In an interview with Real World Radio Miranda said the Bolivarian process led by Hugo Chavez, besides the historical achievements have caused great fear in the Venezuelan and global right-wing sectors because he “won the people’s hearts and minds”. The social movements’ grief over Chavez’s death is testimony of this.
Being in Venezuela, Miriam could appreciate the value of education and knowledge in the country: “I am very impressed by the resources invested by the State in educating people, not only to provide free but also quality education. This is very valuable because by improving knowledge, promoting self-criticism, people are able to make aware decisions”.

About the coup d’etat that took place in Honduras in June of 2009, the activist said it was a mechanism of a system that appropriates resources and goods: “transnational corporations need weak states, collapsed states, states in crisis because it is the easiest way to appropriate resources. After the coup in Honduras we are witnessing the passing of bills in Congress to deliver the resources to transnational corporations”.

The member of OFRANEH highlighted the transparency of last year’s elections where Hugo Chavez was reelected (the election of Nicolas Maduro had not taken place at the time of the interview), and said that “it open the doors to observers so neither the national nor the international right-wing sectors could question the results”.

Meanwhile, she says in her own country it is not possible to even dream of something similar in the upcoming presidential elections (scheduled for November 24). She said since the coup d’etat staged in Honduras “the oligarchy controls all the branches of the State that could guarantee transparent elections: the Election Tribunal, the Supreme Court are all under the supervision of the Honduran right-wing”.

Considering this scenario, the activist said the organization aims to strengthen the resistance and the local power, by giving priority to community alliances. She said the social movements and organizations of Honduras are going through a process of refoundation, aiming to set up a Constituent National Assembly in the medium term.

Photo: Cultural Survival