A pointed editorial critique has emerged questioning the Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union (OWTU)’s current stance regarding Venezuela’s oil sovereignty amid US foreign policy pressures. The analysis draws stark comparisons between the union’s historically principled position on Trinidad and Tobago’s energy independence and its present-day silence.
The piece recalls the OWTU’s legacy under George Weekes, whose iconic “Texaco must go” mobilization represented a defiant stand against foreign corporate domination of national resources. This historical context is directly contrasted with the union’s current position as the Trump administration pursues aggressive measures—including sanctions and threats of force—aimed at overturning Venezuela’s control of its nationalized oil industry.
Criticism centers on the perceived contradiction between the OWTU’s past principles and its present political alignment with Trinidad’s government, which publicly supports the US hardline approach toward Venezuela. The editorial argues this alignment has compromised the union’s independence and muted its voice on matters of economic sovereignty that once defined its mission.
The analysis frames Trump’s strategy as “economic strangulation masked as diplomacy,” characterizing it as a modern iteration of the same corporate domination the OWTU historically resisted. The fundamental principle articulated is that sovereignty cannot be selective—if foreign control of Trinidad’s oil was wrong, then foreign coercion of Venezuela’s resources cannot be right.
The editorial concludes with a powerful invocation of George Weekes’ legacy, suggesting that remaining silent on Venezuela’s sovereignty crisis while celebrating historical resistance empties that legacy of meaning. The piece serves as both criticism and call to action, emphasizing that history judges not only those who act but those who choose silence when principle demands resistance.