Caracas.-Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado on Thursday asked the United Nations Human Rights Council not to abandon pressure on the Nicolás Maduro regime and to “stay vigilant” in the electoral process in view of the elections on July 28.
In a video, the head of Vente Venezuela thanked High Commissioner Volker Türk for the update of the report on the situation in the Caribbean country, which was presented this Wednesday in Geneva.
“We thank the Office of the High Commissioner for this report and we hope that his office will soon return to Venezuela,” Machado began her speech.
And he continued: “With less than a month to go before the presidential elections in Venezuela, the repression, persecution, forced disappearances and arbitrary detentions of national and regional political leaders and direct members of the campaign team of candidate Edmundo González Urrutia have intensified as the evident popular support of Venezuelans increases.”
He then explained that there are now 31 Venezuelans imprisoned and six under diplomatic asylum in the Argentine Embassy in Caracas, without being granted their proper safe-conduct passes.
“They have also increased the campaign’s intimidation mechanisms: power cuts, suspension of gasoline supplies, closure of businesses of people who support us on our tours, such as a small empanada restaurant closed down just for selling us breakfast, or a bus driver whose license was confiscated for taking followers to a meeting with me,” he described.
However, he stressed: “Despite this and despite the flagrant violation of the right to vote of millions of Venezuelans abroad, who were not allowed to participate, we are determined to win our democracy through elections.”
“I ask the members of this Council and the international community to maintain pressure to ensure compliance with the Barbados agreement and to provide the necessary guarantees for a free, fair, verifiable process with international monitoring, and to remain vigilant until the end,” he concluded.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, presented an update of his report on the situation in Venezuela in Geneva on Wednesday. In the framework of the 56th session of the Human Rights Council, he denounced the increase in arrests and harassment once morest opponents in view of the presidential elections on July 28.
“The presidential elections on 28 July are a key opportunity to respect the will of the people. I regret that the restriction of civic space is increasing. The opposite is needed,” Türk began.
“Despite GDP growth, Venezuelans are struggling to access food and health care. There is a shortage of medical and nursing staff. Protests for a living wage are increasing in the country and the economic crisis is affecting pensioners. I urge the authorities to address these concerns,” she said.
He then said he had noted the release of two union leaders but warned that some releases “are conditional” and reiterated the call for the release of all political prisoners.
“I am concerned by reports of intimidation and ill-treatment of prisoners. People continue to be charged with terrorism charges that do not comply with human rights standards. My office is following reports of arrests as elections approach. These practices must be reversed,” he said. Infobae.
#Maria #Corina #Machado #asked #monitor #electoral #process #Venezuela
2024-07-06 05:06:16
