QUEZON CITY— Filipinos joined the Venezuelan people in calling for US President Barack Obama to repeal an Executive Order (EO) imposing sanctions against Venezuela.

In a forum held at the UP College of Mass Communication yesterday, Embassy of Venezuela charge d’ affaires Yelitza Ventura Polanco decried recent US actions that threaten Venezuela’s national sovereignty.

The forum was organized by the Philippine chapter of the International League of Peoples’ Struggle (ILPS), an organization of anti-imperialist and democratic movements around the world, which supports the repeal of the recent presidential declaration by Obama.

Last month, Obama issued an EO declaring a national emergency against Venezuela. The US has since then called for the conviction of seven Venezuelan senior officials, and labelled the oil-rich country a “threat” to US national security and foreign policy.

“We are committed to advancing respect for human rights, safeguarding democratic institutions, and protecting the US financial system from the illicit financial flows from public corruption on Venezuela,” the White House.

But Polanco, the keynote speaker of the forum, said that the United States is only trying to isolate Venezuela from other South American countries. Nonetheless, she said that the US government is failing to doing so.

“They have brought the opposite,” said Polanco. “They didn’t only unite us, they also brought themselves against the whole world. A country can’t pose a threat to another’s sovereignty.”

On March 17, the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) called for the US to revoke the sanctions imposed by the EO. According to UNASUR’s statement, the US must not interfere with national sovereignty and must hold dialogues with the Venezuelan government.

“Yes, we are a threat. Because we are never silent. We always fight for our country. We are first to unite the countries in the South America region,” Polanco said.

A public petition demanding the withdrawal of the EO has garnered 11 million signatures as of press time, more than 1,000 belonging to Filipino signatories.

“They have to revoke it… Venezuela is not alone,” Polanco insisted.

ILPS Philippines announced that it will hold a protest action in front of the US embassy in Manila on April 20, dubbed internationally as the “World Great Day of Solidarity with Venezuela and Condemnation of US Intervention.”