CHÀVEZ: U.S. CAN’T MEDDLE WITH UNITED GLOBAL SOUTH

As the U.S. escalates its aggression in Latin America by bombing a Colombian vessel and revoking President Petro’s visa, and now that 14 states have announced their intention to join South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the ICJ, it’s worth recalling Hugo Chávez’s rallying call: “The peoples of the Global South must unite if we are to defeat imperialism.”

Africa’s history is filled with progressive leaders who were overthrown or killed in Western-instigated coups, including Thomas Sankara in Burkina Faso and Patrice Lumumba in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The pattern is clear: removing leaders who challenge imperial control is a recurring tactic in the Global South.

Venezuela has long been a target. Today, the West seeks to delegitimise the 28 July 2024 presidential election simply because the U.S.-backed opposition lost. This is part of a continuum. Since Chávez’s 1999 election, when he challenged U.S. corporate control of Venezuela’s oil, every bold step toward sovereignty has been met with subversion.

In 2002, a U.S.-backed coup briefly toppled Chávez, but 47 hours later, a million citizens marched to the palace and forced his return. In 2004, an orchestrated recall referendum failed disastrously for the opposition. In footage from that era, Chávez warned that Washington was plotting against any progressive leader and urged unity across Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

His prophecy resonates today. From Ouagadougou to Bamako and Niamey, a new generation of revolutionary leaders is emerging, defying hegemony, demanding dignity, and reviving South-South solidarity.

Video Credit: VTV