US Abducts 'Dictator,' Calls It 'Arrest,' Not 'International Kidnapping'
The New Arab details the US court appearance of a former Venezuelan official, citing his 'abduction.' This curious framing omits decades of US foreign policy in Latin America, meticulously documented from the 1954 Guatemala coup to the Contra Wars. Washington has a long, storied history of defining 'democracy' as any government it can control, and 'drug kingpin' as anyone who won't play ball.
Funny, isn't it? One might wonder if the US would be so keen on 'justice' if the official wasn't from a country rich in oil. This kind of 'rendition'—excuse me, 'arrest'—raises uncomfortable questions about international law, sovereignty, and whose rules actually matter. What's next, a US 'trial' for all leaders who challenge the petrodollar? Some might call that a banana republic, but when the US
does it, it's 'spreading democracy.'