August 16, 2005
200 years since Bolívar's oath to liberate his country

(El Universal) - "Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Reinaldo Bolívar, presided the ceremony on the occasion of commemorating the 200 years of the Oath at the Monte Sacro, when Simón Bolívar promised to liberate his land from Spanish domain.

In 1805 Simón Bolívar, who was in Rome and in his twenties, promised to fight for the independence of Venezuela. He swore to it standing on what today is the Park of Monte Sacro in Rome. It is a place in the Northern part of the city, very famous because it is there where historian Tito Livio places the beginning of agricultural riots against excess taxing and mandatory enrolment in Armed Forces, during ancient times.

Representatives from Rome's City Hall were present during the ceremony, together with Venezuelan Vice Minister and Ambassador Rodrigo Ch á ves. During the commemoration, a monument by the artist Jorge Castillo entitled 'Temple of peace', was unveiled.

During the celebration, Italian versions of historic books about Simón Bolívar and the Oath at the Monte Sacro, were also presented (...)".