NO + CHAVEZ

Today, September 4, 2009, Latin Americans peacefully took to the streets around the world to make our voices heard. The objective of our clamor is to ratify democracy as the ideal state system throughout America, and to condemn the imposition and expansion of Venezuela’s totalitarian revolution. We believe that freedom and respect is achieved when the strength of citizens overrides government power. However, when people are fearful of its government, this becomes an unfortunate combination that lends itself to dictatorships, tyranny and human right abuses. We as Latin Americans have learned through the bloodshed of our ancestors that sovereignty and freedom resides with the people.For more than ten years we have observed how Hugo Chavez ridicules democracy by imposing his personal agenda upon his country. He has absolute control upon institutional powers, without generating goodwill, development, education, health system and safety to his people. Quite the contrary, Chavez may have been elected president through a democratic system, however, he used democracy as a structure to forcefully subject Venezuelans to his totalitarianism: Oppression, increasing poverty, collapsing the private sector and polarizing citizens as a means to divide Venezuelan society in order to incite clashes between chavistas and non-chavistas. The opposition has been facing a high degree of discriminatory punishment as a means to instill fear through made up and ridiculously long-term prison sentences to his opponents. By not complying too his indoctrination all your freedoms are limited, as was the case with the closing of RCTV, for example. The new Organic Law of Education is a carbon copy of Cuban law where children will be molded into radical left revolutionaries. We see how he leverages on our ancestors like Simon Bolivar, as a tool of disrespectful manipulation to bring people into his so-called revolution.For more than ten years we have witnessed innumerable claims with respect to human rights and crimes against humanity Mr. Chavez has been directly connected to. Said claims reflect crimes that do not prescribe and we as the people will not let the world forget. For more than ten years we have seen how Mr. Chavez finances campaigns with Venezuela’s petrodollars and how he destabilizes legitimate Latin American governments. His intervention in internal affairs of other countries is unprecedented, constantly violating International Law and the constitution of Venezuela. Non-democratic and oppressive regimes are the blueprint for his personal revolution of the 21st century.For more than ten years Mr. Chavez has been enforcing his expansionist plan throughout the region with continuous threats to friendly nations such as Colombia. We have repeatedly seen and heard him insult and disrespect presidents and heads of states and how he uses the county’s economic clout to blackmail oil-dependent dependent countries by breaking economic agreements through ceasing oil exports. The later has had a devastating impact on Latin American workers and families subjected to his whims. Charity driven petroleum projects with other countries are also a means through which Mr. Chavez can have a stronghold towards in that country, assures himself an invitation to international forums and ensures a stronghold for his revolution of expansion.For more than ten years we have been witness to Mr. Chavez’ close protectionist relationship with drug smuggling terrorist groups such as the FARC and how ambiguity in his lengthy speeches betrays him with a supposed ideological and bolivarian affinity. Considering that a decade is more than enough time to realize what Mr. Chavez’ scary intentions are, we told the world the real truth behind his real agenda. The crumbling of Venezuela’s democratic institutions transcends boundaries and will surely affect our countries directly or indirectly if we do not speak up. Our plight is open to everyone, regardless of religious affiliation, political tendency, and socio-economic level and to politicians that conveniently look the other way by not acknowledging the issue. We must stand together as a region and make sure to remind Mr. Chavez that the will of the people is god’s will, not his will. Today, September 4, 2009, we the people of Latin America protested on the streets of our respective countries and told the world that we will not allow tyranny and dictatorship, especially the pathetic totalitarianism shackle Chavez wants to force upon us: “NO MORE CHAVEZ”