Denmark: Protest in front of the US embassy

More than 100 protestors on Tuesday took part in a picket in Copenhagen to commemorate the defeat of the CIA-backed coup in Venezuela on the 13 April eight years ago. The event was also a protest against the continued aggressions and coups on part of Imperialism in Latin America.

The initiative to the manifestation was taken by the Danish branch of the Hands Off Venezuela campaign. The picket was arranged in cooperation with other solidarity and left wing organisations (see list in the bottom of the article).

Frederik Ohsten, HOV activist and editor of the Marxist journal Socialistisk Standpunkt, welcomed the participants:

“In the last period we have witnessed a revolutionary process in Latin America. This has meant progress for ordinary people. But in the last year, we have seen that the revolution is under threat. One of the main events marking a new offensive of Imperialism was the military coup in Honduras last summer,” he said.

He explained that the US has used the eathquake catastrophe in Haiti to occupy the country. While Cuba has sent 500 doctors, who are working around the clock, US Imperialism has sent 16,000 troops. This criminal occupation has already been condemned by most countries in Latin America.

The national organiser of HOV Denmark, Niklas Zenius Jespersen, then spoke:

“20 years ago, the bourgeois commentators declared the end of history, and that Capitalism was the only possible system. But the events in the last 10 years in Latin America have proven this to be false. The development in Venezuela has shown that another world is not only necessary, but also possible. A world where wars, hunger, poverty, dictatorship, unemployment and environmental disasters are banished to the graveyard of history.”

He also condemned the campaign in the mainstream media, who tries to slander the Venezuelan revolution and distort the conflict between the “democratic” Colombia and the “authoritarian” Venezuela. He said that this is a vicious lie from the private-owned media corporations.

“Colombia is a country where three million people are internally displaced, where the army and paramilitary death squads are killing thousands of trade unionists, journalists, human rights activists, peasant and student leaders and members of the political opposition. It is not a democracy when people are voting with a gun barrel to their head.”

He ended his speech by saying that the fight for Socialism is not just about completing the revolution in Venezuela, but it is a struggle about the future of the whole world:

“The world economic crisis has shown that Capitalism with a human face is impossible – also in the West and in Denmark. (...) In Denmark the banking gangsters are handed billions in rescue packages – in Venezuela they are put in prison for their crimes. The crisis shows that Capitalism has failed. The labour movement in Denmark must learn from Latin America. Only by putting Socialism on the agenda, is it possible to maintain and expand the welfare society. By uniting the labour movement and mobilising an offensive struggle against the bourgeoisie and for Socialism, we can end cuts, wars and create a better society for all.”

The revolutionary rap musician Tempo Bang gave a show, which was warmly applauded by the participants.

The leader of the Danish-Cuban Association, Helene Caprani, then gave a speech:

“This Saturday marks the anniversary of the defeat of another US-backed coup. A group of CIA-trained Cubans, who had left the country after the revolution, tried to invade Cuba at the Bay of Pigs. They were defeated by a massive mobilisation on the part of the Cuban people. They were defeated in almost the same amount of time it took the Venezuelan people to defeat the coup against Chávez in Venezuela,” she said.

She condemned the US blockade against Cuba and noted that even the UN has characterized the criminal blockade as “genocide”. She underlined that the real reason for the imperialists’ hatred towards Cuba is, that this poor country, through a different type of system, has managed to build an excellent health care system and that the Cuban revolution is an inspiration for poor people all over the world.

At the picket, a message of solidarity from the Bolivian student front FERDE (Frente Estudiantil Revolucionario por el Derecho al Estudio) was read out. This message from Bolivia was warmly greeted and received a big applause.

At the end of the picket, the organisers thanked the participants and expressed their hopes that this picket will serve to help the future work in Denmark in solidarity with the revolution in Latin America. The rap artist Tempo Bang – one of the finest rappers in the art of free style in Denmark – gave a marvellous show to end the event.

HOV Denmark wants to thank our friends who helped to organise and fund this event, namely BUPL (Trade union for nursery workers), The Danish-Cuban Association, The Marxist journal Socialistisk Standpunkt, The No to War coalition, The Communist Party, The Communist Party in Denmark, The Danish Communist Party, The International Socialists, The Communist Platform, Marxist Students and the Salvador Allende Group.