Why Cuba is afraid, very afraid, of unrest in Venezuela

Why Cuba is afraid, very afraid, of unrest in Venezuela

By Mary Anastasia O'GradyPublished February 24, 2014

The Wall Street Journal



The bloodshed in Caracas over the past 12 days brings to mind the 2009

Summit of the Americas in Port of Spain, where President Obama greeted

Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chávez with a huge grin and a warm handshake. A

couple of months later the State Department attempted to force Honduras

to reinstall pro-Chávez president Manuel Zelaya, who had been deposed

for violating the constitution.



Brows were knitted throughout the Americas. Why did the U.S. president

favor the Venezuelan dictator, protégé of Fidel Castro, over Honduras,

which still had a rule of law, press freedom and pluralism?



Venezuela has promised 100,000 barrels of oil per day to Cuba, and in

exchange Cuban intelligence runs the Venezuelan state security

apparatus. The Cubans clearly are worried about losing the oil if their

man in Caracas falls.

Fast forward to last Wednesday, after four peaceful student-protesters

had been confirmed as having been killed by the government's armed

minions. Mr. Obama took notice, pronouncing the brutality

"unacceptable." That must have been comforting to hear amid the gun

shots and pummeling on the streets of Caracas.



That same night the government of Nicolás Maduro —Chávez's handpicked

successor—unleashed a wave of terror across the country. According to

Venezuelan blogs and Twitter posts, the National Guard and police went

on a tear, firing their weapons indiscriminately, beating civilians,

raiding suspected student hide-outs, destroying private property and

launching tear-gas canisters. Civilian militia on motor bikes added to

the mayhem. The reports came from Valencia, Mérida, San Cristóbal,

Maracaibo, Puerto Ordaz and elsewhere, as well as the capital.



To continue reading Ms. O'Grady's column in the Wall Street Journal,

click here:

http://alturl.com/zdoj9





Mary Anastasia O'Grady writes The Americas column for the Wall Street

Journal



Source: Why Cuba is afraid, very afraid, of unrest in Venezuela | Fox

News -

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2014/02/24/why-cuba-is-afraid-very-afraid-unrest-in-venezuela/