Hands Off Venezuela

73 Venezuela

Congress welcomes the success of the visit by President Chavez and the important work of the TUC delegation to Venezuela which helped establish strong solidarity links between trade unions in the UK and Venezuela.

Congress reaffirms its support for the process of social and economic change in Venezuela that has resulted in:

• i) Venezuela being declared free of illiteracy by Unesco;
• ii) more than 1.2 million people being given access to healthcare;
• iii) the building of 657 new schools and eight universities;
• iv) millions of hectares of land being redistributed; and
• v) the creation of the UNT as an independent trade union federation.

Congress also welcomes the growth of new media organisations such as Vive TV, Catia TV and TeleSur which help to combat the campaign of misinformation being run by sections of the media.

Congress applauds the work of solidarity campaigners in the UK who have built social, political and cultural support for the Bolivarian Revolution. Congress believes that it is vital to build practical trade union solidarity with UNT.

Congress therefore resolves to:

• a) establish a campaigning trade union solidarity group, to co-ordinate solidarity work, comprising representatives of affiliates and a representative from each of the three existing solidarity organisations; and
• b) task such a group with campaigning, amongst other things, for affiliates to deliver assistance to independent trade union organisations in Venezuela, against misinformation in the UK about the situation in Venezuela and to oppose any attempts at external interference in Venezuela's democratic process in line with Congress policy.

National Union of Journalists