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LEGISLATIVE  RESOLUTION  commemorating the 201st Independence Day of the
Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela on July 5, 2012

WHEREAS, The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela is the site of  the  first
permanent  Spanish settlement in South America -- Nuevo Toledo -- estab-
lished in 1522; and
  WHEREAS, While it was the first permanent settlement, it was also  one
of  the most neglected as Spain sought more profitable resources such as
silver and gold from other areas of the Americas; and
  WHEREAS, Riots, uprisings, rebellions and  insurrections  were  common
during  the 16th Century through the 19th Century as Spanish rule proved
to be overly oppressive and exploitive of the people native to  Venezue-
la; and
  WHEREAS,  In  1810,  while  Napoleon  continued to wage war upon Spain
under Ferdinand VII, Venezuelan revolutionaries began  a  revolution  to
win independence from Spain; and
  WHEREAS,  April 19, 1810, marked the start of the revolution for Vene-
zuelan Independence; on that day, a forceful dismissal of Spanish Gener-
al Captain Vincente Emparan was followed by  the  establishment  of  the
Junta of Caracas; and
  WHEREAS,  On April 19, 1811, Venezuelan Independence was proclaimed by
the Junta; and
  WHEREAS, The Declaration of Independence was signed on July  5,  1811,
and  a congress was assembled with the purpose of writing a Constitution
for the new republic; and
  WHEREAS, Sovereignty of Venezuela was  attained  in  1821,  under  the
leadership  of  Simon Bolivar, one of the most celebrated individuals in
Venezuela and Latin America; and
  WHEREAS, Bolivar is revered by many as a revolutionary  hero,  vision-
ary, and liberator; he freed not only Venezuela but what are today Boli-
via, Colombia, Ecuador, Panama and Peru; and
  WHEREAS,  The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela did not officially form
until 1830 after a separation from Gran Colombia in 1830, following  the
resignation and untimely death of Simon Bolivar; and
  WHEREAS,  Many  Venezuelans  have  made  New York their home, and this
Legislative Body is justly proud to  thank  the  Venezuelan  people  for
their contributions to this great Empire State; now, therefore, be it
  RESOLVED,  That  this  Legislative  Body pause in its deliberations to
commemorate the 201st Independence Day of  the  Bolivarian  Republic  of
Venezuela on July 5, 2012; and be it further
  RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to the Consulate General of Venezuela in New York.