7 News Belize

Venezuela Defends Itself In Storm of Int’l Disapprobation
posted (May 24, 2018)
Venezuelan electoral politics continues to be a subject of a polarizing controversy around the world, after the incumbent President, Nicholas Maduro Moros, was re-elected in this Sunday's Presidential Elections, for another 6-year term.

Of course, Maduro's government, and the Venezuelans who support his leadership claiming a confident victory, but his opponents say the election was rigged, and the result patently bogus.

They call his government a dictatorship, and cite as proof Venezuela's National Electoral Council - kind of like the elections and boundaries office - which his political opponents say is run by government stooges.

Then, there is Sunday's voter turnout itself. It is being referred to as the highest abstention rate in Venezuela's electoral history. It was estimated that around 46% of the total voters turned out, well below the 80% from the 2013 Presidential Elections, when Maduro first rose to power.

Then, there are the accusations that the elections are a sham because members of the opposition were silenced.

The OAS Secretary General, Luis Almagro, who has been very critical of the Maduro Government, released a statement saying, quote, "…The dictator, Maduro, tried - without success - to give a democratic veneer to his totalitarian regime… They were held with a generalized lack of public freedoms, with outlawed candidates and parties and with electoral authorities lacking any credibility… The elections were held with more than 300 political prisoners behind bars and with the State using all the resources at its disposal for the farce."

The OAS Secretary General is joined in denouncing the elections by the United States, and President Donald Trump is quoted as saying, quote, "We call for the Maduro regime to restore democracy, hold free and fair elections, release all political prisoners immediately and unconditionally, and end the repression and economic deprivation of the Venezuelan people."

Then, there are the G7 Nations that is also not accepting the election results. In statement yesterday, they said, quote, "We, the G7 Leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and the European Union, are united in rejecting the electoral process leading to the… Presidential election in Venezuela... This election and its outcome lack legitimacy and credibility..." End quote.

Even the United Nations has denounced the election results.

So, with such widespread condemnation of these results, what does the Maduro administration have to say? Well, the Venezuelan Embassy in Belize called the local press to make their position clear. According to the Charge D'Affaires, The international community, and the international press, are misrepresenting the facts, and are unfairly trying to discredit the election results.

Here's how he explained it to us today:

Mykel Lenin Castillo Pena - Charge D'Affaires, Venezuelan Embassy
"Every time an election is called in Venezuela, the media and political actors, both national and foreign, begin a campaign that seeks to delegitimize the electoral system and question its results. In addition, the Leaders of the Venezuelan opposition only recognize the results when they win. In the media, the lack of awareness from the International Community is discussed. The truth is that there are few governments that are part of this continent who have rejected the results. The International Community is just over 190 countries that make up the UN, not the Lima Group, nor the United States, nor some countries of the European Union. This is a racist, classist and Eurocentric vision. Doesn't the Caribbean count or matter, neither Africa nor Asia? Paradoxically, the United States of America and the countries that make up the Lima Group have decided to establish sanctions. Arbitrary and unilateral measures constitute a crime against humanity and impede Venezuela's right to development and hinder the access to essential goods by the population. It has been more than 200 years since Venezuela became independent and sovereign. We are not willing to let them bend our arm. Leave that to those countries that prefer to be dominated and be the puppy of the United States, wagging their tail to make their master happy."

Venezuela is already facing sanctions from the international community, including the US.

The European Union and Latin American countries warned ahead of the elections that they would take measures against the Venezuelan government, if it went ahead with the process.

Amidst all of that political turmoil, it is estimated that over 1.5 million Venezuelans have fled from their country to become refuges in the neighboring states of Colombia, Ecuador, and Brazil. They are trying to escape what is being characterized as a severe economic crisis.

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