OAS approves resolution calling for impartial verification of elections, protection of asylum seekers in Venezuela

the Organization of American States (Organization of American States) On Friday, the 16th of this month, a resolution was approved calling for an impartial verification of the results of the presidential elections in the country. VenezuelaWith the publication of the minutes of the vote recording. The OAS also calls on the Venezuelan authorities to ensure the protection of diplomatic facilities and asylum seekers. The document was unanimously approved at a session of the Permanent Council.

The Organization of American States urges the Venezuelan National Electoral Council to “expedite the publication of the minutes containing the results of the voting in the presidential elections at each electoral table and to respect the fundamental principle of popular sovereignty through the impartial verification of the results that guarantee the transparency, credibility and legitimacy of the electoral process.”

Although it has no practical consequences, since Venezuela no longer participates in the organization, the decision shows unity among OAS member states and puts more pressure on the dictator’s regime. Nicolas Maduro. Of the 34 countries, only Mexico and Bolivia boycotted the vote.

He claims to have won the July 28 contest and his re-election was declared and certified by the National Electoral Council, a body controlled by his allies. However, the minutes that would prove Maduro’s 52% to 43% re-election have never been published, contrary to practice.

The opposition has collected and published electronic copies of 25,000 minutes from polling stations, or 82% of the total. They indicate that Edmundo González won 67% to Maduro’s 30%. Independent institutions have confirmed that these documents are authentic. The United States, the European Union and Latin American countries have supported Maduro’s indications of defeat and called for transparency and a transfer of power.

Despite the general support for the resolution, delegations such as those of Panama and Ecuador were careful to say that their governments recognized the electoral victory of Edmundo González, the opposition candidate, and sought to support efforts to achieve common understanding in the Americas and multilateral organizations to protect the popular will.

The resolution was sponsored by the United States, with support from Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Canada, Chile, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Paraguay, Suriname, and Uruguay.

The OAS stressed the importance of “preserving all equipment used in the electoral process, including all minutes and printed results.” The National Electoral Commission has delivered receipts printed by Venezuela’s electronic voting machines, whose system is considered robust by experts, to the National Electoral Commission. Supreme Court of JusticeAfter Maduro demanded his victory be certified and an investigation into an alleged hacking attack that could have affected the outcome, the country’s highest court is also aligned with Chavismo.

long discussions

The OAS resolution was negotiated over two meetings this week, with broad and open discussion among delegations in Washington. There was resistance from Brazil, Colombia and Mexico, among other countries in the Caribbean, Central America and South America. These governments said that Venezuela was no longer part of the OAS and therefore could not be the subject of discussions.

The Maduro Chavista regime broke away from the organization in 2017, in an unprecedented move. The exit was completed in April 2019. The regime had already been embroiled in political clashes with the organization over questions about human rights and political abuses in Venezuela.

The government was in the crosshairs of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. There was a serious economic crisis, intense repression of protests, and the Organization of American States threatened to suspend Venezuela if general elections were not held. The country would also be suspended from Mercosur in 2017, for violating the democratic system.

The Bolivian government, an ally of Chavismo, sent a document to the Permanent Council questioning the legitimacy of the OAS to address the issue and address a country that is no longer part of the organization. The La Paz delegation announced that it would not participate in the session or in any negotiations that could constitute “interference in internal affairs.” Mexico also used the same argument, again absenting itself and saying that it might question the validity of the laws.

Brazil also expressed its opposition to this, but did not object to the discussion. The content of the resolution was calibrated to coincide with the tripartite proposal previously championed by Brazil, Colombia and Mexico. The three countries had previously led an initiative in the Permanent Council, by abstention or absence, that invalidated an earlier resolution.

Now Brazil and Colombia have agreed and voted for it, while Mexico deliberately failed to do so. The government of Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador considers the actions of the OAS “interventionist” and has its own aspects. Lopez Obrador complains about the actions of the body’s secretary general, Luis Almagro, who declared the elections fraudulent and called for Maduro’s arrest.

In the first attempt, the draft resolution did not obtain an absolute majority of the 34 member states. Of the countries that participated in the meeting, there were 17 votes in favor, 11 abstentions – including Brazil – and none against. Five other countries rejected the council’s invitation.

This time, Brazil supported the approval. The Brazilian representative had already proposed adopting language similar to that used by Itamaraty in her statements, diplomats familiar with the negotiations said, and that is what eventually happened. The wording used by the OAS is the same as recent official statements from Brazil. Previously, Brazilian diplomacy had complained that the body

Before the vote, former Foreign Minister Celso Amorim, a special advisor to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, said he disagreed with the choice of the OAS as a forum to discuss Venezuela. According to him, the organization is “disappointed” by its role in casting doubt on the 2019 elections in Bolivia, which led to the resignation of Evo Morales. He was blocked by the military and opponents, based on an OAS report that pointed to manipulation and fraud in his re-election. Independent studies later pointed to flaws in the organization’s conclusions.

Protection of asylum seekers

At the request of the Argentine delegation, the OAS added a demand to the Maduro regime to comply with the Vienna International Conventions and respect the guarantees of embassies, their diplomats and asylum seekers. The country was one of seven countries whose diplomats ended up being expelled by Chavismo for reporting electoral fraud.

The OAS called on the authorities of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to “protect diplomatic facilities and personnel residing in Venezuelan territory, including persons seeking asylum in those facilities, in accordance with international law, in particular the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.”

Brazil has taken on the protection of the Argentine embassy and asylum seekers there, as well as representing the country’s interests before the Venezuelan government. The same has happened with Peru. President Javier Milei has granted political asylum to six González campaign advisers. Now Lula’s government has offered to send an official plane to get the six dissidents out of the country.

The OAS calls on Venezuelan political forces, including public authorities, to “refrain from any behavior that could harm the construction of a peaceful way out of the crisis.” It also calls for respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, with the full exercise of civil and political rights, impartial trials and no acts of reprisal or arbitrary arrests.