Caracas Venezuela.- Venezuelan opposition leaders Edmundo González Urrutia and María Corina Machado have called on the “conscience” of the military and police to “stand by the side of the people” following the controversial re-election of President Nicolás Maduro, which they denounce as a fraud.
“We call on the conscience of the military and police to stand on the side of the people and their own families,” they said in a letter signed by both, in which they ask for an end to the repression of opposition protests and in which they offer “guarantees to those who fulfill their constitutional duty” in a possible new government.
The protests have left at least eleven civilians dead, according to human rights organizations. According to Maduro, there are more than 2,000 detainees. In addition, two soldiers have died in violent incidents.
“The high command is aligned with Maduro and his vile interests, while you are represented by those people who went out to vote (…), whose will was expressed on July 28 and you know,” says the document that González Urrutia signs as “President-elect.”
González Urrutia was nominated as representative of Machado, who had won the opposition primaries but was prevented from running due to political disqualification.
Maduro was ratified as re-elected president by the National Electoral Council (CNE) on Friday with 52 percent of the votes compared to 43 percent for the opposition candidate.
The opposition claims that Gonzalez received 67 percent of the votes, according to voting records he published on a website. The president has dismissed the validity of those documents.
“The new government of the Republic, democratically elected by the Venezuelan people, offers guarantees to those who fulfill their constitutional duty. It also emphasizes that there will be no impunity. This is a commitment that we assume with each and every Venezuelan,” said González Urrutia and Machado.
Maduro claims that a “coup” attempt is underway. The military high command declared last week its “absolute loyalty” to the leftist leader.
The United States, the European Union and several Latin American countries have refused to recognise Maduro’s re-election and are demanding the release of the voting results.
The CNE, which claims its system was hacked, has yet to release detailed results.
#Venezuelan #Opposition #Calls #Military
