Free Alex Saab: Public Denunciation Concerning Health Conditions of Venezuelan Diplomat Alex Saab, Illegally Imprisoned in the United States Statement by Free Alex Saab movement and a Doctor’s organization about the lack of medical treatment for Saab.
Valdai (Carlos Ron): Venezuela-US Relations: When ‘Maximum Pressure’ Fails President Maduro has shown two firm convictions. The first is that he will not cede the nation’s sovereignty to the pressure of illegal sanctions. He has stated in clear terms to the US that “Venezuela is to be respected and does not accept colonial models over its gas, oil industry, over its economy, and overt our country.” But he has also indicated that dialogue and diplomacy is the way; that Venezuela is willing and ready to re-establish relations as long as they are based on mutual respect and an equal footing.
Orinoco Tribune: President Maduro: Venezuela Produces 95% of Products Distributed in CLAP Program Previously 93% of CLAP food was imported. 7.5 million families receive food and other daily commodities at least once a month from this plan. The persecution by the US against countries that have provided products to Venezuela’s CLAP program “ took away all the products from the people, generating up to 80% of shortages… We must not forget the economic war and the food war: from this, the people’s program for food was born.” “Today, we can say that we have more than 45,000 Local Supply and Production Committees, 73% of which are run by women.”
Orinoco Tribune: Jorge Rodríguez: Investigation Against Corruption Just Beginning (with Parliamentary Immunity Lifted) The president of the National Assembly reported that the authorities have arrested 19, mostly government officials, within the framework of the Nicolás Maduro administration’s anti-corruption drive. He added that during the governments of the Fourth Republic, there were close to 30 cases of embezzlement of billions of dollars in public funds in almost 40 years, yet “not a single person imprisoned” for serious cases of corruption
Orinoco Tribune: Venezuela Condemns Weaponization of Human Rights by UN and Washington The statements by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the new US Department of State “report” on human rights in Venezuela are seemingly synchronized and take similar tones. This has led some to consider whether they might have been agreed upon by the two actors beforehand. The Venezuelan Foreign Minister wrote that “despite maintaining a permanent aggression against the rights of the Venezuelan people, the US Department of State intends to judge the actions of other governments,” referring to the US weaponization of human rights to attack governments not following its orders.
Venezuelanalysis: Oil Minister Resigns Amidst Corruption Crackdown Oil Minister Tareck El Aissami resigned after the National Anti-Corruption Police revealed “serious acts of corruption” that led to the arrest of several high-ranking figures, including some considered close associates of El Aissami. El Aissami himself had unveiled an alleged corruption plot led by former Oil Minister Rafael Ramírez last year. The present decision was based on “in-depth investigation, carried out for months, that points to citizens who exercised functions in the Judiciary, in the oil industry and in some municipalities in the country.”
Cuba
Cuba Revolution, US embargo: Al Mayadeen interviews Cuba President (I) “We must bear in mind that imperialism today is developing a whole concept of world domination, and therefore it is ideologically based on an integrated program to restore the momentum of capitalism, neoliberalism, and cultural colonialism.”
Havana and the world: Al Mayadeen interviews Cuba President (II) The president accused Washington of using its power of influence through the media to spread Russophobia and disinformation on the origin of the conflict. He stressed that “the culprit in this conflict is the United States itself, which resorts to wars to solve its problems and overcome its crises.” Cuba’s ties to Arab World: Al Mayadeen interviews Cuba President (III) Asked about Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah, the Cuban President confidently said “he is a leader who knew how to lead a movement that defends the causes of the Lebanese people.”
Video: Cuban Doctors Return After Treating Earthquake Victims in Türkiye
Nicaragua
Nicaragua Solidarity Coalition Weekly Newsletter: Pope Francis Slanders the Nicaraguan Government Nicaragua suspended relations with the Vatican after the Pope compared Daniel Ortega to Hitler. The break comes after months of increasingly hostile rhetoric from the Catholic Church, which openly supported an attempted coup that left hundreds of Nicaraguans dead in 2018.
NicaNotes ACTION ALERT: UN Human Rights Report on Nicaragua is Fatally Flawed and Should be Withdrawn sign on to the statement!
Events
Thursdays: WTF is Going on in Latin America & The Caribbean with Teri Mattson (or watch here or here)
March 28: ACERE: IS Cuba a State Sponsor of Terrorism? Why is Cuba Still on the US State Sponsor of Terrorism List?
March 28: Hands Off Venezuela! Free Alex Saab! The latest on Alex Saab’s condition
April 18: Los Angeles – Meet Representatives from Cuban Embassy
April 28-29: Burying 200 Years of the Monroe Doctrine
Delegations/Tours
April 23 to May 7: NNOC-ICAP 2023 May Day Brigade
April 25-May 7: Building Relations with Cuban Labor: Celebrating Labor and May Day
April 27-May 6 Nicaragua delegation by Friends of the ATC
May 25- June 4: Lessons from Cuba: Exploring Art, Healthcare, Sustainability, Education
May 13-22 and June 19-26 delegations to Nicaragua
June 17-27 Nicaraguan Caribbean Coast Delegation with Friends of the ATC
June 26-July 6: Pastors for Peace Climate Change tour to Cuba
July 15-29 IFCO/ Pastors for Peace US-Cuba Friendshipment Caravan
July 21-30, Sept 8-17, December 1-10, Dec 8-17: Witness for Peace delegations to Cuba
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