By Pasqualina Curcio on March 18, 2019
In 1972, at the United Nations, Salvador Allende said “it is even more painful to have to come here to this rostrum to proclaim the fact that my country is the victim of grave aggression. Imperialism and its cruelty have a long and ominous history in Latin America. We are the victims of a new expression of imperialism -more subtle, sneakier, and terribly effective to block the exercise of our rights as a sovereign state. This financial stranglehold of a brutal nature has resulted in a severe limitation of our possibilities to get supplies.”
Only a few people listened to him.
One year later, in 1973, Chile’s presidential palace La Moneda was bombed. Augusto Pinochet took office and the bloodiest dictatorship began.
Two years later, in 1975, U.S. senators proved the CIA was involved in the coup d’état. They concluded that a democratic government was overthrown to establish a dictatorship.
Half a century later, in 2019, it is even more painful to have to denounce that my country, Venezuela, is victim of the same grave aggression.
We live in an economic and political situation in which, not yet a humanitarian crisis, it is hard to acquire medicines and some food items, besides an accelerated price increase. It is caused by unilateral and illegal coercive measures imposed by imperialism and attacks to our currency, which have resulted in the loss of over $110 billion to date – that is the equivalent of 30 years of food and medicine for our people.
Just as in Chile, we have been victims of fascist and terrorist acts. We recently suffered a criminal blackout that led 30 million Venezuelans to be without electricity, water, oil and communication for four days – a blackout similar to that suffered by the Chilean people on August 14, 1973. This is no coincidence.
Mrs. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Venezuelans do not need humanitarian aid. We need imperialism to lift the financial and commercial blockade, to stop attacking our currency and the terrorist aggressions against our people.
We demand justice.
Recognizing that these actions and expressions on behalf of imperialism are crimes against humanity would be an important step for the world peace and stability.
In this regard, the United Nations has a decade-long large debt.
Source: http://www.ultimasnoticias.com.ve/noticias/opinion/a-michelle-bachelet/
Source: Ultimas Noticias, translation, Resumen Latinoamericano, North America bureau