Labor Movement for the People (Gerakan Buruh untuk Rakyat or Gebrak) protested the intervention of United States to the internal affair of Venezuela. Gebrak also underlined that economic blockade by United States and its allies as the root of economic and political crisis in Venezuela. The protest was expressed during a mass demonstration before United States Embassy to Indonesia on Tuesday, February 12, 2019. People’s movement from various organizations in the alliance joined the protest.
Gebrak stated that the struggle of Bolivarian revolution in Venezuela is the struggle of the oppressed people against imperialism by the US and its allies. Neoliberal imperialism enforces its policies through political intervention. The policies, such as cutting subsidy and privatizing state enterprises, only enrich the tycoons and impoverish the poor
Gebrak considered intervention on a country’s sovereignty is a new form of colonialism. “This protests prove that the imperialist United States is doing a big mistake. US does not respect Venezuelan sovereignty,” said Gebrak spokesperson Nining Elitos.
US recognition of Juan Guaido as Venezuelan president and other political intervention by the US and its allies indeed damaged democracy in Venezuela. “US corrupted the ‘socialism’ democratic system in Venezuela,” said her.
US and its allies has also been endorsing a bias narrative on Venezuela in the mainstream media. The bias includes the misadministration from the government as the cause of the crisis and that Maduro is not the legitimate president. In fact, Maduro was elected in a legitimate election with the support of 68 percent of all voters. Opposition politicians also raced in the election. “The strategy of spreading lies has been deployed as a pretext to invade other countries such as Iraq and Libya,” said other Gebrak Spokesperson, Novri Auliansyah.
On the economic crisis, Gebrak noted that economic blockade as the cause of the basic needs scarcity in Venezuela. US and its allies also confiscated the asset of Venezuelan government valued USD 30 billion which suffice for the government to import goods to meet its people’s basic needs. The confiscation includes the seizure of Venezuelan state-owned enterprise in US, Citgo. US even handed the management to the opposition Juan Guaido to fund the opposition movement. Ironically, the countries sponsoring the economic blockade now offered humanitarian assistance for the crisis they made. “The crisis in Venezuela was designed by western imperialism countries to delegitimize the Venezuelan socialist government,” explained Auliansyah.
Gebrak supported peaceful conflict resolution to solve the Venezuelan conflicts. US and its allies have been escalating the conflicts. US President Donald Trump have several times expressed intention to wage war against Venezuela. US has also supported opposition faction that refused to negotiate peacefully. The self-declared president without election Juan Guaido is known for demanding an immediate election as precondition for negotiation. Meanwhile, the presidential election in 2018 was in fact sooner that the previously planned as the result of previous negotiation with the opposition. “The conflict must be escalated to avoid bloodshed,” said the other Gebrak spokesperson Ilhamsyah. Ilhamsyah noted US must stop its support to hardliner opposition that refused negotiations.
Labor Movement for the People consists oF various organisations. Among them are student organization (Progressif Student School, National Student League for Democracy, People’s Student Federation, and Union of Indonesia Student, Presidium of Indonesian National Student Movement), labor organization (Indonesian Confederation of United Workers, Congress Alliance of Indonesian Labor Unions, National Union Confederation, Central of National Labor Movement), Organizational Political Congres of People’s Labor Struggle, Mahardika Women, The Unity of People’s Strugle, and Agrarian Reform Consortium.