The United States Imposes Additional Sanctions on Venezuelan Dictatorship Officials for Human Rights Abuses

           United States President Barack Obama yesterday signed into law a bipartisan bill approved by the Congress imposing asset freezes and travel restrictions on individual officials of the Venezuelan dictatorship who were responsible for abusing human rights in its recent crackdown on political dissent, such as suppressing peaceful anti-government protests and making political prisoners of opposition figures for exercising their freedom to engage in legitimate political activity.

            Venezuela’s socialist regime has compiled a poor human rights record, according to the leading international human rights organizations and is rated as “Not Free” by Freedom House, the leading organization that rates states around the world on their levels of freedom.  Venezuela is an ally of various anti-American tyrannical regimes and state sponsors of terrorism, including Iran, North Korea, Cuba and Russia.  Venezuela aids the Marxist narco-terrorist rebels in Colombia, allows pro-Iranian Islamist terrorist organizations access to its banks and supports Cuba, which is designated by the U.S. State Department as a state sponsor of terrorism that harbors and provides financial support to various terrorists, including some of the Colombian terrorists.  Venezuela’s dictatorship spreads socialism and anti-Americanism throughout Latin America. 

           I have posted several times over the years to call attention to the lack of liberty in Venezuela, its support of terrorism and its hostile foreign policy.  The additional sanctions imposed by the U.S. on Venezuela’s regime are helpful, but more must be done for freedom.  I again call for the designation of Venezuela’s dictatorship as a state sponsor of terrorism and for further measures to promote liberty and representative government for the Venezuelan people.