British English: The principal opposition candidate for the presidency in Venezuela, Edmundo González, who contested against Nicolás Maduro in the July polls, has exited the country, stated vice-president Delcy Rodriguez on the last Saturday. Spain has granted González political asylum and he departed from Venezuela on the same Saturday, Rodriguez confirmed. This occurred just seven days following the government’s decision to issue an arrest warrant against him.
It was Spain’s embassy in Caracas that provided González with sanctuary a few days earlier, and his exit had been planned between the two countries over this past weekend, Rodriguez disclosed further.
This development is expected to spark additional protests from the United States and other international countries that have deemed González to be the true victor of the election held on 28th July. However, Venezuelan authorities have controversially asserted, without presenting any concrete proof, that Maduro has won the re-election for a third consecutive term.
González stands accused by prosecutors of breaching the law, as the opposition clarified via uploaded voting records that he had achieved a sweeping victory. The charges brought against González encompass falsification of an official document, incitement to disobey laws, conspiracy, and sabotage; the details of which were shared on the Venezuelan Prosecutor’s Office Instagram page last Monday through the arrest warrant.
This incident occurs in the setting of a heightened government suppression, with a significant number of Maduro’s operatives reportedly present outside Argentina’s embassy in Caracas from the previous Friday, contemplating deeply on targeting the opposition campaign workers who have been seeking refuge there for several months.
These details were provided by multiple agencies.
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