MintPress, Grayzone Journalists Endure US Govt Blackout and Siege at Venezuelan Embassy in DC
May 11, 2019 in News, Video by RBN Staff
Source: www.mintpressnews.com
by Mnar Muhawesh
The Trump administration is violating international law and harassing American journalists in plain sight. These actions are sadly taking place in a country that prides itself on upholding the First Amendment to its Constitution, which should be protecting press freedom.
WASHINGTON — MintPress News journalist Alexander Rubinstein and a reporter for The Grayzone, Anya Parampil, are besieged inside the Venezuelan Embassy in Washington, and have been since April 30, in an egregious attack against press freedom. On Wednesday evening, events took a turn for the worse as the Metropolitan DC police cut off the power and water to the building — a violation of international law under the Vienna Diplomatic Conventions, Article 25, which reads, “The receiving State shall accord full facilities for the performance of the functions of the [diplomatic] mission.”
Anya Parampil✔@anyaparampil
Watch one of @carlosvecchio’s suited up thugs announce to a cheering crowd of rabid hooligans that US authorities have illegally shut off electricity inside the Maduro gov’s embassy. Too bad for them the #EmbassyProtectionCollective still stands strong.https://twitter.com/carlosvecchio/status/1126285926668414976?s=21 …
CARLOS VECCHIO✔@carlosvecchio
A los invasores de nuestra Embajada que defienden cómodamente al régimen usurpador, hemos decidido darles un poco de la experiencia de vivir en #Venezuela bajo el socialismo fracasado de Maduro.
A partir de este momento no tendrán energía eléctrica.
Próximo paso: su salida.
Anya Parampil✔@anyaparampil
Account balance of Venezuelan Embassy is $0.00. It’s legal owners have paid the bill.
Sources also tell me Pepco promised not to shutoff power as of yesterday.@PepcoConnect are you aware this shutoff is a violation of int. law (Vienna Diplomatic Conventions, Article 25)? pic.twitter.com/UQ3zY5lcxb
There is little doubt that this blackout and the other illegal punitive measures taken against the activists and journalists inside the embassy –which have been described by the activists as sanctions — were intended to silence journalists covering the Embassy Protection Collective’s efforts to protect the Venezuelan Embassy from fascist, pro-Venezuela-coup protesters.
On Wednesday night, after the power was cut, I spoke with Rubinstein, who said he had 5 percent battery left on his phone.
