the country’s access to medicines and food, which had a devastating effect on the health of the Venezuelan population, in addition to accentuating the crisis situation and internal tensions, with repercussions on the migratory flow and the separation of families.
All this has been confirmed by the special rapporteur of the United Nations (UN), Alena Douhan, whose report presented today uncovers the uncensored truths about and negative impact of the United States blockade against Venezuela.
At a press conference held at the end of her official visit to this South American nation, the independent expert from the United Nations presented a chronological and detailed analysis of Washington’s punitive actions and their consequences.
Reporting the negative impact of the coercive measures, which have intensified since 2015 when then-President Barack Obama declared Venezuela an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States, has been a priority for the Caracas authorities.
The Executive Order signed by the US president unleashed an escalation of coercive measures, which reached a paroxysm with the administration of Donald Trump, which plunged this nation into a deep crisis.
Year after year the Bolivarian Government denounced these events to the world, from the United Nations itself to the lawsuit filed on 13 February 2020 in the International Criminal Court.
In the face of the indifferent and (in some cases) even complicit gaze of countries and international entities, over the last five years the Venezuelan people suffered an acute economic and social crisis that affected all areas of national life.
For the Foreign Minister, Jorge Arreaza, denouncing the illegality of the United States blockade will always be one of the main issues of the country’s foreign policy: “Those coercive, unilateral and arbitrary measures that generate the blockades are outside of international law.”
In recent statements to Prensa Latina, the Minister of Foreign Affairs assured that more and more countries are becoming aware of the damage that these punitive actions generate and the need to confront and denounce them.
“If all the countries subjected to this aggressive and hostile policy by Washington work together,” he said, “there is hope that international organisations will condemn them shortly; if we go forward together and continue resolutely, we will achieve our objective.”
In turn, the president of the Venezuelan Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Production (Fedecámaras), Ricardo Cusanno, admitted that these measures also affect the national private sector.
Cussano has characterised his historical position contrary to the policies of the Bolivarian Government. Therefore, his statements demolish the discourse of right-wing political sectors promoting the so-called sanctions.
The big businessmen’s recognition of the consequences of these punitive actions provides new arguments for a truth that is impossible to hide, which was really laid bare after the forceful statements of the UN special rapporteur. (PL)
(Translated by Hannah Phelvin – Email: hphelvin@gmail.com) – Photos: Pixabay
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