“On June 14, 2020, while he was on a humanitarian trip, the United States orchestrated his arrest in Cape Verde, despite not even having an arrest warrant from Interpol,” said Fravia Márquez, North American coordinator of the Alex Saab Free Movement.
In an exclusive interview with Prensa Latina, he added that the campaign for the release of this diplomat kidnapped today in the United States has grown and includes 35 chapters worldwide since its inception in 2021.
“This year, Álex was brought from Cape Verde to the United States,” said the Venezuelan activist to this news agency, who traveled to Bolivia to attend the presentation of the film this Wednesday.
Márquez insisted that the North American government’s actions constituted a blatant violation of diplomatic immunity because it brought Saab into its territory without an extradition agreement.
He described that the diplomat is currently being held in a cell in Miami in a federal prison, where he has been awaiting trial since October 16, 2021.
“Since then he has not received any visits other than those from his lawyers, he has not been able to see his family or receive consular assistance,” he denounced.
Regarding his health, Márquez recalled that he is a survivor of stomach cancer and requires a special diet with many requirements.
He stressed that during his detention in Cape Verde he had been tortured, injured and beaten, that his teeth had been broken and that until now he had not even received dental care.
“The movement reported in March of this year that we are very concerned,” commented the activist, “because he started vomiting blood and yet he is not allowed to see his doctor, despite the insistence of the Government of Venezuela through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.” . “.
Márquez reiterated that the US authorities had violated international law in this case, namely the Vienna Convention, which establishes diplomatic immunity.
“He was duly accredited, he arrived in Cape Verde only on a technical stopover and was first kidnapped there, then the United States, without there being an extradition agreement, transferred him to its territory, where he remains illegally detained,” he commented.
“They are keeping him imprisoned in Miami with such a long procedural delay that his first immunity hearing took place in December last year and the judge decided that they will not recognize him because the state government does not recognize President Nicolás Maduro.”
“We hope that perhaps by 2024 he will have another hearing,” he said, “that is why, when the North American authorities talk about the independence of powers and true democracy, this case shows that they do not even have credible justice,” said he .
Márquez argued that Álex Saab was a political prisoner whose only crime was managing food and resources necessary to alleviate the hardships imposed on the Venezuelan people by a financial, Economic and trade blockade arose.
“With this documentary by producer Karen Méndez, we want to show the world this cruel reality and raise awareness of the Álex case, which is cruelly vilified and demonized in the hegemonic corporate media,” he explained.
“All these violations against a diplomat like Álex set a terrible precedent for international relations and diplomacy,” he warned.
One element he found very valuable is the way in the documentary the people of Venezuela talk about how valuable Saab’s humanitarian work was.
ode/jpm