There is a coup underway in Venezuela. The pieces are all falling
into place like a bad CIA movie. At every turn a new traitor is
revealed, a betrayal is born, full of promises to reveal the smoking gun
that will justify the unjustifiable. Infiltrations are rampant, rumors
spread like wildfire, and the panic mentality threatens to overcome
logic. Headlines scream danger, crisis and imminent demise, while the
usual suspects declare covert war on a people whose only crime is being
gatekeeper to the largest pot of black gold in the world.
This week, as the
New York Times showcased an editorial
degrading and ridiculing Venezuelan President Maduro, labeling him
“erratic and despotic” (“Mr. Maduro in his Labyrinth”, NYT January 26,
2015), another newspaper across the Atlantic headlined a hack piece
accusing the President of Venezuela’s National Assembly, Diosdado
Cabello, and the most powerful political figure in the country after
Maduro, of being a narcotics kingpin (“The head of security of the
number two Chavista defects to the U.S. and accuses him of drug
trafficking”, ABC, January 27, 2015). The accusations stem from a former
Venezuelan presidential guard officer,
Leasmy Salazar, who served under
President Chavez and was recruited by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency
(DEA), now becoming the new “golden child” in Washington’s war on
Venezuela.
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| Leasmy Salazar |
Two days later, the New York Times ran a front-page piece shaming the
Venezuelan economy and oil industry, and predicting its downfall (“Oil
Cash Waning, Venezuelan Shelves Lie Bare”, Jan. 29, 2015, NYT). Blaring
omissions from the article include mention of the hundreds of tons of
food and other consumer products that have been hoarded or sold as
contraband by private distributors and businesses in order to create
shortages, panic, discontent with the government and justify outrageous
price hikes. Further, multiple ongoing measures taken by the government
to overcome the economic difficulties were barely mentioned and
completed disregarded.
Simultaneously, an absurdly sensationalist and misleading headline
ran in several U.S. papers, in print and online, linking Venezuela to
nuclear weapons and a plan to bomb New York City (“U.S. Scientist Jailed
for Trying to Help Venezuela Build Bombs”, Jan. 30, 2015, NPR). While
the headline leads readers to believe Venezuela was directly involved in
a terrorist plan against the U.S., the actual text of the article makes
clear that no Venezuelans were involved at all. The whole charade was
an entrapment set up by the FBI, whose officers posed as Venezuelan
officials to capture a disgruntled nuclear physicist who once worked at
Los Alamos and had no Venezuela connection.
That same day, State Department spokeswoman Jan Psaki condemned the
alleged “criminalization of political dissent” in Venezuela, when asked
by a reporter about fugitive Venezuelan general Antonio Rivero’s arrival
in New York to plea for support from the United Nations Working
Committee on Arbitrary Detention. Rivero fled an arrest warrant in
Venezuela after his involvement in violent anti-government protests that
lead to the deaths of over 40 people, mainly government supporters and
state security forces, last February. His arrival in the U.S. coincided
with Salazar’s, evidencing a coordinated effort to debilitate
Venezuela’s Armed Forces by publicly showcasing two high profile
military officers – both former Chavez loyalists – that have been turned
against their government and are actively seeking foreign intervention
against their own country.
These examples are just a snapshot of increasing, systematic negative
and distorted coverage of Venezuelan affairs in U.S. media, painting an
exaggeratedly dismal picture of the country’s current situation and
portraying the government as incompetent, dictatorial and criminal.
While this type of coordinated media campaign against Venezuela is not
new – media consistently portrayed former Venezuelan President Hugo
Chavez, elected president four times by overwhelming majorities, as a
tyrannical dictator destroying the country – it is clearly intensifying
at a rapid, and concerning, pace.
The
New York Times has a shameful history when it comes to
Venezuela. The Editorial Board blissfully applauded the violent coup
d’etat in April 2002 that ousted President Chavez and resulted in the
death of over 100 civilians. When Chavez was returned to power by his
millions of supporters and loyal Armed Forces two days later, the Times
didn’t recant it’s previous blunder, rather it arrogantly implored
Chavez to “govern responsibly”, claiming he had brought the coup on
himself. But the fact that the Times has now begun a persistent, direct
campaign against the Venezuelan government with one-sided, distorted and
clearly aggressive articles – editorials, blogs, opinion, and news –
indicates that Washington has placed Venezuela on the regime change fast
track.
The timing of Leamsy Salazar’s arrival in Washington as an alleged
DEA collaborator, and his public exposure, is not coincidental. This
February marks one year since anti-government protests violently tried
to force President Maduro’s resignation, and opposition groups are
currently trying to gain momentum to reignite demonstrations.
The
leaders of the protests,
Leopoldo López and
María Corina Machado, have
both been lauded by The New York Times and other ‘respected’ outlets as
“freedom fighters”, “true democrats”, and as the Times recently referred
to Machado, “an inspiring challenger”. Even President Obama called for
Lopez’s release from prison (he was detained and is on trial for his
role in the violent uprisings) during a speech last September at an
event in the United Nations. These influential voices willfully omit
Lopez’s and Machado’s involvement and leadership of violent,
undemocratic and even criminal acts. Both were involved in the 2002 coup
against Chavez. Both have illegally received foreign funding for
political activities slated to overthrow their government, and both led
the lethal protests against Maduro last year, publicly calling for his
ouster through illegal means.
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| Leopoldo López at a recent antigovernment demo. |
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| María Corina Machado with Pres Bush in 2002. |
The utilization of a figure such as Salazar who was known to anyone
close to Chavez as one of his loyal guards, as a force to discredit and
attack the government and its leaders is an old-school intelligence
tactic, and a very effective one. Infiltrate, recruit, and neutralize
the adversary from within or by one of its own – a painful, shocking
betrayal that creates distrust and fear amongst the ranks. While no
evidence has surfaced to back Salazar’s outrageous claims against
Diosdado Cabello, the headline makes for a sensational story and another
mark against Venezuela in public opinion. It also caused a stir within
the Venezuelan military and may result in further betrayals from
officers who could support a coup against the government. Salazar’s
unsubstantiated allegations also aim at neutralizing one of Venezuela’s
most powerful political figures, and attempt to create internal
divisions, intrigue and distrust.
The most effective tactics the FBI used against the Black Panther
Party and other radical movements for change in the United States were
infiltration, coercion and psychological warfare.
By inserting agents
into these organizations, or recruiting from within, that were able to
gain access and trust at the highest levels, the FBI was able to destroy
these movements from the inside, breaking them down psychologically and
neutralizing them politically. These clandestine tactics and strategies
are thoroughly documented and evidenced in FBI and other US government
documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and
published in in Ward Churchill and Jim Vander Wall’s excellent book,
“Agents of Repression: The FBI’s Secret Wars Against the Black Panther Party and the American Indian Movement” (South End Press, 1990).
Venezuela is suffering from the sudden and dramatic plummet in oil
prices. The country’s oil-dependent economy has severely contracted and
the government is taking measures to reorganize the budget and guarantee
access to basic services and goods, but people are still experiencing
difficulties. Unlike the dismal portrayal in The New York Times,
Venezuelans are not starving, homeless or suffering from mass
unemployment, as countries such as Greece and Spain have experienced
under austerity policies. Despite certain shortages – some caused by
currency controls and others by intentional hoarding, sabotage or
contraband – 95% of Venezuelans consume three meals per day, an amount
that has doubled since the 1990s. The unemployment rate is under 6% and
housing is subsidized by the state.
Nevertheless, making Venezuela’s economy scream is without a doubt a
rapidly intensifying strategy executed by foreign interests and their
Venezuelan counterparts, and it’s very effective.
As shortages continue
and access to dollars becomes increasingly difficult, chaos and panic
ensue. This social discontent is capitalized on by U.S. agencies and
anti-government forces in Venezuela pushing for regime change. A very
similar strategy was used in Chile to overthrow socialist President
Salvador Allende. First the economy was destroyed, then mass discontent
grew and the military moved to oust Allende, backed by Washington at
every stage. Lest we forget the result: a brutal dictatorship led by
General Augusto Pinochet that tortured, assassinated, disappeared and
forced into exile tens of thousands of people. Not exactly a model to
replicate.
This year President Obama approved a special State Department fund of
$5 million to support anti-government groups in Venezuela.
Additionally, the congressionally-funded National Endowment for
Democracy is financing Venezuelan opposition groups with over $1.2
million and aiding efforts to undermine Maduro’s government. There is
little doubt that millions more for regime change in Venezuela are being
funneled through other channels that are not subject to public
scrutiny.
President Maduro has denounced these ongoing attacks against his
government and has directly called on President Obama to cease efforts
to harm Venezuela. Recently, all 33 Latin American and Caribbean
nations, members of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States
(CELAC), publicly expressed support for Maduro and condemned ongoing
U.S. interference in Venezuela. Latin America firmly rejects any
attempts to erode democracy in the region and will not stand for another
US-backed coup. It’s time Washington listen to the hemisphere and stop
employing the same dirty tactics against its neighbors.
Eva Golinger is the author of The Chavez Code. She can be reached through her blog.
