In a Guardian exclusive, Venezuela’s Consul General in New York, Carol Delgado, hailed the newly-created Community of Latin America and Caribbean States (CELAC) as a counter to the United States meddling in the region and its lopsided influence in the Organisation of American States (OAS). She said CELAC’S upcoming summit in Caracas in December is a significant step in creating a community of nations based on solidarity and co-operation. Speaking at her country’s consulate in midtown Manhattan, Delgado pledged her commitment to forming a close knit Caribbean community in New York. “We are brothers and sisters and it’s our responsibility to assist each other,” she said.
Delgado cited Venezuela’s historical ties with Haiti and the role of Simon Bolivar in revolutions throughout the region. “Our motto is Our America, a political concept advanced by Jose Marti. It’s about forging a political union based on common ideals,” she said. She identified recent programmes at the Consulate that promoted the history and cultures of the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Cuba. She acknowledged disagreements with neighbouring Trinidad and Tobago over “our nation’s favourable oil deals with some Caribbean countries,” but said relations can, and should be improved. “We are so close yet so far apart at times,” she observed and promised programmes promoting the twin island state in the near future.
The Consul General went on to denounce critics of the Chavez government, while conceding that the majority of Venezuelans in New York and Miami are against the government. “My role however is to serve all despite their political views,” she added. Delgado lauded President Chavez as a “visionary who has helped Venezuela recover from dependency and US imperialism.” She said: “We were at the mercy of big powers. We now have the right to dream. When Chavez came into office he negotiated and signed huge oil agreements which helped to revalue our most precious commodity.” She also assailed the Western media for disseminating inaccurate information about the South American country.
“Chavez is not dying, neither is Venezuela a politically fractured country. Our leader has been given a clean bill of health and enjoys a 63 per cent approval rating.” Delgado blamed a one time food shortage on saboteurs, “bent on destabilising the government.” She said her government is committed to diversification and she is optimistic about her country’s ventures in telecommunications, satellites and the auto industry. “There is debate on whether our oil production has dropped. Let me say that independent analysts have said that our exports have been stable and our domestic consumption has been steady over the years. We have also seen a spike in agricultural produce.” She also noted that the government’s goal is to stamp out poverty with a prodigious programme that guarantees housing and three daily meals to the needy.
“We have also cut out the middle man so that our produce is 40 to 50 per cent subsidised,” Delgade said. She derided the opposition for campaigning on a strong social agenda platform—for which they have always criticised Chavez. Finally, Delgado welcomed the thawing of relations with Colombia as a “step in the right direction” with wider regional implications. “There is no way that we can completely police over 2000 kilometers of frontier territory,” she argued, referring to past allegations of Venezuelan complicity with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and its decades-old bloody war with authorities. “The Santos government has recognised this and the rapprochement between our governments is a victory for regional stability and co-operation.”
