Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó proposed Tuesday (11) to resume negotiations with the Nicolás Maduro regime to demand an electoral calendar in exchange for the “gradual withdrawal” of international sanctions.
Guaidó, recognized as interim president of Venezuela by 58 countries, has ruled out resuming talks with Chavista since a round of negotiations with Norwegian mediation was interrupted in 2019. “Venezuela needs a national salvation agreement. “, said the opponent in a video posted on social networks. “An agreement that must be found between the democratic forces (…), the actors who constitute and support the regime and the international community.”
The idea of the leader of the opposition is to draw up a pact providing for the establishment of an electoral calendar, including presidential, parliamentary, regional and municipal disputes, with the presence of international observers, in addition to ” the massive influx of humanitarian aid and vaccines against Covid – 19 “and the release of all political prisoners. In return, he has the commitment of the international community to” offer incentives to the regime, including the gradual lifting sanctions ”imposed on the Caribbean country.
The proposal, presented after further failed attempts at negotiation, comes just after parliament, with a large government majority, appointed new electoral authorities. It is a National Electoral Council (CNE) “that we do not recognize,” Guaidó said, refusing to participate in municipal and regional elections. The newly appointed electorate confirmed on Tuesday that the two votes will be held jointly this year, with no date at this time.
“Conspiring with the dictatorship to mutually legitimize each other as tyranny and loyal opposition to this tyranny does not lead to freedom, but to submission and normalization of the worst tragedy that has ever happened in the country,” said Guaidó, who led the boycott of the opposition to the 2018 presidential and 2020 parliamentary elections.
In August 2019, Maduro ended Norway-mediated dialogues in response to severe economic sanctions imposed by the United States, Guaidó’s main international backer.
After this approach failed, the Chavist leader, backed by the armed forces and allies such as Russia and China, began dialogues with other sectors of the opposition, outside of Guaidó, who called these “mockery” initiatives. During these negotiations, it was agreed that opponents would be entitled to two of the five main positions of the CNE, chaired by a former minister of Maduro, Pedro Calzadilla.
“It is natural for Guaidó to try to put the political debate back on his court, since the choice of the new CNE came during negotiations between the government and the other part of the opposition,” he said. AFP news agency political analyst Luis Vicente León.
“It is undoubtedly getting carried away by a new demand for global negotiations (…) and attaching it to sanctions because it is the only pressure tool that the opposition seems to have today, although it does not control it directly.
Calzadilla, along with the rest of the CNE board, announced a “thorough audit” of the electoral register and automatic voting system used in Venezuela. He also said the agency has agreed to review the condition of leaders and political parties, which affects opponents such as Capriles, who remain ineligible.