Are they NGOs or political parties? (2)

Published at: 01/03/2024 05:30 PM

Oversight, Regularization, Action and Financing of Non-Governmental and Related Organizations, announcing that once it is approved, it will be “a possible point of no return in the closure of civic space”, as stated by Patricia Tappatá, a member of the United Nations Mission for Venezuela.

However, it is very easy to obtain information regarding the behavior and participation of NGOs in the violent activities of the Venezuelan opposition, here we can show the intentionality of their spokesperson, which was exposed when analyzing in detail points 13, 14, 15 and 16 of the introductory body of the Program of the Democratic Unity Bureau (MUD), with the activities registered by some of these organizations, which at first glance we could assume that their job is to contribute to the peace and well-being of citizens and then in their actions we see quite the opposite, which is why we present some examples:

• Point 13: Reconcile the country and strengthen democratic institutions. To this end, the Unitary Government will vindicate the Constitution of 1999, as well as the commitment to defend unrestrictedly human rights and constitutional guarantees. It aspires to strengthen and promote spaces for consultation, participation and social dialogue, as well as to guarantee everyone access to justice . It is committed to promoting an amnesty for detainees and exiles for political reasons and the expansion of democracy in political parties and associations; in line with the precepts of organizations such as Sinergia, Súmate, Citizen Control and Public Space.
• Point 14: Invigorate and remodel Public Power. The Democratic Unity will assume the promotion of the independence and autonomy of the branches of Public Power in their different spheres: national, state and municipal. It is proposed to reform laws, regulations and provisions that have undermined the competencies of states and municipalities. It will promote the professionalization and modernization of the administration and public service to adapt it to the requirements of a modern State; as established by PROVEA and the Venezuelan Criminal Forum.
  
• Point 15: Building a productive and progressive society. As a Unitary Government, we are committed to orienting productive efforts towards the diversification of the economy based on the creation and use of knowledge. We will promote a great alliance between the public and private sectors that will facilitate the creation of millions of quality jobs in the coming decades. We will work to ensure the rights to private property and economic freedom, and to develop free private initiative and citizen access to quality goods and services; this is what the NGOs Active Citizenship and Citizen Control present in their objectives.
• Point 16: Improve the quality of life of all citizens. We are committed to designing and implementing policies that improve the lives of Venezuelans. To do this, we will recognize all the benefits provided, and we will work to expand them in coverage and quality. We will encourage the participation of society in the provision and monitoring of social programs and services. We will implement reforms that contribute to reducing citizen insecurity, improving the quality of our public education, guaranteeing the right to universal health coverage, expanding permanent training for employment, extending benefits for older adults, meeting the housing needs of the population and adequately covering public services; such as the foundations of the Venezuelan Center of Violence and the Venezuelan Prisons Observatory .

Sociologist Gladys Rojas, called “Metamorphosis of NGOs: The Socio-Political Role of NGOs in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela during the period 1999-2014” at the School of Social Management of Ministry of People 's Power for Planning analyzed that in their political ideology, these opposition organizations “not only agree and share pseudo approaches democrats of the MUD, but they also feel represented and corporately integrated into the de facto government that this political coalition could come to constitute” and added that this follows from the approach contained in the Government Program of the one presented by the opposition political coalition and that as active militants, they fully share the following neoliberal theses contained in length of the programmatic text presented by Capriles Radonsky on September 15, 2012, in which he proposed:

To reduce or reduce the size of the State, to streamline its bureaucratic burden, to reduce to a minimum the public expenditure represented by the public administration 's payroll.

Reduction of “the rate of increase in current spending to save in good times”. Understanding current spending as current public investment.

Allocate to NGOs the necessary budgetary resources to meet the objectives of public policies, especially to address those social sectors with the lowest income and the problems with the greatest social impact such as: drug trafficking and consumption, violence, early pregnancy, environmental pollution, etc.

Another example that we can remember is that during the events of February and March 2014, these organizations acted as political subjects, taking a stand against the actions of the national government through the pronouncement issued by the International Coalition of Organizations for Human Rights in the Americas (CEJIL).

Thus, the Coalition drafted a document called: “A transition is urgently needed to rescue democracy in Venezuela. NGO: CEJIL Statement”, published on February 2, 2014, which aimed to “state the reasons why it is necessary for a transition to take place as soon as possible in our country, protected by the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, in order to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe, rescue democracy and rebuild the Republic.”

Later in her research, sociologist Rojas added that “the organizations that signed this document, members of the International Coalition of Organizations for Human Rights in the Americas, including the Venezuelan Criminal Forum, Control Ciudadano , PROVEA, COFAVIC and Espacio Público expressed their rejection of the acts of violence that occurred in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, which were financed by those same NGOs, which resulted in the death of at least eight (8) people.”

Faced with this scenario, the Venezuelan State has carried out ex officio, independent, impartial and effective investigations to clarify violent acts, perpetrated by participants in the protests, armed civil groups and financed by the veil of NGOs.

Public Policy Sector/NGO Spokesperson

For the creation of the NGOs that live in the country, they took into account policies of direct influence on the social sphere and which may have the possibility of being controversial material in the national and international media, their spokespersons are the representatives of the NGOs, who lead each sector, which in general have had some kind of political experience or have declared themselves publicly as militants opposed to the Bolivarian Government.

This spokesperson even dares to demand the resignation of public office holders, they accompany and in some cases, they testify together with representatives of the opposition parties. This is the case of Jesús “Chúo” Torrealba, who proselytizes politically from the organization Asociación Civil Radar de los Barrios, and presents it as “a human network composed of community activists of different ideological tendencies and political inclinations; united in a struggle to improve living conditions in popular neighborhoods”, and then assume the role of Executive Secretary of the Venezuelan opposition political coalition called MUD.

From this perspective, we have no doubts in stating that the MUD's government program was not only the program of the Venezuelan bourgeoisie and the parties of the right, but also of the non-governmental opposition organizations as instruments of those interests.

AMELYREN BASABE/Mazo News Team