Venezuela Ratifies its Commitment to Fight Terrorism

UN and OAS anti-terrorism treaties become law in Venezuela after recent ratification. Anti-Chavez terrorist activities planned in U.S. soil, might be reason for U.S. refusal to sign OAS' anti-terror convention.

In the face of the recent bomb attacks against government buildings in Venezuela, and claims by the U.S. News and World Report of possible Venezuelan support for terrorists, the country has confirmed its strong commitment to fight terrorism. Venezuela has recently ratified several international treaties through which it makes clear its condemnation and repudiation of that type of crime in all its forms, and its commitment to fight against this threat to peace and international security.

The International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings, the Terrorist Financing Convention and the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflicts, were the instruments ratified at the United Nations, during the 58th Ordinary Session of the General Assembly of the UN. By ratifying these treaties, they automatically become national laws of obligatory enforcement, according to the Bolivarian Constitution of Venezuela, approved in December of 1999.

Venezuela also reinforced its commitments for the international cooperation between the States with the development and the adoption of practical and effective measures to prevent terrorist acts and the trial and punishment of the perpetrators of these acts.

In the Organization of the American States (OAS), Venezuela subscribed the Inter-American Convention Against Terrorism, adopted in June of the 2002 and which only 11 other countries of the Organization have signed: Antigua and Barbuda, Canada, El Salvador, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, Santa Lucia, Saint Vincent, Surinam, Trinidad and Tobago and Uruguay. There are 22 other nations, among them the United States, which haven’t even announced if is going to subscribe or not to this Convention.

On September 25, the Venezuelan National Assembly approved unanimously the approving law regarding this Convention.

The Convention demands that the actions and policies to fight terrorism must be carried out with total respect of the Law, Human Rights and fundamental liberties. It also stipulates that the granting of political asylum must be avoided in cases that involve the protection of those suspects of committing terrorist acts.

U.S. would be forced to investigate possible terrorist activities against Venezuela

Signing the Inter-American Convention Against Terrorism would force to United States to crack down or at least investigate the training camps operating on south Florida by Cuban and Venezuelan opposition militants.

Venezuela has recently complained about terrorist acts being planned in Florida against the Venezuelan government and President Chavez. Chavez has accused the U.S. of not doing enough against terrorists operating in North American territory. Chavez cancelled his trip to the UN General Assembly Ordinary Meeting, after intelligence reports uncovered a possible plot to assassinate him.

The existence of training camps run by former Venezuelan military personnel living in the United States has been recently documented by the Miami Herald, which published a report with photos of Venezuelan government opponents wearing military uniforms training with anti-Castro militants.

Last January, The Wall Street Journal reported that dissident Venezuelan Capt. Luis Eduardo Garcia claimed he was providing military training for some 50 members of the F-4 Commandos, 30 of them Cuban-Americans, the rest Venezuelans, in a shooting range close to the Florida Everglades. “We are preparing for war,” he said.

The U.S. Ambassador to Venezuela, Charles Shapiro, has been made aware of the existence of the terrorist camps in Florida. However, the U.S. government has not yet announced whether or not it will open an investigation on the matter.

Several figures who participated in the April 2002 coup d’etat against President Hugo Chavez, now live in the United States. This includes arms dealer Isaac Pérez Recao, who lives in Florida.

A bomb attack on September 19 against the Honor Guard Regiment in front of the Presidential Palace, left no injuries.
Photo Credit: Venpres

Recent terrorist actions against Venezuelan government

Last month a strong explosion took place in the parking lot of the Regiment of the Honor Guard, located in front of the Presidential Palace of Miraflores, downtown Caracas. Some opposition activists are the main suspects in the investigation being carried out by the authorities.

Last Saturday, a bomb was thrown against the headquarters of Venezuela’s Telecommunications Commission CONATEL, after the commission confiscated some equipment used by TV station Globovision for making illegal transmissions through microwaves.

Early this year, two explosions partially destroyed the building of the Consulate of Colombia and a Spanish Embassy building. Ongoing investigations have identified opposition militants as being behind the terrorist attacks.

An article recently published in the U.S. News and World Report, claims that Venezuela is becoming a shelter for terrorists that might attack the U.S. Only unamed U.S. governmnet sources are cited as proof of the claims.

See also: