Coup-supporting Priest Admits US ‘Aid’ is for Overthrowing the Venezuelan Government

A Christian minister working with Venezuelan military defectors has admitted that US ‘aid’ is a ploy designed to ‘start a revolt’ against the government. Sergio Enrique Sanmiguel Muñoz, who works with the Colombian government, told investigative journalist Dan Cohen that:

What [the US and coup plotters] really want is for the population to rise up in insurrection. And when the tiny bit of ‘humanitarian aid’ enters in this way, the political death of the president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, happens.

It’s really about destroying socialism

The ‘man of the cloth’ doesn’t stop there, however:

The issue is not if Maduro falls. The real problem comes when the next two or three presidents take power in Venezuela. Because to change the system from socialism to capitalism requires a return to imposing taxes [on poorer citizens], and once again, a demand to paying for public services. And unfortunately, the last generation of Venezuelans are accustomed to the socialist system of assistance. This means there will be a clash, almost a civil resistance, to a new government that tries to impose a capitalist system in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

Sanmiguel Muñoz’s honesty further supports the testimony of former UN expert Alfred de Zayas, who has insisted that Western states have been ‘instrumentalising’ human rights “to destroy human rights”.

Venezuela, meanwhile, is not actually a socialist country but rather a social-democratic capitalist state. But apparently, even Venezuela’s social-democratic reforms have been too much for local and global elites to accept.

The Canary has been covering the ongoing Western-backed coup attempt in Venezuela since little–known opposition figure Juan Guaidó declared himself to be its ‘interim president’.

Brutal honesty
The admissions are quite stunning under the circumstances. Unsurprisingly, though, the US and British corporate press have yet to pick up on this report:

A Colombian government-affiliated priest revealed to me that the USAID “humanitarian aid” stunt is designed to induce regime change and create a violent “clash” inside Venezuela. Watch my full report back from the border here: https://t.co/QDptNLI3Lv pic.twitter.com/mY1NA4xA0d
— Dan Cohen (@dancohen3000) March 2, 2019

Cohen also told The Canary that he chose to speak to the minister because the US State Department recognises “student groups and the Christian Church as bodies they can use to advance its interests” in Venezuela. He said Sanmiguel Muñoz “was not suspicious”, and that “he was very friendly and open”. But the minister’s “handler” apparently became suspicious after the interview; and he asked Cohen if he was “a socialist” or “a communist”. Cohen replied that he was “a journalist”.

Sanmiguel Muñoz had previously filmed himself with a group repeating vulgar opposition slogans:

The same priest who revealed the regime change “humanitarian aid” plot is seen here leading a group of Venezuelan military defectors shouting the opposition slogan, “Maduro, your mother’s p*ssy!” pic.twitter.com/KYdkzYMFig
— Dan Cohen (@dancohen3000) March 3, 2019

However damning the evidence against Venezuela’s coup attempt may be, it seems mainstream Western media outlets won’t give due prominence to information that challenges the regime-change narrative of the US-led coup plotters. If they won’t do their jobs, we must.

Featured image via Dan Cohen-RT/YouTube

Mohamed Elmaazi obtained his LLB from SOAS and Masters in International and Comparative law from the American University in Cairo. He worked in human rights law for a number of years before shifting to journalism. He occasionally reports for The Real News Network and currently writes for Open Democracy, The Canary and The Grayzone Project. You can follow him on Twitter @MElmaazi

Source URL: The Canary