Monday, 01 September 2025.

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), led by President Julius Malema, held a significant engagement with His Excellency Mr. Carlos F. Feo Acevedo, Ambassador of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, accompanied by his First Secretary, Jessica Garrido. This meeting forms part of the EFF’s consistent internationalist outlook, aimed at forging solidarity between revolutionary movements and progressive governments confronting imperialism, neo-colonialism, and capitalist exploitation.

Venezuela stands as a symbol of resistance against foreign domination in Latin America. Since the Bolivarian Revolution initiated by Commander Hugo Chávez in 1999, the Venezuelan people have pursued a path of sovereignty over their natural resources, social justice for the working class and poor, and the redistribution of wealth long monopolised by elites. Nationalisation of oil resources and investments in health, housing, and education lifted millions out of poverty and asserted the principle that the wealth of a nation belongs to its people, not foreign corporations.

This trajectory of sovereignty immediately placed Venezuela in direct confrontation with the imperialist project of the United States. For decades, the US has pursued economic sabotage, sanctions, diplomatic isolation, and even attempted coups to undermine the Venezuelan revolution. These actions mirror South Africa’s current experiences of hostility and interference from the United States, which has sought to lecture and dictate to us whenever our policies do not align with Western capitalist interests.

The Ambassador briefed the EFF on pressing challenges, including renewed US threats in the disputed Essequibo region of Guyana. Today, the situation has escalated because of the discovery of massive oil reserves in the area and the open involvement of American oil corporations. The United States has militarised its presence in the region, using Guyana as a proxy to encircle and weaken Venezuela economically and politically.

Venezuela has made it clear that it does not seek war with Guyana, but it cannot allow foreign-backed corporations and imperialist governments to loot resources from what it regards as its land. This aggression represents an extension of Washington’s imperial strategy in South America, aimed at destabilising Venezuela’s sovereignty. Venezuela has also faced coordinated disinformation campaigns, falsely branding it a drug-producing state. Yet, as confirmed by the United Nations and even the US Drug Enforcement Administration, Venezuela is a drug-free nation, one of the most active in combating drug trafficking across the Pacific Ocean, working alongside Cuba and Colombia.

Despite sanctions and relentless external aggression, Venezuela has achieved remarkable resilience. The Bolivarian Republic is pursuing a four-year programme to expand food production, reduce imports, and strengthen domestic economic sovereignty. Already, it has recorded impressive GDP growth of over 7.7% over the first half of this year with overall increases in mining commerce, manufacturing, agriculture and tourism. In fact, over 1000 new products have been integrated into commercial shelves with more than 90% of them being local.

This proves that a nation rooted in self-determination and people-centred development can overcome even the most suffocating of sanctions. For South Africa, this offers a lesson and an example that economic sovereignty is possible when our leadership and people are united in defiance of imperial pressure.

The EFF also draws inspiration from the Venezuelan model of solidarity with oppressed peoples. Venezuela, as reiterated by Ambassador Acevedo, stands firmly with Palestine and Iran, in the same way South Africa’s liberation movement once stood shoulder to shoulder with global struggles against colonialism and apartheid. This unbroken chain of solidarity between oppressed peoples across continents is the essence of internationalism, and it is what the EFF strives to uphold in our own policies and engagements.

The EFF salutes the people of Venezuela, under the leadership of His Excellency President Nicolás Maduro who, despite decades of economic warfare, coup attempts, and military threats from the United States, continue to defend their independence and advance the revolutionary ideals of Simón Bolívar and Hugo Chávez. Their struggle is our struggle, and their defiance against imperialism resonates deeply with our own fight in South Africa for land, wealth, and dignity.

As part of cementing our solidarity, the EFF committed to dispatch a delegation to Venezuela to witness first-hand the challenges and victories of the Bolivarian Revolution. This delegation will return to mobilise the South African people, the African continent, and the progressive world to rally behind Venezuela’s struggle to reclaim Essequibo, to deepen its sovereignty, and to bring an end to this conflict.

ISSUED BY ECONOMIC FREEDOM FIGHTERS

Sinawo Thambo (National Spokesperson) 072 629 7422

Thembi Msane (National Spokesperson) 061 467 8169

Andiswa Madikazi (Parliament Media Liason) 069 516 4924

Thato Lebyane (Media Inquiries) 078 563 1581