On 8 December 2014, I travelled to Caracas, Venezuela, on behalf of the Social Democratic Party of Kenya (SDP) and Kenya-Venezuela Solidarity Committee (KVSC), to attend and participate in a conference of artists, intellectuals and social movements. The conference took place from 10 to 15 December and was hosted by the government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. It has taken place several times in previous years and brings together people from all over the world who work for peace, human rights, social justice and socialism. This year’s conference was about the battle of ideas against neoliberalism and for globalisation based on human solidarity in the struggle to conserve life on earth and to make living for all human beings better than it is today. It is inspired by the ideas, struggles and world view of the founder of the Bolivarian revolution, the late Hugo Chavez.

I was greatly privileged to be invited to participate in the prestigious conference. I will forever be grateful to the Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in Kenya for facilitating the journey that ended up boosting my revolutionary spirit and socialist convictions.

I had the opportunity to visit one of the most beautiful and dynamic cities in the world. Caracas is a city in the sky and is unique in relation to other cities I have been. The large population that everyday walks the streets of the city and that uses the numerous roads and metro transport manifests the presence of the diversity of human beings and cultures that live in the country. They live in high skyscrapers, concentrated houses and dwellings built on top of the numerous beautiful hills that form the city and its suburbs. In East Africa, Caracas resembles Mwanza in Tanzania, the only difference being that it is larger.

I was impressed by the existence of a complex road infrastructure within the city and outside of it, which is constructed by wonderful civil engineering that dates back to the times of the successive dictatorships that ruled Venezuela. At least the dictators in Venezuela left something, however small, to their country, I said to myself. The dictators of Kenya have been so engaged in primitive accumulation, besides violations of the human rights of our people, that today we only marvel at forty kilometres of a road structure called ‘Thika Superhighway’, but which in fact is a caricature of a highway while the railway system built by colonialists hundred years ago has completely collapsed.

Again, while in Venezuela there is a young leadership that is proud of its history of anti - dictatorship and anti - imperialism and that today is leading its people towards sustainable development - socialism, in Kenya we are still led by sons and daughters of dictators, exploiters and imperialist puppets who continue to implement the reactionary policies of their relatives, collaborators and cronies who have ruled (misruled) our country hitherto and who adhere to the reactionary ideology of greed, primitive accumulation and neoliberalism. I kept on thinking about all this and more as I travelled the streets of Caracas. Actually, I have always dreamt of visiting the Latin America country, the land of the liberator Simon Bolivar and the flamboyant socialist revolutionary Commander comrade Hugo Chavez Frias.

Indeed, in the few days I was in Caracas, I could feel the revolutionary spirit of internationalism, anti - imperialism, liberation, solidarity and humane values and ideas symbolized by the history and struggles of the two sons of Venezuela and Latin America, Bolivar and Chavez and the unfolding Bolivarian socialist revolution. The spirit of anti - imperialist struggles going on in Bolivia, Ecuador, Argentina, Brazil, Chile and also of the Cuban socialist revolution pervaded the city, too.

In the course of the Conference, I mingled and made contacts with revolutionary artists, intellectuals and representatives of social movements from many countries of Latin America, Caribbean, Europe, and Russia. Artists, intellectuals and social movements from United States, Palestine, Syria and Canada were also represented. Africa was represented by only three persons, one from Senegal, the other from Democratic Republic of Congo (but a residence of Spain) and Kenya (myself). However, as I pointed out to the conference and the forums I addressed, I believe that in future there will be more African presence. In any case, I travelled to the conference also on behalf of Africa Left Forum (ALNEF) with the mission of establishing and strengthening links of revolutionary friendship, collaboration and solidarity between African left political parties and the Bolivarian socialist revolution in particular and the socialist revolutionary movement in Latin America in general. I can report that I succeeded in this to a large extent.

Listening to numerous country reports during the conference, I learned a lot about the dynamics of the struggles of the people of Latin America for freedom and better living conditions and liberation from dictatorship, capitalism and imperialism. I was also more informed about the revolutions going on and being organized in many countries of Latin America, their problems, challenges and prospects. I was assured that Kenya and Africa are not alone in the search for alternative policies to neoliberalism and the struggle for participatory democracy, human rights and socialism. I concluded that there is need for similar struggles in Africa to forge links with those of Latin America as not only do the two continents share common history, experiences, challenges and even blood relations, but also the dynamic revolutionary processes happening in Latin America will strengthen that of Africa. Latin America, too, could benefit from African experiences. Efforts should be made to break the barriers of language and communication that have impeded political, economic and cultural interaction between Africa and Latin America hitherto to the benefit of imperialism.

The major theme of the conference was about revisiting the life and ideas of the founder of Bolivarian revolution of Venezuela, commander Hugo Chavez Frias and how this could be used to continue strengthening the struggle for socialism today. Several presentations were made and publications launched about this. In the process, Chavez’ political, economic, social, cultural ideas and struggles were revealed and discussed. Inspired by the struggles of the liberator Simon Bolivar and also by Fidel Castro Ruz and the Cuban socialist revolution, Chavez viewed the struggle for socialism in Venezuela as part and parcel of the struggle for the liberation of entire Latin America. The conference also resolved to support the institutionalization of the Institute of Hugo Chavez that collects, collates and disseminates the revolutionary ideas of Chavez. As I also pointed out elsewhere while in Venezuela, it will be very important for progressive African institutions to establish links with the Hugo Chavez Institute as it has happened with many Latin American countries. SDP and ALNEF will work hard to make this a reality, beginning by connecting African artists, intellectuals and social movements to the conference and institution.

Three days after its opening, the conference was addressed by the successor of Chavez, President Nicolas Maduro Moros. This happened at the grave side of Chavez at the military barracks located in the suburbs of one of the hills of Caracas. I was privileged to shake the hand of the humble and friendly revolutionary president and also to present the documents of the SDP to the socialist party of Venezuela through one of his aids. In his militant speech that clearly came from his heart, comrade Maduro saluted the conference and paid homage to the late Chavez and assured the participants that the Bolivarian revolution that is committed to socialism is alive and growing stronger despite the numerous hurdles imposed by counterrevolutionaries in the country and imperialism led by the US. Comrade Maduro talked at length about the life and ideas of Chavez, the class struggles in Venezuela, the sanctions being imposed against Venezuela by the United States, problems and prospects of socialist and anti - imperialist struggles in Latin America and the world, and the need for unity and solidarity among the progressive forces of the world for a just, peaceful, sustainable and humane world order. In the presence of the Vice President of Bolivia, Alvaro Linera, Maduro reiterated that nothing will remove the masses of Venezuela from the path of socialism chartered by the Bolivarian revolution. Listening to him I was convinced that Chavez knew what he was doing when he nominated Maduro to stand as his successor.

The delegates, me included, also attended a people’s demonstration about the proclamation of the new constitution that was led by comrade Maduro. The huge demonstration that was attended by over one million people assured me and fellow delegates that the Bolivarian revolution is a popular revolution and despite the challenges it is facing it is there to stay.

One day, some participants and I visited and interacted with members of a community a few kilometres outside Caracas. There, I met friendly and comradely youth and women’s groups that are involved in organizing and implementing development projects aimed at being self - reliant and contributing in building the material base of socialism in Venezuela. In fact, I observed that the Bolivarian revolution will be hastened by the process of realizing and supporting people’s development initiatives in agriculture, industry and all sectors of the economy and social life and also through diversifying it away from overdependence on petroleum. I also met Afro - Venezuelans who informed us about their history and struggles as part and parcel of Venezuelan citizens and societies. I addressed meetings of students and communities about pan - Africanism and neoliberalism and the issue of migration in the context of imperialism today.

Finally, my mission would not have been complete without meeting members of the Communist Party of Venezuela (PCV). In the Latin America Parliament in Caracas I had a meeting with the general secretary of PCV, comrade Oscar Figuera, and other leaders of the party including Carolus Wimmer (president of Latin American Parliament and Solidarity President of PCV), Yul Jabour (president of the National Assembly Foreign Relations Committee & Secretary of Solidarity of PCV) and also Roso Grimau (member of Latin America Parliament of Venezuela Group). I conveyed to the PCV comrades revolutionary greetings from SDP and ALNEF explaining that we in Kenya and Africa are in solidarity with the Bolivarian revolution that we follow closely and proudly. The communist party of Venezuela that was formed in 1931 has played a big role in the struggle against dictatorship and imperialism and for socialism in Venezuela and today it is in alliance with the socialist party of Venezuela with which they are leading the struggle for socialism. I delivered to them the official documents of SDP and extended in advance an invitation to them to attend the General Assembly of ALNEF that we plan to hold in Kenya sometimes this year. Our meeting culminated in opening up channels of communication between our parties.

The short visit to Venezuela helped me to end one of the most difficult and challenging years in my life with renewed revolutionary energy and hope. I am convinced more than ever before that we have a duty as human beings to struggle for the survival of humanity on earth. And, ultimately the survival of humanity is the eradication of capitalism and imperialism in all its forms and the sure triumph of socialism in our countries and throughout the world.

Upon my return to Kenya on 17 December, I received good news of the release of the last three Cuban 5. We had in fact been calling for their release at the conference in Caracas just as we had always done in Kenya with SDP and Kenya-Cuba Friendship Society (KCFS). The release of the Cuban 5 is not only a triumph of the long, protracted and resilient struggle of Cuba and friends of Cuba from all over the world, it is also a reminder that however long it may take a progressive and just struggle will ultimately succeed.

But, as chairman Mao Tse Tung used to say, imperialism is a friend that comes with peace in one hand and a sword in the other. I believe that the people of Cuba and Latin America who have long experience with dealing with the imperialist monster at their doorstep comprehend this truism better than us. On our part as SDP, KCFS and KVSC, even while we continue with the struggle of demanding the end of the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the US against Cuba for over fifty years now, we also call for the unconditional normalisation of relations between the US, Cuba and Latin America based on the principle and recognition of the right of all nations to self - determination.

This must apply especially to US relations with the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. In this regard, we demand that the US stops its hostility towards the Bolivarian government and revolution with immediate effect! Just like Cuba, the people of Venezuela have chosen the socialist system and the US must accept this whether it likes it or not! It must cease its neo-colonial hegemony and counterrevolutionary activities against the democratically elected government of Venezuela! The US must stop sabotaging the economy of the country and imposing all sorts of threats and sanctions against its leaders! It must stop its dirty propaganda and interfering with the internal affairs of Venezuela!

In the meanwhile, we remain in solidarity with the Bolivarian revolution.

* Mwandawiro Mghanga is the Chairperson of the Social Democratic Party of Kenya (SDP). A shorter cersion of this article will be published in the newsletter of the Embassy of Venezuela in Kenya.

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