Caracas.-In the midst of his race to silence all dissenting voices, Nicolás Maduro ordered the social network X, formerly known as Twitter, to be taken out of circulation for a period of 10 days, so that the company, owned by South African magnate Elon Musk, can present “requirements” to the authorities of the Caribbean country.
“The social network that was called Twitter belongs to Elon Musk and has violated all the rules of the social network itself. Twitter, now known as X, has incited hatred, fascism, civil war, death, and confrontation among Venezuelans,” the Venezuelan dictator said at an event.
Along those lines, Maduro said that Musk’s company “has violated all the laws of Venezuela and in Venezuela there is law, and we are going to enforce the law.”
“That is why I have signed a resolution with the proposal made by Conatel, the National Telecommunications Commission, which has decided to remove the social network X, formerly known as Twitter, from circulation in Venezuela for ten days.”
The United States ambassador to the OAS, Francisco Mora, warned dictator Nicolás Maduro on Thursday that he would face international pressure “that he could not imagine” if he arrested opposition leaders María Corina Machado and Edmundo González Urrutia.
“If Maduro decides to do that, he will activate the international community in ways he could not have imagined, and I think his efforts to fracture and divide the international community will have failed miserably,” the ambassador to the Organization of American States told the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based think tank.
“I think it would be a step that could further mobilize the international community, even those who are somewhat sympathetic and do not want to stir things up too much in Venezuela,” Mora said.
The ambassador warned that the United States could be expected to present a strong draft resolution at the OAS if Maduro detains the two opponents.
The United States, the European Union and Latin American countries such as Argentina, Peru, Ecuador and Uruguay believe that González Urrutia won the election, and even many allied governments of Maduro, such as Brazil, have asked him to hand over the voting records.
The Venezuelan president has requested the arrest of González Urrutia and Machado, and has also gone to the Electoral Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ), accused of serving Chavismo, to certify his victory, through a process that academics and political leaders consider inappropriate.
González Urrutia, representative of the disqualified leader Machado, defied the TSJ’s summons on Wednesday. The leader claims that there was fraud and claims to have evidence proving that he won the elections.
The opposition published on a website copies of more than 80% of the minutes that they claim prove their victory. Chavismo dismisses the validity of these documents.
The Biden administration has not yet taken any concrete measures against Caracas, while the governments of Brazil, Colombia and Mexico are seeking to mediate a solution to the crisis in Venezuela.
Washington wants to give the three countries “space and opportunity to work and find a way forward” in this context, Mora said. But he insisted that Venezuela is a priority for the United States: “We will not abandon the Venezuelan people,” he said.
“We will not simply say ‘we are tired (…) we are distracted, we will find a way out of this that does not take into account the Venezuelan people and the democratic forces in Venezuela’. We will not do that,” said the ambassador.
Brazil, Colombia and Mexico, which are trying to broker a solution to the crisis in Venezuela, insisted on Thursday that the results of all polling stations be released by the National Electoral Council and not by the Supreme Court, where they were supposedly sent.
The foreign ministers of the three countries said in a statement that they “consider it essential that the National Electoral Council of Venezuela (CNE) present the results of the presidential elections of July 28, 2024, broken down by voting table.”
The leaders also called for “the transparent disclosure of the election results” and reaffirmed “the convenience of allowing impartial verification of the results, respecting the fundamental principle of popular sovereignty.”
The letter also states that Lula, Petro and AMLO “reiterate the call to the country’s political and social actors to exercise maximum caution and moderation in demonstrations and public events and to the country’s security forces to guarantee the full exercise of this democratic right within the limits of the law. Respect for Human Rights must prevail in all circumstances.”Infobae.
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2024-08-10 22:17:37