Former opposition presidential candidate Edmundo González Urrutia has left the country with his wife Mercedes, a source close to the opposition said in response to the news that the former ambassador was leaving for Spain. Meanwhile, González Urrutia’s lawyer confirmed that the diplomat “went to Spain,” adding that he could not provide further details.
Madrid has announced that it will grant him political asylum, Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares announced, La Vanguardia writes. The head of Spanish diplomacy explained that Urrutia has requested the right to asylum, which “naturally,” he stressed, “the Spanish government will process and grant.” The politician, who had taken refuge in the Spanish embassy in Caracas, left the Venezuelan capital yesterday evening, local time, for Madrid.
González Urrutia has denounced fraud in the July 28 elections, which gave a disputed victory to the incumbent president, Nicolas Maduro, with 52% of the vote, without providing any evidence. The opposition, led by former Liberal deputy María Corina Machado, claims that González Urrutia obtained more than 60% of the vote, with evidence collected on a website that digitized the counting records collected by witnesses at polling stations. The ruling “Chavismo,” for its part, claims that the material is fraudulent and full of inconsistencies. González Urrutia, 75, had an arrest warrant pending for several crimes, including “incitement to disobedience” and “conspiracy,” related to the protests that took place after the elections. The former presidential candidate had been called to testify three times, without appearing at any of them, and had taken refuge in the Spanish embassy in Madrid.
#Opposition #leader #Urrutia #left #Venezuela #wife #refuge #Spain