Opposition leader Edmundo González seeks political asylum and leaves Venezuela

Candidate who faced Nicolás Maduro in the July 28 election flew to Spain on Saturday night; he was taking refuge in the Spanish embassy in Caracas after a request for his arrest. Edmundo González Urrutia, the candidate who faced President Nicolás Maduro in the disputed July 28 election, requested asylum in Spain and left Venezuela on Saturday night (07/09).

“Edmundo González is currently flying to Spain on a Spanish Air Force plane,” Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares told reporters during an official trip to China. He confirmed that Spain will grant asylum to the Venezuelan.

González had already been taking refuge in the Spanish embassy in Caracas for a few days, after the Venezuelan Public Ministry requested his arrest for “inciting disobedience” and “conspiracy”.

The opposition claims that there was fraud in the election, and forces from the Chavista regime have violently repressed demonstrations that question Maduro’s self-proclaimed victory for a third term, with 52% of the votes.

The Venezuelan justice system is investigating González for publishing electoral records obtained from polling stations on a website. According to the unofficial documents, the candidate obtained 60% of the votes.

The government claims the material is fraudulent, but has so far provided no evidence of Maduro’s victory. The National Electoral Council has been under pressure from the opposition and the international community to make the detailed voting records public, but it has not yet done so.

The United States, the European Union and several Latin American countries are among those that have contested the proclaimed result and called for a verification of the votes.

Since the elections, Venezuela has plunged into a situation of violence and repression, in which 27 protesters have been killed, 192 injured and 2,400 arrested, including minors.

Argentine embassy in Brazilian custody

González’s departure came a day after the opposition reported that the Argentine embassy in Caracas was under siege by the Maduro regime. The diplomatic mission under the command of Javier Milei’s government was expelled from the country, and Brazil was left to take custody of the place, where six opposition collaborators have been taking refuge since March.

Caracas announced the revocation of the authorization given to Brazil to represent Argentina, which was contested by the Brazilian government. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that the country will continue to represent Argentina’s interests in Venezuela, since “there can be no unilateral revocation of custody.”

The Itamaraty stated that it “will continue to represent Argentina’s interests in Venezuela until a replacement is appointed.”