VENEZUELA SOLIDARITY CAMPAIGN
FEBRUARY 23 2019
(More photos here and here)
Over 250 people attended a protest supported by trade unions, Labour Party activists, Latin American solidarity campaigners, anti-war groups and others in London demanding that the British government does not follow the Trump administration into any military intervention in Venezuela. It was part of a series of #NoWarOnVenezuela protests taking place around the world.
Speaker at the protest, former Mayor of London Ken Livingstone said, “The British public have had enough of UK backing for disastrous US wars for oil – we are here today to say no war on Venezuela and no blood for oil.”
Attending the protest, writer and filmmaker Tariq Ali added, “Polls in Venezuela are showing huge majorities against sanctions and any military intervention by the United States.”
Kate Hudson, General Secretary of CND, said in support of the protest, “This century’s wars show the disaster of military interventionism – from death and destruction to humanitarian crisis and population displacement. To think that such a course of action is a solution to complex economic problems in Latin America is criminal folly.”
The demonstration took place at the Bank of England because the Bank is withholding over $1bn of Venezuela’s gold from the country, in a move widely regarded as being due to the UK backing Trump’s illegal ‘regime change’ agenda in Venezuela.
Commenting on this element General Federation of Trade Unions General Secretary, and Venezuela Solidarity Campaign Vice-Chair, Doug Nicholls said, “VSC has played an important role in highlighting the unjustified political act of the Bank of England in its refusal to release over $1bn worth of Venezuela’s gold. It’s modern piracy. If the Bank of England wants to claim political independence in this country it could start by respecting the independence of Venezuela and returning its gold now.”
On this issue, Tariq Ali also added, “This Bank, which supposedly is independent of the government, when it comes to austerity, does the government’s bidding and the bidding of the United States in seizing the assets that belong to the Venezuelan Government. Under every law, international and local, the government of the day, and this is an elected government by the way, is the only rightful institution and authority to demand that money back.”
NOTES TO EDITORS:
- For media comment please email info@venezuelasolidarity.co.uk with your contact details.