By Stephen Kangal
March 09, 2019
In the face of rapidly unfolding political and diplomatic events globally and the current isolation of T&T for its ill-advised decision to recognize unwittingly and side with the internationally denounced illegal and illegitimate regime of Nicolas Maduro bilaterally while pursuing a contradictory neutrality/ non-interference position at the multilateral Caricom and UN levels, it appears to me that Kamla outwitted Prime Minister Rowley in her strategic support for Interim President Juan Guaido.
She based her decision on humanitarian concerns rather than on geography, petro-politics and the simplistic/pedantic who answers the phone.
It is my view that her decision would appear to reduce the scope for post-Maduro retaliation against T&T by covering the Guaido base left neglected by Rowley’s interventionist/recognition strategy. When both positions are taken together T&T, if regime change were to occur, has protected its future relations. But Kamla has also exercised her political options wisely, strategically and from a political sense adopted expectedly a position that is different from the Rowley Administration.
The differing positions flow from contradictory definitions. Kamla’s position was brave and courageous. It ascended the high moral ground taking into account the prolonged and disturbing humanitarian crisis in Venezuela extending also to neighbouring countries, widespread deprivation of human political and civil rights, near collapse of the economy, runaway spiraling inflation, corruption, sheer dictatorship by the Maduro regime and the increasing pro-Guaido recognition by Latin American and EU states.
On the other hand unwitting recognition by T&T was purely accidental with Moses attending Maduro’s inauguration to shore up and secure the promise of Venezuelan gas from the Dragon’s mouth in a post-Sandals scandal scenario. Petro-politics swayed the GORTT in favour of Maduro while down-playing the serious human rights violations and refusal to accommodate Venezuelan refugees in T&T citing unconvincing absence of legal provisions but forgetting the Dominicans.
It appears that the Rowley Administration was gripped in the vice of Maduro’s Dragon Gas promise as an obsessive compulsive disorder because the Dragon cannot fail us after the Sandals pull-out. That will be a fatal blow to Rowley’s political credibility because of a perception that his personal stakes were involved.
Hence his current pathetic damage control measures targeting and blaming the innocent media as scapegoats and the Opposition as traitors for adopting a different position that is less damaging but also insignificant from a T&T perspective.
Are you serious mr Kangal? why poster? apparently you don’t seem to be a student or know anything of International or geopolitical anything. your opined piece showed how not knowing can play havoc , thats what dis-information is all about, you Mr Kangal come across as very disingenuous , i sometimes wonder what Dr Chadi Jagan’ take on this subject would be . Mrs KPB’ position on Venezuela was the most inept among Caribbean Leaders , if supporting Ms Kamla is your forte , you are doing yourself and Trinidad & T a grave disfavor . The Conservative belief nestled within your mind-set , gives you no right what so-ever to line in the back of Donald Trump’ Criminal policies , are you losing your senses Mr Kangal? have you been blinded the last 20yrs ? “SOME PEOPLE MAY BE DEVELOPED PHYSICALLY ,MATERIALLY ,OR FINANCIALLY , BUT ARE STILL PSYCHOLOGICALLY ( MENTALLY AND EMOTIONALLY UNDEVELOPED , Trinidad it seems , have Her fair share .
Deal with the issues raised- not vilification.
Our Opposition Leader is now complicit in advocating the overthrow of a popularly elected government in Venezuela and some shower praises on her. The US will do what it will do as the only unopposed super power in the world. They have done it many times before and the covert actions now taking place in Venezuela has been repeated many times over. These include the overthrow of Cheddi Jagan in Guyana, Maurice Bishop in Grenada, Allende in Chile, Isabel Peron in Argentina, first Federico Tinoco and then Rafael Calderon in Costa Rica, Nkrumah in Ghana, Patrice Lumumba in the Congo; acting on behalf of the United Fruit Company in Guatemala, the Haitian American Sugar Company and the overthrow of Rosalvo Bobo in Haiti; subverting elections in El Salvador, installation of Rafael Trujillo in Santo Domingo and the Shah in Iran, interference in Panama, Lebanon, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, South Vietnam, Bangladesh, the list goes on. So Venezuela is next and our dear Opposition Leader is showered with praises as the band plays on. High moral ground my foot.
Maduro was fraudulently imposed as the Leader of Venezuela in the face of arrests of Opposition candidates and an election that was replete with fraud and irregularities and he proceeded to pauperise the people and deprive them of food shelter and clothing to the extent that 3m are refugees in foreign countries with 60,000 in T&T alone. That number will rise to 5m at the end of 2019. There is a humanitarian crisis in Venezuela even though the PNM denies that statement of fact. For them it is fiction causing no friction in the international community with 50 countries being forced to recognise Juan Guiado as the interim President in accordance with the Constitution of Venezuela.
What is the position of the PNM having adopted 6 varying positions but squarely behind the murderous Maduro for a few mmbtu of Dragon Gas. What is the status of the Montevideo Mechanism? Has it been shelved in the shelf of a talk shop? Supporting Maduro is a crime against humanity and the future will prove that. So Kamla is right to be on the side of free and fair elections and the restoration of civil, political and human rights in Venezuela. Let the flowers bloom again in Venezuela and let the people eat and develop their country rather than being refugees fleeing from their matrimonial homeland. Maduro must go and so say all of us on the side of protecting humanity from harm and deprivation of their rights to live where they were born and bred punto final.