Message to the Members of The Network
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
In light of the recent election results in Venezuela, we would like to send a very strong Solidarity Message to the United Socialist Party of Venezuela BEFORE the inauguration of the new National Assembly on Tuesday 5th January 2016.
Please read the attached letter and let me know if we can add your name as a signatory.
Feel free to share with other relevant persons. But please move swiftly since time is of the essence.
David Comissiong
CARIBBEAN CHAPTER
International Network In Defense of Humanity
31 December 2015
The President
General Secretary
Officers and Members of the
United Socialist Party of Venezuela
Dear Brothers, Sisters and Comrades,
I greet you with the Pan-Africanist rallying cry of "One Cause, One Goal, One Destiny!", and extend greetings to you on behalf of the members of the Caribbean Chapter of the International Network In Defense of Humanity and their many organisations located in the Caribbean nations of Antigua & Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Guadeloupe, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, St Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago,and the United States Virgin Islands, and in the Caribbean Diaspora communities of Canada, Britain and the United States of America.
We write to you dear brothers, sisters and comrades of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela in order to reiterate our continuing solidarity with you and our unstinting support for the valiant and principled struggle that you have undertaken over the past two decades in defence of the most noble and enlightened principles that human beings have devised for living together on this earth.
Indeed, the most straight-forward way for us to express how we feel is to simply state that we stand proudly and defiantly with you because your cause is our cause!
Needless-to-say, we are only too well aware of the role that you, under the leadership of Hugo Chavez (and more recently under the leadership of Nicolas Maduro), have played in carving out critical space for all of us in the Caribbean and Latin America to utilize in defending, preserving and even advancing the humane, progressive, life-affirming principles, policies and social practices that are essential for the survival and development of the broad masses of our people and the nations that they have striven to construct over the centuries.
After all, it was largely because of you and your efforts that the United States of America - orchestrated "Free Trade Area of the Americas" was defeated, and we were able to derail the concerted effort that the US establishment was making to thoroughly denude our national governments of sovereignty; to fully open up our economies to the depradations of US multi-national corporations; and to privatise and commodify the crucial social services and public utilities that are critical to our people’s well being.
It was your articulation and championing of a new 21st century brand of Socialism that broke new ground in defending and advancing the notion that the State must undertake the duty of providing for the education and critical health care of its people: and that the State must also ensure adequate minimum levels of housing and nutrition for its citizens, and invest in a cultural and artistic policy that is designed to preserve fundamental elements of the national identity and sense of purpose.
Furthermore, it was largely through the efforts of your national hero (and our hemispheric hero) Hugo Chavez that Bolivar’s and Marti’s dream of a united Americas was given new life in the form of the Bolivarian Alliance For Latin America and the Caribbean (ALBA), the Petro Caribe Energy Cooperation Agreement, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), the Banco del Sur, Telesur, and the list goes on.
It was your party and your / our leader - Hugo Chavez - that brought to life a new principle of international relations, namely: Prosper thy neighbour by co-existing in solidarity, sharing resources, and coming to the assistance of each other in times of crisis.
Indeed, this is how we interpret the Petro Caribe Energy Co-operation Agreement. We do not conceive of Petro Caribe as a one-way mechanism through which the Caribbean nations and people merely extract benefits from Venezuela’s petroleum resources! Rather, we see it as an exercise in building solidarity and brotherhood and in fostering a "prosper-thy-neighbour" ethos.
And so, we fully appreciate that when oil prices drop on the international market and Venezuela experiences financial or economic difficulties that we have a duty - in keeping with the spirit that infuses Petro Caribe - to make whatever efforts we can to source more of our imports from Venezuela; to facilitate Venezuelan airlines accessing Caribbean routes; to support Venezuela in the international arena; to build tourism linkages with Venezuela; and to otherwise come to the assistance of Venezuela.
Venezuela has taught many important lessons in "Solidarity" and the mutual duties that come with Solidarity, and we have learnt those lessons well! And this is why we are so confident that the border issue between Venezuela and Guyana is not a foreboding issue that portends crisis in our relations. Indeed, we have come too far along the road of solidarity and brotherhood to harbour any such doubts or fears! We will not permit external (or even internal) forces to exploit this issue for their own selfish and destructive ends. Rather, we will solve this issue peacefully and consensually within the family structure that Venezuela and the Caribbean have constructed over the past two decades.
And so brothers and sisters, please be assured that in this most difficult period of your national politics we are with you. We have interpreted the results of the recent National Assembly elections as a wake up call, and a summons to redouble our efforts of solidarity with the still unfolding Bolivarian Revolution!
The survival of many important social and political principles are at stake here; the fate of 21st Century Socialism is in the balance; the mission to unify and integrate "our America" is being called into question; and we fully understand that the very fate of our Caribbean civilization is wrapped up with the political events that are unfolding in Venezuela today.
Like you dear brothers and sisters of the United Socialist Party, we too have only just begun to struggle and we are ready for the campaign that lies ahead. We may have lost a battle, but we are confident that we will win the war!
A luta continua! Victory is Certain!
Yours fraternally
DAVID A. COMISSIONG
Caribbean Chapter
International Network In Defense of Humanity
