Cruel leaders are replaced only to have new leaders turn cruel. – Che Guevara

                                         Venezuela wins while Justin Trudeau continues to err

 "Venezuelan voters turn their backs on Chavismo after 17 years." This was the head of the international corporate media five years ago after Chavismo lost the parliamentary elections. Over the course of the five years that followed, the United States and its allies, including the European Union and the Lima group led by Canada and Colombia, waged a fierce hybrid war. As of 2019, they used Juan Guaidó, an imposed straw man and president-elect to the National Assembly, whose purpose was to overthrow the Maduro government and turn, at all costs, Venezuela into a satellite of the United States and the West, as has been seen in the past. Venezuela wins while Justin Trudeau continues to err 

 However, five years later, according to a statement from the National Electoral Council (CNE) dated December 8: 

 “The alliance formed by the Great Patriotic Pole [Chavista] has so far 4 million 276 thousand 926 votes for 69.43 percent; The alliance made up of Acción Democrática, Copei, Cambiemos, El Cambio and Avanzada Progresista has 1 million 95 thousand 170 votes for 17.72 percent; Venezuela Unida, Primero Venezuela and Voluntad Popular Activistas added 259 thousand 450 votes for 4.15 percent; the Communist Party of Venezuela (PCV), totals 168 thousand 743 votes for 2.7 percent. Which represents 30.5 percent of the voters registered in the electoral roll for this electoral process. Participation: 30.5 percent of the voters registered in the electoral roll for this electoral process.

 Of the 277 seats, “according to data from the National Electoral Council (CNE), the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV-Chavista) obtained 257 deputies between nominal and list, while for the opposition Democratic Action (AD) obtained 11 deputies, Avanzada Progresista, 3; El Cambio, 3 deputies; First Venezuela, 2 deputies, as well as the Social Christian-Copei party and the Communist Party of Venezuela, one each.

 " The extremist forces associated with the unconditional Trump-Guaidó dumbbell could not win like five years ago, because they completely boycotted the elections to the National Assembly. Sadly, for obvious reasons: They know that their support for US sanctions and military intervention has left them completely discredited. The game plan led by the United States to disrupt the elections was counterproductive, and the fact that the elections were held reinforced Chavismo. 

The participation rate on December 6 was 30.5 percent and at first glance this may appear to represent a defeat, or even a rebuttal, by the PSUV. So the concerted effort by the US and its allies to elicit a significant abstention rate of at least 80 percent did not turn out as expected. Franco-Argentine Marco Teruggi, one of the most respected and consistent journalists who writes about Venezuela, has provided a balanced assessment: 

 “However, neither the abstention was 80%, nor was the abstention that existed the product of a call from Guaidó and Pompeo, but rather the result of a series of variables, such as, for example, the situation of prolonged economic difficulties in the framework of a economic blockade that, during 2020, took on even greater dimensions within the "maximum pressure" deployed from the US.

 The economic variable, with its consequent impact on discontent and exhaustion, was not the only explanation for the participation rate. Another reason can be found in a complex political conflict that generated wear and tear on the population, where a sector no longer feels represented in any of the existing political options. 

" Argentine political analyst Atilio Boron also offers a balanced point of view. It confirms and expands on many of the points raised by Marco Teruggi. First of all, consider that 

“The plans of the subversive right and imperialism have been defeated, in a pyrrhic battle…. Among the factors that had a negative impact so that it did not go to the polls en masse, the effects of the pandemic are undoubtedly counted. This discourages leaving home, getting on public transport, queuing to vote, being in close proximity with strangers, and so on. Such deterrents cannot be underestimated. This, of course, does not remove the need to review the popular mobilization devices that were always so important in Chavismo and that give the impression of being in need of an urgent overhaul. 

" According to Leonardo Flores of the international anti-war group Code Pink, “migration is another factor that artificially reduced participation. Only citizens currently residing in the country can vote in legislative elections, but most of those who have left in recent years

                                                                       

 White helmet terrorists arrived in Canada possibly bound for Venezuela

 

According to Leonardo Flores of the international anti-war group Code Pink, “migration is another factor that artificially reduced participation. Only citizens currently residing in the country can vote in legislative elections, but most of those who have left in recent years continue to appear on the electoral roll as if they lived in Venezuela.

 

" In addition, the December 6 reports from The Gray Zone website indicate that Guaidó was “carrying out a campaign of fear of COVID-19 through messaging applications and repeating the entire day to Venezuelans who stayed at home. ”. However, 6.251 million Venezuelans went to the polls, regardless of who they voted for, thus becoming the heroes of this chapter in the history of Venezuela.

 

On December 10, President Maduro said about the results of the parliamentary elections: "There are many things to learn, to review, to study, to deepen.

 

" A reconfiguration in Venezuelan politics

 The election has also led to a reconfiguration of Venezuelan politics. The US has shot itself in the foot. There are no more pro-US forces. Or pro-Guaidó in the National Assembly. One of the US election observers in Venezuela, Margaret Flowers of People'sDispatch, reports.

 

 “We just met with the candidates of the Democratic Alliance, the opposition parties in Venezuela that have been in negotiations with the Maduro government and that are participating in the National Assembly elections this year despite pressure from the US. .to boycott them. They believe in peace, democracy and believe that Venezuelans can solve their problems using legal institutions. 

 

 One of the main messages they want us to convey to the American people is that Juan Guaidó's far-right opposition, financed by the US, lacks support in Venezuela; that it is essentially supported by the rich Venezuelans who left the country and that it is they who represent the opposition in the country. They want us to let them know that they want diplomacy with the US government, an end to the economic war, and respect for their sovereignty.

 

 After tomorrow's national election, the current National Assembly will no longer exist. Members of the opposition fear that, despite this, Washington and its lackeys in Western Europe and Latin America will continue to support the US puppet Juan Guaidó to the detriment of the Venezuelan people.

 

 This was confirmed just after the elections, when on December 10: The deputy elected to the National Assembly (AN) and national secretary general of the Partido Social Cristiano Copei, Juan Carlos Alvarado, assured this Thursday that despite not having obtained a The majority of seats in the parliamentary elections of the 6D are willing to work as of next January 5 with the elected officials.

 

 Another Caracas report by American Rick Sterling also illustrates the common ground forged between the Chavistas and the elected opposition:

 

 Trump and Trudeau err while Arreaza remains calm 

How have the US and Canada reacted to all this? More than anything, they reflect agitation. On December 6, during the elections, the Secretary of State of the United States, Mike Pompeo, tweeted:

 

 “Venezuela's electoral fraud has already been committed. The results announced by the illegitimate Maduro regime will not reflect the will of the Venezuelan people. What is happening today is a fraud and a farce, not an election ”. A few hours later, Canadian Foreign Minister Champagne tweeted: “Canada does not recognize the results of the electoral process on December 6 in Venezuela because the process did not meet the minimum conditions for a free and fair exercise of democracy. Free and fair elections can only occur when democratic rights are fully respected. We continue to call for a peaceful democratic transition and free and fair presidential elections. Canada will always stand alongside the people of Venezuela in their fight to restore democracy.

 

 " The Trudeau government, always of the same feeling and opinion as the United States, could not avoid the ingenuity of the Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza:

 Arreaza has undoubtedly become a very popular political figure in Canada, particularly since the conference last August, yet the Trudeau government is struggling to stay afloat. A previous article, as a prelude to the parliamentary elections on December 6, indicated that "while Guaidó's position in Venezuela is currently at an all-time low, the self-proclaimed interim leader has also seen much of his international support evaporate.

" Is the Trump-Trudeau-Lima Group coalition breaking up? 

Let's see. Has the Trudeau government finally come to its senses after the December 6 elections and the reconfiguration of the Venezuelan political landscape? Has the Lima group and Guaidó been removed? So it seems. Like Pompeo, Trudeau's foreign minister did not mention the Lima group or Guaidó, which is already a very revealing scoop. 

Yet the Trudeau administration is desperately trying to resurrect its failed policy of regime change. The aggressive policy of the Trump-Trudeau dumbbell has repeatedly failed and instead of uniting anti-Chavez forces, it has created a division. Guaidó finds himself more isolated than He is never and virtually alone, not to mention that he is no longer an elected member of any government body. By simply standing at the polls, the electorate ratified a National Assembly that for the first time is 100 percent opposed to the Guaidó coalition. Trump-Trudeau is prone to interference and sanctions.

 But, on December 7, the outgoing Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, followed the same line: "The government of the United States will continue to recognize interim President Guaidó and the legitimate National Assembly." Also, on December 7, the Canadian government, suddenly remembering what it had forgotten to mention, issued a statement similar to Pompeo's, only now on behalf of the Lima group, in which it rejects the results of the 6th of December. 

 However, the Trudeau government does not seem to be ashamed of the fact that among the countries of the Lima group, supposedly in charge of bringing democracy to Venezuela, is Peru itself, which is going through another political crisis and lacks a president; Guatemala, where protesters burned down Congress; Chile, which applied violent repression against those who demanded the removal of President Piñera from the Pinochet era, and Colombia, which regularly carries out massacres and murders of social activists.

 In their rush to organize, Trudeau and his Lima group, unlike Pompeo, did not mention Guaidó or the National Assembly that is left behind. Was it an oversight? Or does this reflect a split in the ranks of the US-led coalition, Trudeau and Duque? Did the already despised Trump administration go too far in making the ridiculous claim that the National Assembly that previously had Guaidó as “President” still exists? 

Greater division within the opposition: "It's over, it's over, melted, closed"

 Apparently this is the case, as other fissures have appeared in the opposition.

 In a BBC interview on December 6, the former opposition figure and two-time presidential candidate against Chávez and Maduro, Henrique Capriles said that the opposition must continue on the electoral route, instead of choosing the violent route ... nothing personal against Guaidó, but that is over, it's over, melted, closed, ready. " However, Capriles agrees with the sanctions, putting him at odds with newly elected opposition candidates who oppose the sanctions. According to a Reuters report, “Henrique Capriles's press office and the State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Guaidó's communications office declined to comment. 

" On December 9, two other opponents Ramos Allup and Julio Borges are summoned: “Ramos Allup and Julio Borges separate themselves from Guaidó, because the self-proclaimed one has not wanted to distribute the real that has been stolen.

 In addition, on December 9, the Organization of American States (OAS), based in Washington DC and controlled by the United States, held a virtual meeting. The draft resolution was presented by Brazil and had the support of Canada, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, the United States, Guatemala, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and other nations until adding 21 votes in favor (three more than necessary to be approved ). However, the representatives of Argentina, Mexico and Bolivia did not vote in favor.

 Furthermore, in that OAS declaration, although this organization swore by Guaidó and acted as his virtual spokesperson some time ago, this time Guaidó is not mentioned. Instead, in its declaration the OAS declares: “to make an urgent call so that the protection and physical security of the democratically elected members of the National Assembly is guaranteed and the safe return of those members of the opposition who are in exile is allowed. 

" However, this also does not arrogantly put the OAS on newly elected deputies of the National Assembly, which also includes most opposition parties. If someone had wanted to tell a story about the division and backstabbing among some of the opposition, this version could not have been made up.

 Meanwhile, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza remains calm, but determined in the spirit of the Bolivarian Revolution. Arreaza responded to the OAS in a tweet:

 Similarly, when the UK Embassy in Venezuela issued a statement rejecting the election results, Arreaza tweeted: And? [in the sense of "so what with that"]. Mind your own business. 

 "It is time for Canada to have an independent foreign policy"

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The obvious submission, hesitations and inconsistencies of the Trudeau government have not gone unnoticed by some members of the Canadian Parliament, such as Niki Ashton of the New Democratic Party, referring to the position of Canada that refuses to recognize the results of the elections of 6 of December: 

Other examples of social media talks by MPs and social activists circulate, representing a significant section of Canadian public opinion. However, the question remains when and how this opposition to Trudeau can be raised in Parliament and thus influence public opinion.

 The reconfiguration of the Venezuelan National Assembly is part of the greatest geopolitical redefinition of Latin America. The December 6 victory comes after the fascist US-backed coup in Bolivia was replaced by a government inspired by the once outlaw Evo Morales. In 2021, the elections are scheduled for Ecuador, where the movement that supports Rafael Correa seeks victory. In Venezuela, local and regional elections are scheduled for 2021. In Brazil, Chile and Colombia, how long can right-wing governments hold out? 

On all these issues, it is clear that the Trudeau government is on the wrong side of history. Its scandalous behavior towards Venezuela is only part of its failed imperialist policy. As a faithful ally of the United States, it clearly seeks North American hegemony over Latin America and the Caribbean. The Trudeau government has learned nothing after the humiliating defeat in its bid for a seat on the United Nations Security Council. The Trudeau government is counting on the COVID-19 crisis to muffle all internal discussions about its foreign policy. The Canadian corporate media follows suit, desperately repeating the lies about Venezuela and any other state in the world that finds itself in the crosshairs of US foreign policy, rather than Canada's own. The need for an independent Canadian foreign policy has never been greater. 

This is an adaptation of the original article published in The Canada Files.