Three years ago, one of the most dangerous manoeuvres for the elementary principles of International Law began: the Venezuelan diplomat, Alex Saab, was illegally detained in Cape Verde on June 12, 2020, when he was fulfilling a mission to provide food, medicine and fuel to his country in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the beginning of a chain of systematic violations of the basic principles of international relations and human rights, which led to the kidnapping of the diplomatic agent in the United States (USA). By this June 12, 2023, Saab had been kidnapped for 1,095 days. Of this period, he was held for 491 days in Cape Verde and the rest of the time he has been illegally detained in US territory, where they insist on ignoring and violating his diplomatic immunity. This crime contravenes the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the rights of an internationally protected person. In addition, an Interpol red alert was issued against him, which was finally cancelled. While he was in Cape Verdean territory, his human rights were violated, he was prevented from consular visits and a ruling from the Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) was breached, as well as precautionary measures from the Human Rights Committee of Cape Verde. In addition, pronouncements from the African Commission on Human Rights and a group of UN special rapporteurs were ignored.

This arbitrariness created the conditions for the illegal extradition of Saab, ruled by the Constitutional Court of Cape Verde on September 7, 2021 and consummated on the following October 16, despite the fact that the Barlavento Court of Appeal has not certified the end of this process. The Venezuelan Ambassador in Cape Verde and the agent’s own defence were not notified either, an action that deepens the seriousness of the aggression against the agent. This is a serious precedent for international relations, by disrespecting the legal principles that support them and putting those who carry out diplomatic work in vulnerable conditions. Saab’s defence has filed legal remedies, including a motion to dismiss before the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida, which was denied, and an open brief of opposition before the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. The actions are based on these principles: the inviolability and immunity of the diplomat, the elements that demonstrate the illegality of his detention and the pre-existing health conditions of Saab, who is a cancer patient. After the evidentiary visit and the presentation of oral arguments were carried out, on December 23, 2022, Judge Robert Scoola denied Alex Saab’s mission of diplomatic immunity. He alleged as a reason the ignorance of the U.S. to the Constitutional Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, headed by President Nicolás Maduro, a manoeuvre used by those who insist on creating a parallel institution to steal assets from the nation.

These are manoeuvres that lose more and more force in the face of evidence such as the confessions of Mark Esper, former Secretary of Defence of the United States. In his book A Sacred Oath: Memoirs of a Secretary of Defence, during Extraordinary Times, he admits that the Donald Trump administration knew about Saab’s performance as a diplomatic agent to guarantee Venezuelans access to food, fuel and medicine, goods limited by the blockade on the country since 2015. While the legal battle for Saab’s freedom is being waged, the solidarity of governments such as Cuba, China, Iran, Nicaragua and Russia, as well as the expressions of social movements and leaders such as Oscar López Rivera, demonstrate the heightened awareness of judicial manoeuvres to subordinate and dominate those nations that defend their sovereignty against imperial agents. With the denunciation of the illegal detention of Saab, the devastating effects of lawfare are also alerted, a voracious practice that intends to use the paths of Law as instruments to surround and overthrow governments. Other peoples are already witnessing this destabilizing manoeuvre, which compromises the stability of entire nations. In the case of Venezuela, the double kidnapping of Alex Saab also demonstrates how the imposition of Unilateral Coercive Measures (MCU) becomes an Instrument to undermine the foundations of international relations and attack the initiatives of multilateralism. If this illegality is perpetuated and replicated in other nations, what future awaits diplomacy, peoples and world peace? Hand in hand with the Venezuelan people, activists, jurists and social movements, we are called to vindicate the fight for the release of Alex Saab, respect for his family and the commitment to defend the basic rights of all those peoples who are victims of the MCUs. Whoever sacrifices himself for the lives of millions cannot be forgotten. Full freedom for Alex Saab!

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June 18, 2023
Finca Solana
Corozal Town