PH lawmakers, groups decry US attack on Venezuela

Some Filipino lawmakers and groups on Sunday condemned the United States’ attack on Venezuela, calling it a violation of the country’s sovereignty, its people’s right to self-determination, and international law.

In a statement, Mamamayang Liberal (ML) Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima said the U.S. move disregarded the progress achieved by the United Nations 80 years after the end of World War II.

“The attack on Venezuela and the abduction of President Maduro undermine the rules-based international order, setting a terrible precedent of heightened aggression by superpowers,” De Lima said.

She urged Congress to conduct “high-level consultations” with concerned agencies and experts to craft a comprehensive and strategic response.

“I therefore call on Congress to conduct high-level consultations with our national defense, intelligence, security, and foreign affairs communities to draw up a comprehensive and strategic response, in terms of executive policies supported by legislation, to the impact of superpower aggression on our own precarious situation in the West Philippine Sea,” De Lima said.

In a separate statement, Senator Imee Marcos said the situation in Venezuela affirms the “long-standing concerns regarding the role of major powers in the internal affairs of states they consider strategically important.”

“The removal or extraction of a foreign leader from his home country may raise serious questions under international law and could send troubling signals to the international community, potentially reinforcing perceptions that power, rather than rules, determines outcomes in global affairs,” Marcos said.

For her part, Senator Risa Hontiveros said the attack by the United States “placed other nations at risk of invasion and violence from foreign powers that may wish to abuse their might for their own interests.”

“I am concerned about the far-reaching consequences of this action for the entire world, particularly for the Philippines, whose territories and resources are increasingly vulnerable to China’s expansive claims and ambitions,” she said.

Senator Jinggoy Estrada said it was too early to determine whether the United States had violated international law.

“At this point, it is premature to conclude whether international law has been violated, especially as the United States government maintains that the incident was part of a law enforcement operation,” he said.

Meanwhile, progressive group Akbayan said the U.S. attack on Venezuela “deepens regional instability.”

“(U.S. President Donald) Trump ushers in a new world order where geopolitical disputes are settled not through international law, but through brute force,” the group said.

In another statement, socialist group Partido Manggagawa said Venezuela’s oil belongs to the Venezuelan people and not to foreign corporations or powers seeking control over strategic resources.

The groups urged the Trump administration to withdraw its military forces and assets, cease hostilities, and abandon plans to take over Venezuela.

They also called on the American public and labor groups to condemn Trump’s actions.

On Saturday, Trump said the United States had captured Venezuela’s long-serving President Nicolás Maduro for his indictment in the US over alleged involvement in narcoterrorism.

However, Maduro has denied the claim, saying Washington was intent on taking control of his country’s oil reserves, the largest in the world.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) earlier said it is closely monitoring the situation in Venezuela following the reported U.S. attack, as it urged restraint among concerned parties and assured Filipinos in the besieged country of assistance.

The DFA said it has recorded 74 Filipinos currently in Venezuela.—MCG, GMA Integrated News