Venezuela crisis: Former UN rapporteur says US sanctions are killing citizens

[Miguel M]

Venezuela crisis: Former UN rapporteur says US sanctions are killing citizens

The first UN rapporteur to visit Venezuela for 21 years has told The Independent the US sanctions on the country are illegal and could amount to “crimes against humanity” under international law.

Former special rapporteur Alfred de Zayas, who finished his term at the UN in March, has criticized the US for engaging in “economic warfare” against Venezuela which he said is hurting the economy and killing Venezuelans.

The comments come amid worsening tensions in the country after the US and UK have backed Juan Guaido, who appointed himself “interim president” of Venezuela as hundreds of thousands marched to support him. European leaders are calling for “free and fair” elections. Russia and Turkey remain Nicolas Maduro’s key supporters.

Mr De Zayas, a former secretary of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) and an expert in international law, spoke to The Independent following the presentation of his Venezuela report to the HRC in September. He said that since its presentation the report has been ignored by the UN and has not sparked the public debate he believes it deserves.

More ...
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/venezuela-us-sanctions-united-nations-oil-pdvsa-a8748201.html

[GatoGordo]

1. Alfred de Zayas is a Chavista lapdog

He's been accusing El Imperio of killing Venezuelans long before any sanctions* came along.

Also, de Zayas is a bit of a loon. He is the darling of the Holocaust deniers. Claims that Hitler was the aggrieved party in WW2, and not the Allies.

*Sanctions imposed until recently:

1. No refinancing PdVSA debt by US firms or individuals. Google "hunger bonds Goldman Sachs"
2. No dealing with approximately 40 Chavistas in Venezuela

None of these "sanctions" has kept Maduro from buying food, medicine, equipment or spare parts of any kind.

The disaster that is Venezuela is of the Chavistas own making. Unless the belief is that the recent US sanctions has made the Bolivar Soberano drop 99.99999979% over the last 20 years?

[Miguel M]

2. If you say so.

[MRubio]

3. Facts are stubborn things. n/t

[Miguel M]

4. Your "facts"?

So far, you've rendered opinion, which is fine by me. I take it for what its worth.

[MRubio]

6. For what it's worth......

.......some of us live in Venezuela, and have lived here for many years. Others have family who live here, who have lived here for their entire lives.

On average, I'd trust the observations of someone who lives in the country, works in the country, tries to survive in the country, than someone in New York City or elsewhere in the first world and writes about conditions here, or somone who visits for a week, visits a single city, and would lead others to believe that what they experienced must be the condition across the country.

But that's just me.

[Miguel M]

8. Of course. You should hear what Cuban exiles say about Cuba.

Shocking stuff.

Naturally, they have an ax to grind.

I'm not a Cuban in exile (whatever that means, most all "exiles" are self-exiled).

Have a good one.

[GatoGordo]

10. You've offered up the opinion of a known political hack

de Zayas is a fraud.

Perhaps you should have looked up his esteemed history prior to quoting him?

[Miguel M]

13. If you say so.

[MRubio]

5. You're actually being kind to the bolivar and chavismo there Gato.......

.......the Bolivar Fuerte was introduced in 2008, replacing whatever the hell it was called beforehand. IIRC, that devaluation chopped 3 zeros off the former currency. The Soberano was introduced on 20 August 2018, chopping off another 5 zeros from the Fuerte.

[MRubio]

7. This is interesting....

"Bolívar fuerte, (Spanish: ‘‘strong’’ bolívar) formerly bolívar and bolivar, monetary unit of Venezuela. Each bolívar fuerte is divided into 100 céntimos (cents). The bolívar fuerte (the equivalent of 1,000 bolivares) was introduced in 2008 in an attempt to curb high inflation and simplify financial transactions. It replaced the bolívar, which had been adopted as Venezuela’s monetary unit in 1879. Prior to 1879, independent Venezuela used three separate currencies: the escudo, the peso, and the venezolano."

https://www.britannica.com/topic/bolivar-fuerte

-------------------------

So, in a nutshell, chavismo took over a currency that had been in effect for over 100 years. After destroying that one, they issued another, destroyed it, and are now working on their third issue, the bolivar soberano.

Last August 20, bills in the amounts of 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, and 500 were issued. Today, slightly more than 6 months later, the only merchants who accept the 2, 5, and 10 bs Soberano notes are those who sell gasoline at PDVSA stations, and that's because they're forced to accept them because gasoline is virtually free.

I should also mention that in Tachira and much of the western part of the country, the bolivar soberano hardly circulates. Instead, business is done in dollars and Colombian pesos.......much like pre-1879 days.

Chavismo, making Venezuela primative again.

[GatoGordo]

9. IIRC, the Bolivar was worth 465 Bs to the US dollar when Chavez was sworn in

465-371500000000/371500000000 x 100= loss of value

-99.99999987483176

The Bolivar has lost all value since 1999. Unless you have a lot of it and need to wipe your arse. For the next 40,000 years.

I'm hoping the sycophants for Marxism don't disbelieve mathematics.

[MRubio]

11. The bills are too slick to use for ass-wipe.........

......several years ago when the shortage of toilet paper really hit hard, I was in a panic. But, as they say, necessity is the mother of invention.

I had my step-son buy in Colombia some of those spray thingys one normally has mounted on the sink to help wash dishes. I mounted one next to each commode. They work great as long as there's electrical power to keep the pumps working. Fortunately, we're hooked into a PDVSA substation so electrical power here is fairly reliable............for now.

[GatoGordo]

12. Great for making a point, though

My Venezuelan family said that a couple of years ago, Maduro made it a punishible crime to wipe your ass with a bill and stick on any fascimile of Chavez, Maduro or any PSUV power player. They were especially keen on not finding any more shitty, worthless bills plastered to the all seeing Chavez Eyes that are stenciled all over Maracaibo, Maracay and Valencia.