US manipulations of Venezuelan politics has suffered a tough new blow as Venezuela’s National Assembly has approved a new law making it illegal for political organizations to receive funds from foreign sources. The measure is expected to help reduce US interference in Venezuelan society.

It is named the Defence of Political Sovereignty and National Self Determination Law and only has 10 articles which makes it a very short piece of legislation.

This new law applies to political organizations, these are defined as organizations that promote citizen participation in public spaces or control of public power. This also applies to the promotion of candidates seeking election. As well as organizations which defend an promote the political rights of citizens.

The penalties for breaking this new law are quite harsh, as well as they should be. Any organization caught receiving foreign funds will be fined twice the amount they received. Any foreigners who are involved in the illegal funding will be expelled from the country. The head of any such organization would be banned from public office and the electoral process for 5 to 8 years.

The Venezuelan Communist Party legislator Edgar Lucena disagreed with the new law:

“The law does not guarantee…the consolidation of proletarian internationalism… expressed by international cooperation of workers, of the people, and of revolutionary movements of the world.”

Opposition parties Podemos and Frente Humanista voted against the law because they would lose much of their funding.

It is important to point out that this law is nothing original in the world of politics. The United States as has such a law banning the funding of political parties.

Hopefully this new measure will help stop US interference in Venezuela and allow the people of the country to decide their own fate.