Human Rights Watch has called upon Latin America, the United States, and Europe to take proactive measures to protect the right to vote in Venezuela as the nation’s presidential election approaches this Sunday. This comes amid numerous reports of arbitrary disqualifications of opposition candidates, unlawful arrests, and restrictions on civic space.
In June 2023, former opposition party candidate María Corina Machado was barred from running, a move upheld by the Venezuelan Supreme Court in January 2024. The court also banned fellow opposition leader Henrique Capriles. According to Foro Penal, as of July 26, 2024, 149 people have been arbitrarily arrested, most of whom are associated with Machado’s opposition party, Vente.
Juanita Goebertus, Americas Director at Human Rights Watch, emphasized that while the upcoming election is unlikely to be free or fair, it represents the best opportunity in over a decade for Venezuelans to elect their government. “The international community should have their back as they do,” she noted in a statement.
Efforts by Venezuelan opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia and party leader Machado to invite international observers have been stymied. Parliamentarians and former presidents invited to monitor the elections have been denied entry into the country. Former Mexican President Vicente Fox tweeted that the government had banned all Copa Airlines flights from Panama City to Caracas. Colombian Senator Angélica Lozano Correa was immediately deported upon her arrival, according to her Twitter post.
On Friday, Venezuelan authorities also closed land border crossings between Venezuela and Colombia until July 29, 2024, as part of a joint resolution by the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of the Interior, Justice, and Peace, which also prohibited the sale of alcohol, carrying of weapons, and public gatherings.
Human Rights Watch has urged foreign governments to closely monitor the election and publicly condemn any attempts to undermine the voting process. According to local media, there have already been allegations of irregularities regarding the early installation of voting tables without the presence of trained and legally accredited individuals, as reported by La Prensa.
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