“We want to vote”: millions of Venezuelans abroad denounce obstacles to registering to vote

2024-03-27 23:56:00

Millions of Venezuelans residing abroad denounced irregularities and obstacles when registering to vote in the presidential elections in which Nicolas Maduro will seek to compete for a mandate for the third time.

“We want to vote.” In recent weeks, demonstrators held protests in front of consulates of Venezuela in Latin America and Europe to demand that the government enable them to register to vote, after the obstacles they claim to have faced. The intensity of the claim has to do with the fact that they are against the clock, given that the registration period runs from March 18 to April 16.

Tension with Venezuela: the Government is evaluating reinforcing the security of the embassy where there are six opposition refugees

In the midst of a hostile climate inside the country, with complaints against Maduro for political persecution and other irregularities, voters and activists denounced the alleged maneuvers of the Venezuelan government to prevent residents abroad from voting. Among them are the lack of equipment to take fingerprints and even the indifference of diplomatic authorities who “choose to ignore” the claims.

More than 5.2 million Venezuelan expatriates, the foreign vote will be a crucial variable in the July 28 elections, particularly due to the anti-Chavista inclination of the electorate. From the Venezuelan government, which did not respond to queries from international agencies such as AFP, they alleged that the delays and difficulties are due to the international sanctions that weigh on the oil country.

Protesters denounced obstacles to registering to vote and targeted the National Commission controlled by Maduro.

Obstacles and irregularities

According to activist Jesús Delgado, from the organization Electoral Transparency that monitors electoral processes in Latin America, the obstacles to electoral registration are “systematic” and they answer that “the National Electoral Council has not sent them any guidelines” to consulates and embassies.

For its part, the The UN estimates that almost eight million Venezuelans have migrated from their country since 2014in the midst of the economic crisis aggravated by sanctions, an 80 percent drop in gross product, hyperinflation, shortages of food and medicine, and political polarization.

In the last week there were several protests in front of the Venezuelan consulate in Buenos Aires.

The electoral roll was last updated in 2018 and has only 107,000 Venezuelans registered in the world. Of them, about 40,000 are registered in the United States, where they will not be able to vote this time given that the consulates have not functioned since 2019 due to the breakdown of diplomatic relations.

The election initially pits President Nicolás Maduro, who is aiming for a third six-year term, with Manuel Rosales a rival of Hugo Chávez in 2006. The former ambassador also managed to register in extremis Edmund Gonzalez Urrutiaconsidered a “cover candidate” who could be replaced by another person promoted by the leader María Corina Machado, prevented from participating in the election due to a 15-year disqualification.

Rejection of the Maduro government is widespread abroad. Some 5.2 million must update their registration abroad or register to vote for the first time, according to Súmate, another non-governmental organization that monitors the elections.

In Colombiawhich is home to the largest number of Venezuelans (2.8 million, of whom it is estimated that 1.2 million are eligible to vote), registration opened this Tuesday several days late. But activists are pessimistic about the possibility that they will not accept the Temporal Protection Statute, that the Colombian government granted to thousands of Venezuelans so that they could work and access health.

“This generates a lot of concern,” commented opposition leader Eduardo Battistini, since it prevents the registration of 80% to 90% of the potentially voting population. “Beyond a flagrant violation of our right to register abroadson slightly ridiculous excuses“he added.

From the Venezuelan opposition sector they denounce that an electoral agreement made with the Maduro government was violated

Demonstrations around the world

One of the highest points of the protests was the Venezuelan embassy anchored in the city of Buenos Aires, where there were protests almost every day. “Voting abroad is a right” and “we want to vote”were some of the phrases printed on the posters of the more than thirty protesters.

“Each consulate has its requirements and they communicate them verbally. There is nothing official. In some they ask for permanent residence, in others a valid passport. “There is no uniform criterion.”lamented Adriana Flores, outside the consulate in Buenos Aires.

In Argentina there are some 220,000 Venezuelans, of which nearly 150,000 meet the requirements to vote. However, only 2,200 are on the electoral register, according to activists’ calculations.

Meanwhile, in MadridLorena Lima, 28, says she went on a hunger strike from last Friday until Tuesday to demand that the registry be opened. “It was a method of pressure so that all Venezuelans around the world could register,” she told AFP.

In QuitoLuis Magallanes followed suit: “Hunger strike so that we are allowed to exercise our legitimate right to register and update our data in the electoral registry,” he said.

1711585151
#vote #millions #Venezuelans #denounce #obstacles #registering #vote