World #1 – Group of Lima nations to deny entry to Venezuelan officials
(by Renzo Pipoli, UPI) — Thirteen nations from the Group of Lima have agreed to deny entry to high-ranking officials of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s government.
Colombian Foreign Minister Carlos Holmes said the decision was made after a Friday (Jan. 4) meeting of the group in Peru, excluding Mexico, Venezuela’s El Universal newspaper reported late Tuesday.
The group was established in 2017 by Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru and Saint Lucia. Representatives met in the Peruvian capital to discuss the political, economic and humanitarian crisis in Venezuela. Mexico did not subscribe the final resolution.
At the end of the Friday meeting, the Peruvian Foreign Ministry issued a joint resolution of the Group of Lima — in which Mexico was not included — asking Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to abstain from assuming the presidency, to transfer power to the National Assembly and to call for new elections.
At the time the original group was formed, Enrique Pena Nieto (who is center-right) was president of Mexico. President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (who is the first leftist president to be elected in Mexico in decades) took office in December.
The group tried to coordinate a position ahead of Maduro’s Thursday (Jan. 10) swearing-in ceremony. Several nations, including the European Union and the United States, have not accepted the process that re-elected him, while some ｃountries, including China and Russia, have.
The resolution said that Group of Lima ｃountries would, depending on internal legislation, take action to prevent the entry of high-ranking Venezuelan officials to their territories and evaluate lists of Venezuelan people and organizations with which transactions will be banned.
During the Friday meeting, Maximiliano Reyes, the representative for newly elected President Lopez Obrador of Mexico, said his government opposed interference and isolation, and intended to continue diplomatic relations with Venezuela.
The Venezuelan government last Tuesday rejected the “interference” of the Group of Lima as not recognizing the “legitimate authorities” of Venezuela. Maduro tweeted that the group was “a cartel.” He has repeatedly said the group is acting under pressure from the United States.
Maduro will assume a new term in a chaotic situation, not just marked by hyperinflation and sharply declining productivity, but also extreme violence and a massive exodus of Venezuelans.
Last year, Venezuela became Latin America’s most violent ｃountry, with more than 23,000 violent deaths — of which 7,523 occurred as citizens resisted [the Socialist government’s] authority, according to a tally of a non-government organization.
A chaotic economic situation [brought on by the Socialist government of Maduro] has created shortages of food and medicine and has contributed to the exodus of 3 million Venezuelans in recent years, according to the United Nations.
The ｃountry’s oil production [taken over/owned by the government], traditionally the main source of revenue with the world’s biggest crude reserves, has declined to historic lows.
Article Source: https://www.studentnewsdaily.com/daily-news-article/world-1-group-of-lima-nations-to-deny-entry-to-venezuelan-officials/
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VOCABULARY WORDS:
1. humanitarian / adjective : having concern for or helping to improve the welfare and happiness of people.
2. subscribe / verb : to pledge, as by signing an agreement, to give or pay (a sum of money) as a contribution, gift, or investment:
3. resolution / noun : a formal expression of opinion or intention made, usually after voting, by a formal organization, a legislature, a club, orother group.
4. abstain / verb : to refrain from casting one's vote:
5. exodus / noun : a going out; a departure or emigration, usually of a large number of people:
6. contribute / verb : to give (money, time, knowledge, assistance, etc.) to a common supply, fund, etc., as for charitable purposes.
7. crude / adjective : in a raw or unprepared state; unrefined or natural:
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
1. For GROUP OF LIMA nations, answer the following:
a) List the ｃountries in Central America and in South America alphabetically; include the population of each.
b) List member ｃountries that make up the Group of Lima.
c) What is the Group of Lima? When/why was it established?
2. For GROUP OF LIMA nations:
a) list the who, what, where and when of the news item
b) What had the Group of Lima members met to discuss on Jan. 4?
c) What did the joint resolution call on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to do? (list 3)
d) Why is Mexico the only member not to sign onto the group’s joint resolution on Venezuela?
e) What action will the Lima Group take if President Maduro ignores their request?
f) What is the population of Venezuela? How many Venezuelans have left the ｃountry due to crisis brought on by President Maduro’s socialist policies?
g) The reporters do not mention socialism anywhere in this news article. We have added the term in [brackets] in the final paragraphs of the article.
