Before the presidential elections of Venezuela According to Panamanian authorities, the authoritarian government of President Nicolás Maduro has prevented the arrival of four former Latin American presidents who wanted to observe the elections. They were forced off the plane in Panama shortly before departure, Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino wrote on Platform X. Venezuela rejected the accusations.
According to data from Panama Foreign Minister Javier Martínez-Acha closed Venezuelan airspace to flights from the Panamanian company Copa Airlines for several hours. The flight carrying the ex-presidents in Panama City and another plane in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, were not allowed to depart until the ex-presidents had disembarked. However, Venezuela’s aviation authority said flight operations were proceeding without disruption.
Former Mexican president calls it a “bad sign” for elections
On board the passenger plane were former Panamanian President Mireya Moscoso, former Mexican Presidents Vicente Fox, Costa Rican Miguel Ángel Rodríguez and Bolivian Jorge Quiroga, as well as a former Colombian vice president.
“We have just been told to get off, otherwise the flight cannot leave,” Moscoso told other passengers on the plane, as seen in a video posted on social media. “We are sorry, because we want a free Venezuela.” Vicente Fox called the incident “a bad sign for Sunday.”
Venezuela President Maduro aims to secure a third term in Sunday’s elections. Observers do not expect free and fair elections. Recently, candidates who criticized the government were not allowed to vote. An invitation for election observers from the EU the government of Venezuela had withdrawn. According to the non-governmental organization Foro Penal, a large number of people with ties to the opposition election campaign have been arrested since January.
NGOs report 135 arbitrary arrests before elections
According to Foro Penal, there have been a total of 149 “arbitrary arrests for political reasons” since the beginning of the year. Of these, 135 were directly linked to the opposition campaign, said Gonzalo Himiob, the head of the organization that advocates for political prisoners. “Most of them have been released, some without trial, but 47 are still in prison,” Himiob added.
According to observers, he has the best chances in the presidential elections Maduro former diplomat González Urrutia of the opposition alliance Plataforma Unitaria Democrática. Urrutia is on the run after opposition leader María Corina Machado, who won last year’s primaries by a landslide, was barred from the race by institutions loyal to Maduro. Members of her campaign team were accused of being involved in a “conspiracy.” Even merchants who sold food or rented accommodation to opposition supporters at campaign events were harassed or deprived of their livelihood, the team said.
According to Foro Penal, there are a total of 305 political prisoners in prison in Venezuela.
Before the presidential elections of Venezuela According to Panamanian authorities, the authoritarian government of President Nicolás Maduro has prevented the arrival of four former Latin American presidents who wanted to observe the elections. They were forced off the plane in Panama shortly before departure, Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino wrote on Platform X. Venezuela rejected the accusations.
According to data from Panama Foreign Minister Javier Martínez-Acha closed Venezuelan airspace to flights from the Panamanian company Copa Airlines for several hours. The flight carrying the ex-presidents in Panama City and another plane in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, were not allowed to depart until the ex-presidents had disembarked. However, Venezuela’s aviation authority said flight operations were proceeding without disruption.