“The violation of human rights in Venezuela cannot be put into perspective”

Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó is working hard to resume dialogue. After launching his proposal for the National Salvation Accord, he relentlessly focused on preparations for going to the negotiation with the regime of Nicolás Maduro.

In an interview with Bugle By videoconference from his office in Caracas, the 37-year-old politician responded to Argentine President Alberto Fernández, who said a few days ago that “the human rights problem was gradually disappearing” in Venezuela.

In the environment of the legislator’s team, recognized as interim president of Venezuela by fifty countries, we breathe a lot of skepticism about the new dialogue open.

There are concerns that Maduro will reject the deal again, as has happened in previous processes. But today she enjoys international support, which is an advantage she did not have before.

-What do you think of Argentine President Alberto Fernández declaring that “little by little the violation of human rights has disappeared in Venezuela”?

– Firstly, the violation of human rights in Venezuela in the midst of a brutal dictatorship cannot be put into perspective, let alone crimes against humanity, if we know that it was Argentina that lived a very severe and very painful dictatorship.

-According to the Argentinian president’s point of view, are the problems in Venezuela over?

-They got worse. The second thing is that human rights have disappeared, the right to choose, the right to life when there is discrimination even with the anticovid vaccine. A tragedy cannot be normalized for ideological sympathies. On the contrary, they must fight for fundamental rights and for free and fair elections. There are the UN reports, the accusations from the International Criminal Court, the denunciations to the OAS, the democratic alternative of the national parliament. Human rights violations by censorship or by suppressing the media or an entire newspaper by taking away its building (El Nacional) do not go away. What the regime wants to do away with are human beings, not human rights.

-What would you ask President Fernández?

-What we are asking for is very simple: if Fernández wants to talk about the human rights situation in Venezuela, we are fully available to provide reports from the UN and other organizations.

-Do you think Fernández is looking to give Maduro a boost?

-Of course, he seeks once again to relativize the violation of human rights, which can lead to normalize a dictatorship and that does not help the defense of human rights. If President Fernández needs additional information, we are available to provide it.

“If Fernández wants to talk about the human rights situation in Venezuela, we are available to deliver the UN reports to him.”

– Could it be that they want to reduce the support for their “interim government” that Argentina had given them previously?

-They were very clear. From the start, they have called Maduro’s regime a dictatorship. They referred to the violation of human rights. Not only is it resisting, but it got worse. Even under the protection they have given to irregular armed terrorist groups. And the discouragement of the Colombian Jesús Santrich in Venezuela.

-How are the preparations for the dialogue table going with the Maduro regime?

-We have worked intensively on the National Salvation Accord in an important way. We have been in contact with our allies in the international community, the United States, the European Union, Norway, the Lima Group to seek support in various directions.

-What are they asking you?

-First, to reach a facilitator, mediators and guarantors of the process, understanding that there is of course skepticism with the regime given that we have gone through other negotiation processes that have not been sufficient to lead to free and fair elections. The Salvation Agreement is for the disaster and the urgency to find a solution for the country.

-And also?

-We have also worked on the appointment of a large commission that represents the civil sector and the country in general for this process to come.

-Can you put forward some names of the negotiating committee?

-No, in the next few days we will announce the names of those who will represent us in the potential negotiation process. We are working to appoint a broad commission that represents civil society and the country at large for this upcoming process.

-How was the international reaction?

-There is a very good willingness to move forward in a new political negotiation and not to waste time not only on the part of the OAS, but also of the United States, the EU and Josep Borrell who are going to us support in this agreement in a comprehensive manner.

-Would the United States and the EU be represented in the face of sanctions?

-We are in conversation with all the countries concerned. They have already expressed their support for the process. We have not yet determined the mechanism and what the number will be, that of observers, mediators and guarantors. We will see which country is prepared to accompany us specifically.

-Will the members of the previous frustrated dialogues participate in the future commission?

-We evaluate, we exclude nothing. We have previous experiences in the Dominican Republic to form the best commission to carry out the Salvation Accord.

-Are you afraid the dialogue will fail again because Maduro kicks the table?

– This is a possibility that always occurs in any process due to its complexity. There is a natural skepticism towards the regime and there is the possibility of being ridiculed, which is why we are looking for guarantors and facilitators in this whole process.

– What did Norway say?

-Norway has shown goodwill.

-Have you had any contacts and contacts with the regime?

-We take care of it. It will be through a formal process, the facilitation of allies, like Norway, you have to be serious, the country can no longer laugh.

-Would it be in Caracas or outside the country?

-For us, it doesn’t matter. Third countries are always sought after, this will be part of what we will discuss with the facilitators.

-What would be the calendar of elections, first presidential, legislative and third regional?

-It must be an electoral calendar guaranteeing a solution to the country, a solution passes through presidential and parliamentary elections with conditions. Regions and municipalities should be included. The regime avoids it. In 2018, they brought it forward six months, they brought the elections forward, and they played through the cheating process, when we talk about the electoral calendar, it has to include the presidential calendar by all means.

“When we talk about the electoral calendar, it has to include the presidential calendar by all means.”

-And does any path include the presidential recall referendum next year?

-What ensures that a solution will be part of the discussion, it must include the presidential solution.

– And for the next regional in November, will there be support, at least discreet, from you for the opposition candidates?

-My position is that Venezuelans have the right to choose and that their choice be respected. It didn’t happen like that in 2015, neither in 2017 nor in 2018 unfortunately. We want to choose with guarantees and we deserve it. It will not happen that I elect a governor and they appoint me a protector, or that they revoke the acts as happened in the state of Bolívar.

-If one of the members of the G4 (parties that support the interim) decides to participate unilaterally or with a borrowed card, would you support him?

-The decision will be made in unity, which benefits Venezuela and the democratic struggle and not just a leader or a group under an arbiter such as the CNE protected and illegitimate of origin by the dictatorship.

-What do you think of the new National Electoral Council (CNE) when your opposition vice-president Enrique Marquez says it is moderately transparent and reliable?

-To say moderately reliable is unacceptable. Nobody understands it. It is a supervised CNE which depends on the executive and which is kidnapped by the dictatorship. Our Magna Carta does not speak of three rectors of Chavism and two of the opposition. The Constitution does not speak of partiality but of independent and impartial rectors. Dictatorship puts more gasoline on fire, an isolated election and the CNE is not going to put out the fire or the dictatorship or wash the face of the dictatorship.

Caracas, special

CB