This debate has appeared in the list Marxmail. Fred Fuentes, a strong backer of the Hugo Chavez movement of the past, denounces the policies of Nicolas Maduro, who stole the last presidential election, and those of Delcy Rodriguez. In response to the demand that Rodriguez must be supported, and her false steps regarded only as a result of US pressure, he posted several strong refutations.
For example, on August 14, in reply to the posting by Chris Slee of an article calling for support for Rodriguez, he posted the following refutation (https://groups.io/g/marxmail/message/43002):
"Chris, the article you posted said the following:
The interviewees differed most clearly over international activists’ right to criticize. Andreína Chávez recognized their right to criticize Venezuela—or even distance themselves—but drew a line at ultimatums and instructions to overthrow the Chavista leadership. Such behavior violates the same principle of non-intervention the international left claims to defend and reproduces imperial assumptions that foreigners know better than Venezuelans.
"This of course is nonsense - no one would say supporting protests opposing Milei in Argentina or previously the Pinochet dictatorship in Chile violates "the principle of non-intervention".
"Nevertheless, the article continues:
"As you can see the only options offered here are political support, either with or without criticism, of the government. Everything else is ruled out. This is also the reality of pretty much all Venezuela solidarity protests in the US and Australia: speakers demanding agreement on the need to support the "revolutionary" government, Maduro's supposed electoral "victory" in 2024, etc.Her [the jounalist Andreina Chavevz] recommendation was to follow the line demonstrated by Venezuela’s popular movements: support the Venezuelan government while criticizing decisions [my emphasis] that merit rejection, and keep the principal enemy in view—the US empire enforcing the blockade, controlling oil revenue and threatening further war.
Páez Victor adopted a harder position. She said this is not the moment for outsiders to criticize a leadership [my emphasis] facing existential coercion, but for active international pressure: demand the immediate release of Maduro and Flores, end the sanctions, return Venezuela’s seized assets and gold, and remove US forces from the country.
"But you seem to disagree, because you [Chris Slee] say my argument "implies that we can't build solidarity with Venezuela unless we agree on the nature of the Venezuelan government. I disagree." Great. This would indicate you disagree with Andreína Chávez and Páez Victor, who both demand that activists offer some kind of support to the government.
"Given that, can you please clarify if in fact it is OK for socialists to actively oppose the Chavista leadership? More importantly, do you not agree that the movement against imperialist intervention in Venezuela would be more successful if it was not tie to political support for the regime, as it currently is? And that socialists should argue the case for why the broader solidarity movement should not be based on lending political support to the government, inline with the examples you mentioned of Vietnam and Palestine? ... "