The Nobel peace prize winner Elie Wiesel (Elie Wiesel), a former prisoner of Nazi concentration camps, who died a few months ago, said that “any place where people are persecuted on ethnic, religious or political grounds, should immediately attract the attention of the entire Universe.”
Unfortunately, by the end of 2016 such places was very much. It is difficult to focus our efforts in one single direction, when hundreds of thousands of innocent people die in Syria the terrorists commit their dastardly antics in various cities of Europe, Africa and the Middle East, in Myanmar are subject to harassment of minority representatives in the Philippines to create the appearance of gain of drug in the West committed more murders on motives of personal dislike, etc. the news Reports are rife with stories which terrify, but there are so many that we no longer give them the value, seeing as a new reality of the XXI century in which we happen to live.
It is in these moments tested the strength of our conscience, our capacity is estimated to be sentinels of peace, democracy and freedom of peoples. We can’t afford to pause in the struggle for human rights.
I see disturbing signs of this pause in our Latin America. A year ago when the opposition defeated the chavismo in the parliamentary elections in Venezuela, many had high hopes for democratization. The regime of Nicolas Maduro had the opportunity to initiate a process of openness and dialogue, releasing political prisoners, which would allow him to transform chavismo into a political force which can survive even after impeachment or defeat in the presidential election. But instead Maduro decided to burn all the bridges and ships, to strengthen personal power and increase pressure on their political opponents.
Even the slightest sign of fairness was still in the ruling regime, finally disappeared in 2016. Human rights violations not only continued, but worsened.
First of all, you need to declare the shameful behavior of the regime, unwilling to abandon their political fantasies and conspiracy theories when his own people are starving. Added to this is the situation with political prisoners, who are not only thrown into prison only for their dissent, but also suffer from diseases and inhuman conditions of detention in the complete indifference of the Venezuelan authorities.
History will stand in judgment for those who know what is happening in Venezuela, turned their attention in another direction. I’m not going to sit idly by and once again appeal to world community to pay attention to our Venezuelan brothers, to exert pressure on the government of Nicolas Maduro to release all political prisoners. Protection of human rights should not be ideological or partisan coloring. You do not need to belong to the right or left to say about the humanitarian crisis currently experienced by Venezuela. You just need to adhere to democratic views and believe in the dignity of all people.
