Venezuela’s Interior Minister Condemns Media Disinformation Campaign in Wake of June 24 Earthquakess

Caracas (OrinocoTribune.com)—The first vice president of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) and the minister of the Interior, Justice, and Peace, Diosdado Cabello, decried that the nation is not only battling the physical damage caused by the June 24 earthquakes, but also a fierce and coordinated campaign of cognitive warfare and misinformation designed to sow panic among the population.

During the broadcast of his program Con el Mazo Dando—which resumed its transmissions on Wednesday, July 15, after a three-week suspension due to national contingency efforts—Cabello criticized media outlets that have sought to politically capitalize on the pain of the Venezuelan people.

“It is the first case in the world where a country suffering a tragedy of this nature has to fight not only the consequences of that tragedy, but also a terrible, miserable, unnatural, and sick media war,” he said.

International yellow journalism and hoaxes
In Cabello’s opinion, the tragic situation attracted the most degraded sectors of global corporate journalism, that came with the sole agenda of “picking at the wounds and pouring salt on them to make our people suffer, disrespecting all ethical principles.”

The Chavista leader systematically dismantled the principal pieces of propaganda that the major media and far-right operators attempted to establish internationally:

• Supposed inaction of the Venezuelan government: Cabello pointed out that the narrative accusing the Venezuelan State of not acting in time was immediately refuted by the organized people themselves. The people in the territory confirmed the presence of civil and military authorities from the very first moment of the emergency.
• The false tsunami alert and the role of Danny Ocean: One of the most dangerous hoaxes was the supposed tsunami threat on the coasts of La Guaira, spread a day after the earthquake, which temporarily hindered search and rescue efforts. Cabello directly accused the singer Danny Ocean of irresponsibly spreading this rumor on his digital platforms to create fear and chaos. “How much is a piece of news like that worth to cause terror?” he questioned.
• The myth of blocking international aid: In response to the narrative that the Venezuelan government was blocking the entry of humanitarian aid, Cabello cited the resident coordinator of the United Nations in Venezuela, Gianluca Rampolla, who confirmed within hours of the disaster that there was no obstacle to the entry of supplies.
• Propaganda about Colombian rescuers: Cabello reported that 31 countries sent support brigades to the nation, totaling more than 4,000 international rescuers and 153 search dogs. However, he dismissed a story about a rescue group from Colombia that attempted to enter without prior bilateral coordination, labeling it as a propaganda operation by the mayor of Medellín (Colombia).
• Propaganda about the Great Venezuela Housing Mission (GMVV): The media war tried to establish the opinion that the majority of the collapsed buildings belonged to the state housing program. However, Cabello clarified that official statistics show that GMVV structures accounted for only 3% of the total collapsed buildings.
• Dumping debris in the sea: Cabello called “a blatant lie” the accusation that the Venezuelan authorities were dumping debris from the destroyed structures into the Caribbean Sea, a narrative widely debunked by the Ministry for Ecosocialism (MINEC).
• Buildings made of polyethylene: Cabello stated that this was another media hoax that tried to confuse the unsuspecting by claiming that some of the collapsed buildings from the GMVV were built with polyethylene. He then presented statements from experts stating that the use of polyethylene is very common in construction, especially in hot areas. He added that this rumor clashes with the claims of many far-right activists that the housing mission does not exist.
• Diosdados’s hideouts: Although Cabello was a constant presence in the disaster zones, leading the emergency response, the far right tried to create a trend about his alleged hideouts with millions of US dolars in cash and gold. Cabello showed videos and photos used by the influencers, exposing the weak narrative and the lies behind it.

He also categorically dismissed other fake news about alleged kidnappings of minors, mass graves for unidentified victims, the State’s rejection of coffins, and the use of old footage of landslides from other countries presented as if they occurred in Venezuela.

Sanctions Are Making Venezuela’s Earthquake Toll So Much Worse

The show by the far right and María Corina Machado
Cabello emphasized that there is a single political sector funding these dirty war laboratories and paid influencers, accusing directly the right-wing extremist María Corina Machado.

He denounced Machado’s double standards, who had initially spread her own fakes, claiming that the Venezuelan government had prevented her from returning to Venezuela from Panama to supposedly provide support during the emergency.

“The worst of the global far right wanted to make a bonfire in Venezuela,” Cabello said. “They wanted to make a party of blood and death, but they did not succeed.” He added that after the media show, Machado comfortably celebrated her son’s wedding banquet in Europe.

Finally, Cabello called for sanity and ethics, demanding that the leadership of the far-right opposition respect the Venezuelan people’s right to mental peace, tranquility, and the rehabilitation of the thousands of families affected by the disaster.

 

 

Special for Orinoco Tribune by staff

OT/SC/SH