Caracas/The Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado called this Tuesday to participate next Saturday in a “global protest” against the “electoral blockade” that, she denounced, the Government imposes in her country, ahead of the presidential elections on July 28.
In a message broadcast through to President Nicolás Maduro, who will seek a third consecutive term in July.
“Today we have to make the world listen to us, we have achieved very important support and we need to continue moving forward (…) we are not going to allow Nicolás Maduro to choose which candidate will face him, because we Venezuelans are the ones who have the right,” expressed the liberal.
Likewise, he asked migrants to go to the consulates to register in the electoral registry to be able to participate in the July elections, a process that has had delays in several countries, so he called on them to report any impediment.
“This Saturday, April 6, the world has to see that Venezuela united, firm, determined to advance along the route to freedom,” he added, without specifying the cities in which these protests will take place.
“This Saturday, April 6, the world has to see that Venezuela united, firm, determined to advance along the route to freedom,” he added, without specifying the cities in which they will take place.
Machado, elected in primaries as the majority opposition candidate, could not register to compete in the elections due to a sanction imposed by the Comptroller’s Office that prevents her from holding public office until 2036.
The former deputy proposed the philosopher Corina Yoris as her replacement and she was not admitted by the National Electoral Council (CNE), so it remains to be seen who Machado will support for the elections.
Meanwhile, the opposition insists on maintaining the organization for the votes, on this occasion aimed at Venezuelans abroad, a group made up of 7.7 million people, according to estimates by the United Nations (UN), who are rejected. by the Government, which estimates the number of migrants at two million.
In the EFE interview with the Undersecretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs of the United States, Brian A. Nichols acknowledged that “there is not much hope for free elections in Venezuela,” but “there is still time to change path.”
The top US official for Latin America stressed that, “fortunately, the elections are not tomorrow, but on July 28” and “international observers are going to be key elements in the process.”
After a conference in Madrid titled USA, Spain and Latin America: Collaborating to fulfill our common commitmentwhich he delivered at Casa de América, the president stated that, in his opinion, the Government of Nicolás Maduro “has failed to comply with the Barbados Agreements and has undermined the possibility of free elections.”
“We are very concerned that he has refused to accept the candidacies of the opposition parties and we are concerned about the arrests that are taking place,” he added, “but we will continue to support the democratic aspirations of the Venezuelan people.”
The Secretary of State recalled that Washington “changed its policy regarding Venezuela” and reduced sanctions “in the hope that the democratic process would advance and the agreements would be fulfilled.”
The Secretary of State recalled that Washington “changed its policy regarding Venezuela” and reduced sanctions “in the hope that the democratic process would advance and the agreements would be fulfilled.”
Although María Corina Machado and Corina Yoris could not register for the elections, Nichols clarified that the margin established to reconsider the return of sanctions ends on April 18 and until then “no decision will be made.”
“Venezuela will have democracy if the candidates chosen by the opposition can go to the polls, if there are international observers and if there is equity in access to the media,” he insisted.
Regarding the second point, he said that “Europe can play a key role” and, within Europe, Spain “is always a valuable country, because it has a lot of influence over Venezuela and because it has been a leader within the EU in favor of a transparent and democratic” in the Caribbean country.
He also described as a “good sign” that prominent leaders of the Latin American left, such as the Colombian Gustavo Petro, have criticized the disqualification of María Corina Machado. “The future of the Venezuelan people depends on more democracy and more international interconnection, but whether the country takes that direction is not in the hands of the United States, but of the Government of Nicolás Maduro,” he concluded.
