We have been monitoring the turmoil in Venezuela.
The saga surrounding the leadership of this South American nation has taken an ironic turn. As we wrote previously, Panama’s young president, Jose Raul Mulino offered Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro safe passage through Panama to seek asylum in a third country (unnamed). Maduro dismissed this outright in an almost insulting letter.
On Sept. 2, the United States took action to seize the plane that was used by the dictator and his corrupt cronies.
The irony is that I alluded to it earlier: Edmundo Gonzalez, who was the opposition candidate at the July presidential elections, and whom many countries believe should be the president, has accepted asylum in Spain as Maduro issued an arrest warrant against him, amid a dragnet sweeping up thousands of protesters, including Gonzalez’s allies.
Edmundo Gonzalez of the Venezuelan opposition, whom the U.S., and other democracies, said had won the July election for president against Nicolas Maduro’s strongman, arrived in Spain to seek asylum on Sunday, a major blow to Venezuela’s democratic forces.
Gonzalez’s departure from Venezuela follows a crackdown by the regime on the opposition following the vote of July 28, which Maduro claimed he had won without releasing the ballot data. Maduro deployed the National Guard, the Intelligence Police, and other security forces to arrest over 2,000 political dissidents and protesters on terror charges. In the recent violence, more than 20 people were killed.
Tarek Saab, the Attorney General, threatened to jail Gonzalez, a retired diplomat of 75 years, for instigating protests after the disputed elections. Officials from both countries confirmed that the man who many Venezuelans believe to be their country’s new president-elect, left Saturday night aboard a Spanish Air Force flight for Spain. The Spanish Foreign Ministry reported that he and his wife had arrived at a Madrid military airport on Sunday.
The Netherlands had offered to give Gonzalez asylum in the house of the Dutch ambassador to Venezuela, located in Caracas.
Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Vedkamp confirmed that his government sheltered Gonzalez at the residence of its top envoy in Caracas the day after the elections. Veldkamp stated that Gonzalez had indicated last week that he wished to leave the country and continue his advocacy for democracy in Spain.
Even though Maduro knew that Spain had invited Gonzalez to leave, he said that they “authorized” his departure.
Jose Manuel Albares said that Gonzalez asked to leave Venezuela and go to Spain. Delcy Rodriguez is a senior Maduro adviser who said on Instagram that the regime had agreed to allow Gonzalez’s departure “for the peace and tranquility of the country.”
The Wall Street Journal article (linked above), however, adds that the danger continues for Maria Corina Machado. She is seen as the most visible critic of Maduro’s attempt to steal the Venezuelan vote. She commented on the news of Gonzalez’s exit from Venezuela:
His life was in danger. The mounting threats, summonses, and arrest orders, as well as the blackmail, coercion, and blackmail he faced, show the regime’s obsession with silence.
The report continues:
Maria Corina Machado remains in the country even though she is facing possible arrest. She also finds herself isolated as many of her supporters are in prison or exile.
María Corina Machado defiende como «necesario» el exilio de Edmundo González y promete que llegarán «hasta el final» https://t.co/E4hDtPSjf0
— Jose Carvajal (@pampanocarvajal) September 8, 2024
[Translated]:
“Maria Corina Machado defends Edmundo Gonzales’s exile as “necessary”, and promises they will continue to the end.”
In a series of Instagram posts, Venezuela’s Interior Minister also commented on Gonzalez’s asylum. He defended Maduro against the growing condemnation from around the world.
[Translated}
Diosdado Cabello, Venezuela’s Interior Minister, sent a statement after Edmundo Gonzalez left the country. He had requested asylum in Spain. The authorities defended Maduro during the interrogation.
“I will be brief: We will win!”, wrote the Minister of the Interior in the publication.
Diosdado continued in a later post: “What an unfortunate spectacle the opposition is putting on at this moment (…). They have not yet digested or understood Edmundo Gonzalez. This will lead to them making more mistakes. We have repeatedly warned you: Whatever happens, we will overcome! “.
