El senador de Estados Unidos, Marco Rubio, urgió hoy a la administración del presidente Barack Obama, sancionar al actual embajador de Venezuela ante la ONU, Rafael Ramírez, por corrupción durante su gestión en Petróleos de Venezuela.
Rubio destacó que el informe de la comisión de Contraloría de la Asamblea Nacional determinó que aproximadamente 11 mil millones de dólares desaparecieron de Pdvsa entre 2004 y 2014 y pidió a EEUU sancionar a Ramírez bajo la Orden Ejecutiva 13692.
“Venezuela ha sido bendecida con abundantes recursos naturales y una población con talento, por lo que debería ser la joya de la corona de la prosperidad y las oportunidades económicas en el hemisferio occidental”, dijo Rubio.
Resaltó Rubio que, en cambio, “la corrupción, la delincuencia y los abusos de derechos humanos de parte de los más altos niveles del gobierno de Venezuela han llevado trágicamente al país al borde de convertirse en un estado fallido. Venezuela sufre de escasez de alimentos, medicinas y artículos de primera necesidad, pero no hay escasez de imágenes que salen del país cada día mostrando la terrible situación que viven los venezolanos, siendo la más desgarradora las recientes fotos de los recién nacidos colocados en cajas de cartón porque los hospitales venezolanos no tienen cunas”.
Versión en inglés
Rubio Calls For Sanctions Against Corrupt Former Head Of Venezuela’s State-Owned Oil Company
OCT 21 2016
Miami, FL – U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) today urged the Obama Administration to sanction Venezuelan government official Rafael Ramirez for corruption during his tenure as head of Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA). According to Reuters, a new report by a Venezuelan congressional commission says approximately $11 billion went missing at the state-run oil company between 2004 and 2014 under Ramirez.
Specifically, Rubio is calling on the administration to sanction Ramirez under Executive Order 13692, which implements the Venezuela Defense of Human Rights and Civil Society Act of 2014, and targets public corruption by senior government officials and companies owned or controlled by, or acting for or on behalf of, Venezuela’s government. Ramirez currently serves as Venezuela’s envoy to the United Nations.
“Venezuela is blessed with abundant natural resources and a talented population, which should make it the crown jewel of economic prosperity and opportunity in the Western Hemisphere,” said Rubio. “Instead, corruption, criminality and human rights abuses at the highest levels of Venezuela’s government have tragically brought the country to the brink of becoming a failed state. Venezuela suffers from self-inflicted shortages of food, medicine and basic necessities, but there is no shortage of images coming out of the country each day showing how dire things have become there, with the most heartbreaking being the recent photos of newborn babies being placed in cardboard boxes because Venezuelan hospitals can’t afford cribs.
“Rafael Ramirez oversaw corruption at PDVSA to the tune of $11 billion, which is not just criminal; it’s downright cruel and inhumane when you consider the daily challenges confronting the Venezuelan people,” Rubio continued. “Mr. Ramirez belongs in jail along with everyone else who stole this $11 billion, and it’s an outrage that he can instead be seen gallivanting today around Manhattan, living the high life as Venezuela’s United Nations envoy.
“I urge U.S. government agencies, including the Departments of Justice, Treasury and State, to coordinate on any ongoing investigations into corrupt officials of the Venezuelan regime,” added Rubio. “The Obama Administration should sanction Rafael Ramirez and send a strong message that the U.S. will stand with the Venezuelan people against those who commit human rights abuses and plunder that nation’s vast wealth.”
According to the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor’s 2015 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and others reported “corruption at all levels of government” in Venezuela.