Venezuela's Intellectuals Come Out Against Obama Decree

Minister of Culture Freddy Nañez affirmed Wednesday, during an event hosted by the Bolivar Theater in Caracas, that the Bolivarian Revolution worked to create peace, adding it was a key value of the Venezuelan people.

During the event, the Network of Venezuelan Intellectuals and Artists formally rejected the one-year extension of the decree announced by U.S. President Barack Obama, which defines Venezuela as an “unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.”

“This decree has threatened everything that represents our Venezuelan identity,” said Nañez. “This decree does not target a government, it's a declaration of war against the Venezuelan people, against our sons, brothers, neighbors and community.”

“We will head toward peace, and we will reject any move towards war. Peace is what brought the Bolivarian Revolution to Venezuela and it is the Venezuelans' core value,” he added.

The executive order was first issued by Obama in March 2015 and provoked a storm of controversy within Venezuela and a backlash throughout Latin America.