The arrest warrant against former Venezuelan presidential candidate Edmundo González Urrutia has once again triggered a wave of international rejection. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is moving forward with his intention to stay in power, despite allegations of fraud that accompany his self-proclaimed victory in the July 28 elections. Both the European Union and the United States have expressed their rejection, as have Latin American countries that refuse to recognize the victory of Chavismo due to a lack of transparency in the results.
The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security, Josep Borrell, “categorically” rejected the arrest warrant against the former presidential candidate. “I urge the Venezuelan authorities to respect his freedom, integrity and human rights,” Borrell said in a message on the social network X. The foreign ministers of Spain and Italy have also rejected the measure. “Spain defends the political rights and freedom of expression and demonstration of all Venezuelans,” said Minister José Manuel Albares, who added that he condemns “any attempt to curtail the fundamental rights of Edmundo González.” For his part, the Italian Antonio Tajani expressed his solidarity with González and reiterated his request for “the release of all political prisoners.” “Italy wants a path of freedom and democracy for the people of Venezuela.”
The UN said Tuesday that a climate of fear reigns in Venezuela due to the arrest of people simply for expressing their ideas or for their desire to participate in political life. “What we are seeing in Venezuela is a very regrettable situation in which people are detained for exercising their right to political participation, freedom of expression or freedom of assembly,” said spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani, of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, when asked about the arrest warrant issued against González Urrutia.
Brian Nichols, senior U.S. Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, also expressed concern. “Instead of acknowledging his electoral defeat and preparing for a peaceful transition in Venezuela, Maduro has now ordered the arrest of the democratic leader who overwhelmingly defeated him at the polls. Edmundo González has promoted national reconciliation. We join the growing list of international partners condemning this unjustified arrest warrant.”
The condemnation from Europe and the United States followed that of countries in the region such as Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Peru, Costa Rica, Guatemala, the Dominican Republic and Uruguay. Venezuela is waiting for results from the mediations that have been carried out since July 28, election day, by the presidents of Colombia (Gustavo Petro), Brazil (Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva) and Mexico (Andrés Manuel López Obrador), the only ones who still have a channel of dialogue with Chavismo, which in recent weeks seems to have been closed.
The presidents of the three leftist powers in Latin America were scheduled to meet on Monday to discuss the crisis in Venezuela, although it has not been revealed whether the meeting has taken place. In their calls, Colombia, Brazil and Mexico have insisted on an independent verification of the results once the minutes of all the polling stations are published, something that the National Electoral Council (CNE) has not done. Brazil and Colombia have proposed a repeat of the elections, an idea that has met with rejection from Chavismo and the opposition.
Chavismo is once again in the hands of the international community, which has placed conditions on the recognition of Maduro’s re-election. The president needed these elections to regain his legitimacy and had expectations of winning. In 2018, he called elections early and excluded the opposition, a step that was responded to with the breaking of diplomatic relations and economic sanctions that damaged the government’s financing with oil sales.
The attack on the opposition has once again set off alarm bells. Edmundo González is accused of five crimes, including conspiracy, usurpation of functions and forging a public document. The Prosecutor’s Office considers that it was a crime to publish 83.5% of the voting records printed by machines and collected by his witnesses, with which he claims to have beaten Maduro by more than 30 points.
Venezuela has navigated the sanctions it received between 2019 and 2023 thanks to the support of allies such as Russia and Iran. In direct negotiations with Washington, it also obtained the release of Colombian businessman Alex Saab, its main commercial operator. The United States accuses Saab of being a front man for high-ranking officials in the Venezuelan government. In this new stage, Chavismo has shown its willingness to be prepared to resist new sanctions.
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