The former mayor of Caracas, Antonio Ledezmaassured this Sunday that Edmundo González Urrutia, who has just arrived in Spain, “He is the elected president of Venezuelawherever you are,” since the “verified” voting records confirm his victory and his legitimacy does not change even if the elected president resides abroad. Ledezma also resides in Madrid.
“We receive him with the respect he deserves and with the certainty that he will fulfill his historical role from exile, from where we will continue with determination our struggle to make the dream of returning to our homeland a reality,” said Ledezma, also exiled in Spain.
In addition, Ledezma stressed that “we now have the victorious duo of María Corina Machado and Edmundo González Urrutia, both committed to the same program of struggle to restore democracy in Venezuela.”
Although they will act from different scenarios, “each of them represents the two Venezuelas: the one that lives in exile and the one that resists inside the country, united in a common strategy,” said the coordinator of the International Political Council of María Corina Machado’s team.
Ledezma assured that we will see Edmundo González “acting as president-elect in the most important international forums and María Corina honoring her commitment inside the country, with the firm conviction that this fight is until the end, alongside the courageous people who trust her. .
The former mayor stressed that it is “widely known” that there is a “criminal and usurping” regime in Venezuela that seeks to create a false environment of normality.
According to Ledezma, in Venezuela the Constitution has been “stripped of its true nature, becoming a norm without real value, a facade that hides the suppression of rights and freedoms.”
“Edmundo González Urrutia has been the victim of incessant harassment, including death threats. “This persecution is part of a strategy to legitimize illegality and crimes against humanity,” he said, referring to the Venezuelan authorities.
Ledezma also denounced that “the regime has intensified its repression to extreme levels, persecuting thousands of activists, including minors, assassinating dissidents and issuing arrest warrants against elected president Edmundo González.”
Venezuela’s National Electoral Council and Supreme Court have endorsed Nicolas Maduro’s victory in last July’s elections, while the opposition has denounced “massive fraud” and claims that González Urrutia was the real winner.
The Venezuelan justice system issued an arrest warrant for González after he ignored three summonses from the Prosecutor’s Office, which accuses him of several crimes related to the publication on the Internet of voting records that proclaimed him the winner.
Asylum in Spain
Edmundo González, president-elect of Venezuela, and his wife have already arrived in Spain. The Spanish Air Force plane in which they were traveling landed this Sunday at 3:52 p.m. at the Torrejón military airport (Madrid). The Secretary of State for Foreign and Global Affairs, Diego Martínez Belío, is also traveling on board the plane.
Edmundo Gonzalezleader of the largest coalition opposed to Chavism, was forced into exile after suffering repression from the dictatorship of Nicolas Maduro after the electoral coup of July 28.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement informing of the arrival in Spain of González, who “was received by the Secretary of State for Latin America and Spanish in the World, Susana Sumelzo.”
“The asylum application procedures will now begin, the resolution of which will be favourable in the interest of Spain’s commitment to the political rights and physical integrity of all Venezuelans, especially political leaders,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, he was the one who reported this morning of the trip, which was made, according to the minister, at the request of Edmundo González himself. “The Spanish government is committed to the political rights and physical integrity of all Venezuelans,” he said.
