CROSSFIRE: Was the Extradition of Nicholas Maduro Justified?

Students learn about the extradition of Nicholas Maduro. Photo by Ben Koh

The extradition of Nicolas Maduro was a terrible idea from the jump. Although many have pointed out Maduro's notorious abuses of power, and how his economic policy ran Venezuela into the ground, his extradition is bad not just for Venezuela, but also the world.

People across the world were stunned when the extradition happened. Some students at Bellevue high school found out through social media.

“I thought we were initially at war, because I saw it on an instagram story and didn’t have full context,” sophomore James Sun remarks.

The first reason the extradition was bad was because it sets a horrible standard of American norms. The U.S has always painted itself as a nation upholding democracy across the world. The problem is that the “pillar” of democracy is not supposed to overthrow governments through military force. Other actors, like China, Russia and Iran, might use American operations like the one in Venezuela to justify their own military operations targeting regime change, like China in Taiwan. Many students at Bellevue corroborate this idea.

“[The extradition] posed America as an aggressor, rather than a diplomatic country, especially with American threats against Greenland,” senior Jiadong Gu argued.

Additionally, American involvement in Venezuela could potentially force the U.S. to involve itself in Venezuelan militarily further down the line. Currently, the situation seems to be stable, but, the military in Venezuela still holds massive sway over the now U.S backed government. If the military decides to break free from wishes of the U.S, then there is a scenario where Venezuela descends into violence, potentially drawing in the U.S.

Many argue in favor of Maduro’s extradition because it allows for the U.S to prosecute a terrible leader, however that thinking is short sighted. Although Maduro was indicted on charges of drug trafficking, the U.S just a month ago, freed a former Honduran President who smuggled thousands pounds worth of drugs into the U.S. Clearly, the Trump administration is using this as a pretext.

Secondly, many argue that American involvement in Venezuela allows for them to get access to oil. However, this logic rewards imperialist thinking, where the U.S. intervenes whenever it is economically convenient. Secondly, the oil within Venezuela is an extremely crude oil which resembles the consistency of tar. The problem is that facilities in Venezuela need further investment in order to extract enough oil, requiring the U.S to funnel in more money in order to get out what they need.

All in all, it seems like the U.S hasn’t learned its lesson from foreign intervention in the middle east, another destructive conflict could yet again undermine American values and society.