Opposition presidential candidate González flees Venezuela for asylum in Spain

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Former Venezuelan presidential candidate Edmundo González arrived in Spain on Sunday after fleeing into exile in as part of a negotiated deal with Nicolás Maduro’s government that dealt a major blow to millions who placed their hopes in his opposition campaign. “I trust that we will soon continue our fight to achieve our freedom and the restoration of Venezuela’s democracy.” Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado tried to put a positive spin on his departure, assuring Venezuelans the 75-year-old retired diplomat would be back on Jan. 10 for a swearing-in ceremony marking the start of the next presidential term. “His life was in danger, and the increasing threats, summons, arrest warrants and even attempts at blackmail and coercion to which he has been subjected, demonstrate that the regime has no scruples,” Machado said on X. “Let this be very clear to everyone: Edmundo will fight from outside alongside our diaspora.” Despair in Caracas But on the streets of Caracas on Sunday the mood was one of despair at the loss of someone who, against the odds, reignited a movement to end more than two decades of single party rule. In Spain, he joins at least four former presidential hopefuls who were imprisoned or faced arrest for defying Maduro’s rule. Ever since the vote, he and Machado have been in hiding as security forces rounded up more than 2,000 people, many of them young Venezuelans who spontaneously took to the streets to protest Maduro’s alleged theft of the election. Vice President Delcy Rodríguez said in a statement late Saturday that the government decided to grant González safe passage out of the country to help restore “the country’s political peace and tranquility.” Spain’s center-left government said the decision to leave Venezuela was González’s alone, and he departed on a plane sent by the country’s air force. González had sought refuge in the Dutch ambassador’s residence in Caracas after the election, the Netherlands’ government said Sunday, as he secretly negotiated his exit. “Of course, I told him we were pleased that he is well and on his way to Spain, and I reiterated the commitment of our government to the political rights of all Venezuelans,” Albares said while en route to China for a state visit with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. The European Union’s foreign affairs chief, Josep Borrell, a former Spanish foreign minister, described González’s departure as “a sad day for democracy in Venezuela.” Referring to González as the apparent winner of the presidential elections, Borrell in a statement said the ”EU will maintain its support of the Venezuelan people in their democratic aspirations.” Last-minute stand-in offered hope to millions González was a last-minute stand-in after Machado was banned from running. In previous presidential elections, the National Electoral Council published online the results of each of the more than 30,000 voting machines, but the Maduro-controlled panel did not release any data this time, blaming an alleged cyberattack mounted by opponents from North Macedonia. Attorney General Tarek William Saab, a staunch Maduro ally, sought González’s arrest after he failed to appear three times in connection with a criminal investigation into what it considers an act of electoral sabotage. On Wednesday, González’s attorney delivered a letter to Saab in which he seemed to distance himself from the opposition’s publication of the voting records, saying it wasn’t his responsibility. Experts from the United Nations and the Carter Center, which observed the election at the invitation of Maduro’s government, determined the results announced by electoral authorities lacked credibility. In a statement critical of the election, the U.N. experts stopped short of validating the opposition’s claim to victory, but they said the voting records it published online appear to exhibit all of the original security features. Spain offers refuge for fleeing Venezuelans Spain has been a major point of exodus for Venezuelans, particularly those leading opposition to Maduro’s regime. The last government statistics from 2022 said that some 212,000 Venezuelans lived in Spain. “The truth is he’s more useful fighting abroad than in hiding or imprisoned,” said Gustavo Tovar-Arroyo, a human rights activist who was himself forced to flee into exile in 2012. – This Summarize was created by Neural News AI (V1). Source: https://apnews.com/749131a560dd9d762e04e201e43b9495