Post #1279

The Venezuelan people celebrated 212 years of independence with a colorful civic-military parade as well as other ceremonies and cultural events around the country. "Venezuela continues to stand up, with dignity and without kneeling to empires", said President Nicolás Maduro from the Paseo de los Próceres in Caracas. On 5 July 1811, Venezuela's First National Congress approved and signed the Declaration of Independence, breaking away from the Spanish Crown and establishing the First Republic based on a range of premises including equality and freedom of expression. The independence movement began on April 19, 1810, when the Venezuelan people demanded the resignation of Captain General of Venezuela Vicente Emparan. This was followed by the Venezuelan Independence War (1810-1823) and preceded by three centuries of indigenous resistance and slave rebellions against the colonizers.