VSC suggest the name of Mr. Mascota for the British Prime Minister

VSC & HoV Response to Blair

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The Prime Minister: Up to a point. It is rather important that the Government of Venezuela realise that if they want to be respected members of the international community, they should abide by the rules of the international community. I say with the greatest respect to the President of Venezuela that when he forms an alliance with Cuba, I would prefer to see Cuba a proper functioning democracy. I entirely understand the point that my hon. Friend is making, and I will obviously reflect on it carefully, but I have to say to him that the most important thing is that countries in south America and north America realise that they have much in common, much to gain from each other and much to gain from each other particularly through the principles of democracy.

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An open letter to Yuri Pimentel (Minister of Communication & Information - Venezuela)

8/2/2006

Dear Yuri Pimentel,

We at VSC in Britain listened today to Prime Minister's question time from the House of Commons and were disgusted at Mr. Blair's attack on Venezuela and its sovereign right to develop links with Cuba and other nations. His response is based on lies and distortions of the USA and is a repeat of the disinformation campaign which has took us to an illegal war in Iraq, based on lies and misinformation. Alongside Mr. Danger and Mr. War in the USA, Mr. Blair in Britain is attempting to act as the acceptable face of US imperialism.

We at VSC in Britain will continue to work with others to oppose these gross misrepresentations.

We suggest the name of Mr. Mascota for the British Prime Minister, since that is all he does as Mr. Danger's pet poodle. Please send President Chavez our congratulations and we give our commitment to the continued process, building solidarity and working to prevent our government backing any illegal and unjust interference in Venezuela's internal affairs. Yours Sincerely

Andy Goodall
Venezuela Solidarity Campaign
venezuelasolidarity.org.uk

Official statement by Venezuelan Vice President Rangel against Blair’s comments about Venezuela

This statement by the Venezuelan Vice President, sums up the hypocrisy and poodle-like attitude of Blair in relation to the Bush administration and hits home with some hard truths. Draw your own conclusions.

Rangel: Blair hits out against Venezuela to ingratiate himself with the gang in the White House
From Vice Presidential Press
Thursday, February 9th 2006 08:16pm GMT 
 
Caracas, February 9th 2006. The Executive Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel, supported President Chavez’ reply to the British Prime Minister in a press release. Blair had asked for Venezuela “to adhere to the rules of the International Community”

Rangel called this aggression depressing which is any case was not done innocently but was strictly adjusted to the format used by President Bush himself. The Vice President affirmed that Blair wanted to ingratiate himself with the gang in the White House, which means that Great Britain is now classified as a “sub-empire”. Complete text follows.

COMPLETE TEXT

 “The whole country supports the reply of President Chavez to the insolent and provocative allusions made about Venezuela by British Prime Minister Tony Blair. It is a question of unjustified aggression against a nation such as Venezuela which maintains a close and cordial relationship with both the British government and the British people.

The way in which the aggression was produced was not exactly innocent. It was calculated and corresponds to the format used by President Bush, not only in respect to Venezuela but to other countries as well. It is therefore depressing that the Prime Minister of a nation as important as Great Britain said what he did about our country in order to ingratiate himself with the gang that dominates policy in the White House. When the British Prime Minister asks Venezuela to “adhere to the rules of the international community”, it is worth asking him to which rules he is referring, since it looks as if in the criteria of both Blair and Bush there exist rules for the international community different from those consecrated in international law and which also from part of the body of principles used by the UN.

Venezuela respects the rules of the international community and for this reason does not invade other countries, mount economic blockades, does not condone torture, does not protect international terrorists, and repudiates the existence of secret CIA prisons in various European countries. These must be the rules of the international community which Bush and Blair say Venezuela does not adhere to, since our country does not commit genocide, torture, invade or systematically fail to recognize international law.

I would like to ask Mr. Blair, when he has condemned the violations of international law committed by the North American president? The contrary is true; he has accompanied him in all his audacious and irrational adventures. Does it seem correct to you, Mr. Blair, in terms of the rules of the international community, to lie to the whole world about the existence of weapons of mass destruction in order to launch an attack on a country such as Iraq? What do you think about the attitude of Mr. Bush’s government protecting a terrorist, the same or worse than Bin Laden, as is Posada Carriles?

It is depressing that a head of government can subordinate himself in such a way to another, in order to attack a government and its friendly people. On many occasions the attitude of sub-empires is more denigrating that that of empires themselves. Under Blair’s government, Great Britain has descended to the condition of a sub-empire, in which situation it has no choice but to imitate the perversions of the United States. Venezuela is a peaceful, democratic country which advocates world peace, social justice and good relations with all nations on earth. However, at the same time our country has a strong sense of dignity, of sovereignty and respects the maximum rule of international law which is non-intervention. The reply given by the Venezuelan President and government to Mr. Blair is no less than deserved.

José Vicente Rangel
Executive Vice President

Footnote: the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry has also issued a sharp diplomatic protest note to the British Embassy in Caracas.

Andy Goodall
andy.goodall@venezuelasolidarity.org.uk

CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) 9/02/06 - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez told Prime Minister Tony Blair to "go right to hell" on Wednesday after Blair said Venezuela should abide by the principles of democracy.

Chavez, a fiery leftist who recently compared U.S. President George W. Bush to Adolf Hitler, accused Blair of bowing to Washington's interests and being "shameless" and "immoral."

"Stay in your place, Mr. Blair, you are not one that has the morality to criticise anyone," Chavez said during a speech. "Venezuela is a free nation. Do you believe we're still in times of imperialism and colonialism?"

"Go right to hell, Mr. Blair," Chavez said, using local slang that is more vulgar.

The Venezuela Information Centre regrets the tone and content of Mr. Blair's reply. Venezuela  has held the most thoroughtly monitored  and audited elections of any country and independent international observers have consistently certified them as free and fair.

It is extremely unfortunate that the Prime Minister failed to take this oportunity to acknowledge Venezuela's democratic credentials under President Hugo Chavez and to congratulate him and his government on the major advances made in tackling poverty and social exclusion. Mr. Blair's attempts to undermine the authenticity of Venezuela's democracy by reference to its relations with Cuba was particularly unfortunate. Part of President Chavez's approach has been to promote regional integration through building strong alliances with all his neighbours in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Prime Minister's ill-informed remarks have caused great offence in Venezuela, particularly following on from last week's intemperate comments from Donald Rumsfeld when he compared Chavez to Hitler. Mr. Blair's response betrays his adherence to the hawkish, neo-conservative, view of Venezuela fostered by the Bush admistration. 

The recent UK  trade union fact-finding mission to Venezuela headed by Rodney Bickerstaffe was told by Jose Vicente Rangel, the Venezuelan Vice President and Ali Rodriguez, the Venezuelan Foreign Minister that they placed great value on good relations with the United Kingdom and hoped to strengthen ties in 2006.

Whilst the PM's comments were regrettable, VIC hopes that they may generate a meaningful debate which will allow for some redress to the general media distortion in reporting of events in Venezuela. Those who visit Venezuela, as opposed to those taking their information from State Department-sponsored wire services, invariably come away convinced that  it represents one of the most positive examples in today's world of a participatory democracy working to make poverty history and redress decades of corruption and mis-government. 

Keith Sonnet Chair Venezuela Information Centre

Statements of British Prime Minister Infringes Basic Principles of International Law

The Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela formally rejected the recent statements of British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, because they “clearly infringe the basic principles of International Law.”

The communiqué addressed by the person in charge of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Pavel Rondón, to British Ambassador in Venezuela, Donald Alexander Lamond, refers to “the pitiful statements delivered by Prime Minister, Anthony Blair, in the British Parliament against the President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Hugo Chávez Frías, the Venezuelan State and the Venezuelan people.”