The first event took place on July 23-24 in the historic Casa Amarilla building in the center of Venezuela’s capital. The Forum “For Humane Humanity”, organized by the Simón Bolivar Institute, brought together 140 intellectuals from all the world’s continents, who, in their Forum reports and on the sidelines, discussed alternatives to the current Western “rules-based order.” The forum was opened by the President of the Institute, Blanca Eekhout, followed by the performance of the famous Venezuelan folk singer Lilia Vera.
Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil highlighted the official position of the country, which is based on the ideology of Bolivarianism and was originally anti-imperialist in nature, aimed at decolonization and gaining sovereignty. For this reason, Venezuela supports other countries that are still under pressure from the United States or the EU, or continue to be in neocolonial dependence. The speaker from French Guiana seamlessly elaborated by telling which political forces now peacefully want to gain independence from France.
Abel Prieto, former Cuban Minister of Culture and director of the House of the Americas (Casa de las Americas), also spoke about Fidel Castro’s policy of uniting anti-imperialist forces after the collapse of the USSR, emphasizing the importance of the current course of the Venezuelan government.
Ignacio Ramonet (France), the editor emeritus of Le Monde Diplomatique, began his speech by recalling a conversation with Hugo Chavez, who told him that the bourgeoisie had always betrayed Simón Bolivar. Although there was strong popular support, the local bourgeoisie tried to lobby for their own interests, as the bourgeoisie in many countries is now inextricably linked with the West and transnational capital. In another speech, Ramonet called for the need not only for decolonization, but also for de-westernization, since the collective West has de-facto been ruling the entire world for the past three hundred years, either directly or indirectly. And the global majority of humanity is clearly not the West.
The author of this article also contributed to the process of de-westernization, highlighting the need to form homegrown political theories and new formats of international relations, using the concept of multipolarity as an example of how Western theorists can promote their ideas even in such, the logic goes, anti-hegemonic discourses.
Alongside the issue of Western hegemony and imperialism, philosophical and social issues were also raised. For example, Ramón Grosfoguel from Puerto Rico drew attention to the threat of transhumanism and robotization, which in the future may represent a new form of fascism carried out using technical means.
It should be noted that July 24 marks the birthday of Simón Bolivar, the Liberator, and in the morning the forum participants, together with representatives of the authorities, went to the pantheon, where a flower-laying ceremony took place. On the second day, the forum itself organically moved to Simón Bolivar Square, where musical performances alternated with political ones.
And on July 25, the Summit of Nations for Peace and Against War began at the Teresa Carreño Theater. It brought together more than 600 people from 80 countries and, in fact, became the extension of the previous forum.
The issues of armed conflicts were more emphasized here, especially the Zionist aggression against Palestine, the attack on Iran, but also other, more complex issues, such as the organization of an economic blockade by the United States against Cuba, Venezuela, North Korea, Russia and other countries.
The Portuguese participant rightly noted that the war in Ukraine began after the coup d’état of 2014 and was provoked by NATO and the West, just as the imperialist powers had previously provoked wars around the world.
And Venezuelan Deputy Foreign Minister Rander Peña drew attention to how fascism is now being disguised as moral principles and legal doctrines. This is well known from the actions of the criminal Zelensky regime: while the Western media promote narratives about poor victims, the Ukrainian neo-Nazis themselves commit such atrocities that the Nazi invaders did not even dream of during the Second World War.
The Speaker of the National Assembly of Venezuela, Jorge Rodriguez, concluded the summit by analyzing the problems of political violence organized by the United States to overthrow undesirable governments and undermine national sovereignty.
Taking into account Venezuela’s previous initiatives, such as the creation of a new international anti-fascist movement in 2024, these events were a logical continuation of the Bolivarian initiatives aimed at establishing lasting peace and friendly relations. In this sense, Russia is a reliable ally of Venezuela. And from the stands (as well as on the sidelines), words of gratitude addressed to the Russian Federation were heard more than once.
I would also like to share my personal observations of the changes that have taken place over the past year in Venezuela, after the presidential elections. Despite tightened US sanctions and new threats from the Trump administration, the country looks even better than it did a year ago. Active construction is noticeable in Caracas, and there are many new housing and office buildings in the premium segment. The infrastructure is in good condition, the streets are clean, the shops are full of a wide variety of goods, cafes and restaurants are open. This shows that the Chavista government is making the right decisions and pursuing a sound policy, despite Western pressure.
Venezuela is now a country with a direct democracy, where elections and referendums on a wide variety of issues are held on a regular basis.
The last consultations and mayoral elections were held on July 27, where representatives of two dozen parties participated. This approach speaks about the direct connection between the authorities and the people. Bypassing the bourgeois elements, who are always ready to betray their own people.
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