- Colombian protesters urged the president of that country, Gustavo Petro, to recognize the results of the elections in Venezuela | Photo: EFE/ Luis Eduardo Noriega Arboleda
Hundreds of people gathered on Wednesday, August 7, in the center of Medellín to “cry out” for freedom in Venezuela, reject Nicolás Maduro, ask for respect for democracy and support Edmundo González.
Dozens of protesters arrived at the La Alpujarra Administrative Center with Venezuelan flags and banners with messages such as “SOS,” “Edmundo President,” “Venezuela, we are with you,” “Strength,” and “International community, react,” among others, to express their support for Venezuelans after the elections of July 28.
Following shouts of “freedom, freedom” and performances by the Medellín Music Schools Network, the attendees sang the national anthems of Colombia and Venezuela to fill the mobilization with emotion, called a few days ago by the mayor of Medellín, Federico “Fico” Gutiérrez, and the governor of Antioquia, Andrés Julián Rendón.
Gutiérrez said that his city “is not complicit with the dictatorship” and urged Colombian President Gustavo Petro to recognize the “real” election results that made Edmundo González the legitimate president.
“Today what we want is freedom for Venezuela. That the people’s decision in democracy be respected and that the triumph of Edmundo González and the great leadership of María Corina Machado be recognized,” declared the mayor before the crowd.
He also criticized the fact that what “Fico” Gutiérrez, former presidential candidate of Colombia, considers “being complicit with the regime in Venezuela with Maduro” is called “diplomacy” and “prudence.”
Uribe asks for Venezuelans
Amidst the attendees, including Colombians who expressed their support for Venezuela because “they are killing my brothers” and Venezuelans saying “we don’t want any more deaths” and “we want to go back,” former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe appeared to join the demonstration.
“The only thing the dictatorship has is a defiant voice and a rifle against the people,” said the former Colombian president after standing on one of the platforms set up at the rally when he was invited by the organizers of the rally to speak.
Uribe also stressed that “democracy is not negotiable.”
“We must have the strength to remove the dictatorship and that is the duty of the international community,” he said.
For his part, Governor Rendón pointed out that the cause of the Venezuelans is also a cause of Antioquia, the second department with the most refugees and migrants in the country, with 393,392, and where municipalities such as Necoclí have experienced the migration crisis by receiving thousands of people seeking to reach Panama on their way to North America.
“We are witnesses of their passage through Darien, we are witnesses of the pain they carry in their hearts when they see how they have to separate from their families,” said Rendón, who like Gutiérrez, wore a T-shirt with the image of María Corina Machado and the message: “From Medellín and Antioquia we say free Venezuela.”
According to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), there are 240,278 Venezuelan migrants in Medellín, equivalent to 10% of the city’s population.
Colombia’s position on Venezuela’s presidential elections
Following the protests that arose from the results of the July 28 presidential elections announced by the National Electoral Council (CNE), the government of Gustavo Petro has not formally recognized the results presented by the Comando Con Vzla or those issued by the CNE in the first and second bulletins.
On Monday, August 5th, Petro advocated for a “political agreement” between Nicolás Maduro and the Venezuelan opposition to prevent a new “exodus” and a “war” in America.
“The opposition and Maduro must reach a political agreement, otherwise an exodus and war will break out throughout the Americas,” he wrote on social media network X on August 5.
Petro insisted that “the way” is to seek the truth and find solutions in favor of democracy.
“My government does not fall into the strategy of war and the separation of peoples,” he added.
For his part, Luis Gilberto Murillo, Colombian foreign minister, has insisted since Monday, July 29 that the votes are independently verified.
With information from EFE
Related news
#Hundreds #people #demonstrated #Medellin #support #Venezuelans
2024-08-08 02:15:05
