The Venezuelan foreign affairs ministry rejected calls by the Secretary-General of the Organisation of American States’ (OAS), Luis Almagro, for the International Criminal Court (ICC) to launch investigations into crimes against humanity committed under President Nicolás Maduro’s government.
Earlier this week, OAS chief Almagro denounced the ICC Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda for failing to launch a formal investigation into crimes against humanity in Venezuela, called her actions “stunning” and “inexplicable”. He said, “We cannot play with the lives of the people who are victims of a humanitarian crisis to the dimension of Venezuela,” adding, “We cannot play with the lives of the Venezuelan migrants who want to return to the country.”
Bensouda’s office, for its part, has released a statement saying: “Impartiality and independence together form the cornerstone of the Prosecutor’s mandate and underlie her every action and decision.” Her office rejected attempts by the OAS to steer the ICC’s decision making, saying that the Court does not accept attempts to “interfere with prosecutorial independence or the normal course of justice”. In fact, Bensouda has already met with Venezuelan attorney general Tarek William Saab to indicate that an investigation may be forthcoming, and Saab has offered to comply.
The OAS is a continental organisation of 35 countries that aims to promote diplomacy and trade between states in the Western Hemisphere. Headquartered in Washington DC, the organisation has often been accused of being an arm of the US government, as evidenced by the exclusion of Cuba, and the withdrawal of Venezuela in 2017.
In fact, the OAS was formed as a coalition of anti-communist countries in 1948 during the beginning of the Cold War. Moreover, the US Agency of International Development (USAID) wrote in 2018 that the OAS “promotes U.S. political and economic interests in the Western Hemisphere by countering the influence of anti-U.S. countries such as Venezuela” as a justification for the approval of funding by Congress.
Hence, it is hardly surprising that the OAS is now criticizing the ICC, given that the Trump administration has sanctioned all ICC employees involved in the investigation of war crimes committed by US soldiers in Afghanistan. Among those sanctioned are Chief Prosecutor Bensouda and Phakiso Mochochoko, who is the Head of the Jurisdiction, Complementarity and Cooperation Division.
The US is not a signatory to the Rome Statute and does not recognize the ICC, which came into force in 2002 and was established to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression.
Against this backdrop, the Venezuelan foreign ministry has responded to Almagro’s comments by accusing the OAS of attempting to “interfere in a biased, extorting, and unacceptable manner with the independent functioning of the ICC”. At the time of Venezuela’s withdrawal from the OAS in 2017, President Nicolás Maduro said, “The OAS has become the vehicle for interventions that are openly harmful to the principles and the rule of international law.”
The OAS’ disdain for Venezuela is a common theme within the organisation. For instance, on September 29, members discussed the Maduro regime’s “systematic decimation of Venezuela’s democratic institutions and disregard for rule of law fomented an environment of impunity”, and accused him of committing “electoral fraud to undermine the last democratic institution in Venezuela, the National Assembly”.
Then, in October, the body adopted a resolution that “demands investigations of human rights abuses, and specifically calls for the protection of the brave members of the legitimate National Assembly”. The document goes on to insist on “holding free and fair presidential and parliamentary elections as soon as possible”.
Certain members have pushed back against this anti-Venezuela narrative. For instance, Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Keith Rowley accused the OAS members of supporting the US in “forcing violent regime change” in Venezuela that has worsened the humanitarian crisis in the country. He says that this policy has led to the influx of Venezuelan migrants into Trinidad and Tobago, which he says the “little island nation of 1.3 million people” is not prepared to handle.
It must be conceded that the OAS’ complaints of human rights abuses in Venezuela are not without merit. In fact, the organisation released a report that details how Venezuelan security forces and paramilitary groups have killed 18,093 people and arrested 15,501 between 2014 and 2020.
These findings are corroborated by a 15-page report by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, which was released in July. The UN report outlines how the justice system in the country has been “considerably undermined”, which has paved the way for ‘impunity’ and human rights violations, such as “deprivation of life, enforced disappearance, torture and sexual and gender-based violence involving members of the security forces”. The report also comments on the erosion of judicial independence and worker exploitation.
The OAS’ claims of electoral fraud are also well placed. In June, Venezuela’s Supreme Court unilaterally swore in a new commission to the country’s National Electoral Council ahead of the parliamentary elections this month. Currently, the opposition holds a majority of seats in the congress, which is the only branch of government that is not under President Maduro’s control. A few days later, Supreme Court also ordered the takeover of two opposition parties, the Justice First party and the Democratic Action party, as part of what it described as a “necessary restructuring process”.
Nevertheless, while the OAS’ comments on the Venezuelan government are indeed valid, its explicit interference in the affairs of the ICC is also suggestive of the heavy American influence on the organisation, which negatively impacts its credibility and legitimacy.
Venezuela Rejects OAS’ Calls for ICC Investigation Into Crimes Against Humanity
The Venezuelan foreign ministry has accused the OAS of attempting to “interfere in a biased, extorting, and unacceptable manner with the independent functioning of the ICC”.
December 4, 2020
IMAGE SOURCE: AARON BERNSTEIN / REUTERSSecretary-General of the Organisation of American States Luis Almagro