Vincy PM urges Caricom: Recognise Maduro victory

ST VINCENT and the Grenadines Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves has urged Caricom leaders to formally recognise the re-election of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in that country's presidential elections held on July 28.

Gonsalves made this call on July 29 in an interview in Grenada where the 47th regular meeting of the Caricom heads of government is taking place.

A CNN report on July 29 said Venezuela's National Electoral Council (CNE) issued a statement that said with 80 per cent of the votes counted, Maduro has claimed 51 per cent of those votes, beating his opponent, Democratic Unitary Platform (PUD) candidate Edmundo González Urrutia, who received 44 per cent.

The report also said Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado is disputing these results. She claimed that Gonzalez received 70 per cent of the vote while Maduro received 30 per cent.

A Reuters report said there was a subdued reaction in many towns and cities in Venezeula, with most of their streets being empty. An AP report said that many Venezuelans, incensed at the results, engaged in noisy protests on July 29, beating pots and pans with spoons to make their displeasure known.

In an interview with the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC), Gonsalves said, "Well, I’ve already called the Venezuelan government to congratulate them on the victory of Nicolas Maduro.” Gonsalves hoped Caricom will issue a formal statement congratulating Maduro on his re-election.

"He’s an important partner and he’s important for peace and security in our region, including peace and security on the border with Guyana."

Guyana and Venezuela have a long running border dispute with respect to the former's Essequibo region. Both countries are awaiting a ruling from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the matter.

Gonsalves said he was satisfied that, based on reports from the Vincentian ambassador in Caracas and other personnel, that the election was fair.

He believes the reason why some countries are taking different positions with respect to the result was a case of "politics taking precedence in some quarters."

"There may be some countries which may wish to wait and see. I don’t know but that certainly will arise sometime today, whether in this morning session or in the caucus this afternoon. But I would like to see Caricom make a statement congratulating Maduro on his re-election to the presidency," Gonsalves said.

Some Caricom leaders weigh-in

Some Caricom leaders offered their views on the election in subsequent interviews with the Caribbean News Agency (CANA).

Guyana President Dr Mohammed Irfaan Ali said an election has a number of components, including the operations and arrangement before the polls.

He identified other components would include “the elections itself on election day and of course, the mechanisms after the election, the mechanisms to ensure that the votes are counted” and that “there is a credible process of verification”.

Ali said, “So those are all competence of the election. We are not pronouncing, we cannot pronounce one way or the other. As I said, we don’t have details before us. But those are the components that we support in any democratic elections."

Dominica Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit said the CNE was the competent authority to oversee the election.

"Therefore, we extend our congratulations as we do in all elections anywhere in the world, our congratulations to President Maduro on his re-election. We look forward to working with him for the next six years on a bilateral and multilateral basis.”

St Lucia Prime Minister Phillip J Pierre said, "The results that have been declared say that President Maduro has won. I can’t make any firm statement, in terms of what is out now is that President Maduro has won."

He added,"I hope after all the audits are done, after the independent observers give their reports, I’m sure that you get to a position where the result can be sustained and the results can be accepted by the world."

Efforts to get reactions from Prime Minister Dr Rowley and Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister Dr Amery Browne – who are both in Grenada – on July 29, proved futile.

Mixed international reactions

In a statement on X, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed concern the results of the elections did not reflect the will of votes of the Venezuelan people. “Ensuring full transparency in the electoral process, including detailed counting of votes and access to voting records at polling stations, is vital."

The UK updated its travel advice, told to British nationals in Venezuela to stay home if possible. In a statement, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said, "The UK does not accept the legitimacy of the current administration put in place by Nicolás Maduro."

Uruguayan President Luis LaCalle Pou and Panama President Jose Raul Molino rejected the result.

Pou said, "The process up to election day and counting was clearly flawed. You cannot recognize a triumph if you can't trust the forms and mechanisms used to achieve it."

Molino said, "Panama joins the generalised rejection of the electoral result. We aspired for the popular will to be respected and such situation was ignored."

The Brazilian Foreign Ministry welcomed the election result and said it is closely monitoring the counting of votes.

Chilean President Gabriel Boric and Colombian Foreign Minister Luis Gilberto Murillo called for verification of the result before their respective countries make formal pronouncements on it.

Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said, "The democratic will of the Venezuelan people must be respected with the presentation of the minutes of all the polling stations to guarantee fully verifiable results. We ask that the calm and civility with which the election day took place be maintained."

In a telegram to Maduro, Russian president Vladimir Putin said, "Russian-Venezuelan relations have the character of a strategic partnership. I am confident that your activities at the head of state will continue to contribute to their progressive development in all directions.”

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel congratulated Maduro on his “historic victory”.

Bolivian President Luis Arce said, "We have closely followed this democratic festival and we welcome the fact that the will of the Venezuelan people at the polls has been respected."

Honduran President Xiomara Castro and Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega offered similar congratulations to Maduro.