The Venezuelan prosecutor’s office charged “hate incitement” to four collaborators of President Nicolás Maduro’s main rival in the July 28 elections, Edmundo González Urrutia, who also denounced on Wednesday the political disqualification of 10 mayors who expressed support for his candidacy.
The attorney general, Tarek William Saab, reported on the social network Luis López, Juan Iriarte, Jean Carlos Rivas and Ismael González were “charged and deprived of liberty (…) for the crimes of inciting hatred and association.”
Two other people, also members of the campaign command, were requested by justice for the same crimes.
Tarek William Saab, Attorney General of Venezuela.
Photo:AFP
According to Saab, during a campaign event in La Guaira (central-north) at the beginning of June, the accused “aggressively went to the Bolivarian National Guard Command (…) where they tried to enter by using force with intention to create injuries to the troops”.
The opposition denounced that The authorities did not report the place of confinement of these militants and that they were presented in court without the presence of their trusted lawyers.
González Urrutia noted shortly after that 10 mayors – eight in the Andean state of Trujillo (west) and another two in the island of Nueva Esparta (east) – were “unfairly disqualified for supporting our candidacy.”
“The growing persecution confirms that Venezuela has decided to change and will express it with determination this July 28. We will continue fighting together for a country where no one is persecuted for thinking differently,” this ambassador, unknown until he was nominated with the support of the leader María Corina Machado.
Former deputy María Corina Machado speaks during a press conference, this Saturday in Caracas (Venezuela).
Photo:EFE/ Ronald Peña
Disqualification is an old weapon of the ruling Chavismo to get rivals out of the way. Machado, a favorite in the polls, could not be a candidate in the elections due to a ban on holding public office for 15 years.
The opposition leader maintains that at least 37 political leaders and leaders close to the campaign have been arrested so far this year. She denounces “persecution” and criminalization of electoral activity, while the government accuses the opposition of conspiring to overthrow it.
Anti-Chavista parties reject the accusations
Several opposition parties in Venezuela rejected the accusations announced this Wednesday by the Prosecutor’s Office against four activists who worked in the organization of a recent campaign event by Edmundo González Urrutia, the presidential candidate of the main anti-Chavista coalition, the Democratic Unitary Platform (PUD).
Through a statement, Voluntad Popular (VP) “strongly” rejected that The fiscal entity will charge Luis López, Juan Iriarte, Ismael González and Jeancarlos Rivas – the latter responsible for youth in the state of La Guaira (north) of the party – for the crimes of inciting hatred and association to commit a crime.
In the opinion of the group, the arrests and accusations against these activists are measures that “violate human rights and due process,” and they assured that “persecution for political reasons is part of the long list of crimes against humanity committed by the dictatorship.” “, as he usually calls the Government of Nicolás Maduro.
For its part, Primero Justicia (PJ) expressed that these events “demonstrate the intensification of political persecution by the Nicolás Maduro regime, the violation of the political rights of Venezuelans and the non-compliance with the Barbados Agreement,” a document signed by Chavismo and the PUD that establishes electoral guarantees for the presidential elections.
In his message, published in X, PJ demanded respect for the human rights of the accused, due process and “their immediate freedom.”
