By: Staff Writer
September 10, 2024
The opposition candidate in Venezuela’s recent presidential election has arrived in Spain after fleeing his homeland.
A Spanish Air Force plane carrying Edmundo González landed at Torrejón airbase in Madrid, where he will be granted political asylum.
Mr González had been in hiding in Venezuela. A warrant for his arrest was issued after the opposition disputed July’s presidential election result, which saw incumbent Nicolás Maduro handed a third term.
The US State Department issued a statement on Gonzalez’s flight to Spain: “Edmundo González Urrutia remains an indisputable voice for peace and democratic change in Venezuela. His message of a democratic restoration in Venezuela has inspired the hopes and aspirations of the Venezuelan people and resulted in a powerful call for change in the July 28 presidential election. His departure from Venezuela is the direct result of the anti-democratic measures that Nicolás Maduro has unleashed on the Venezuelan people, including against González Urrutia and other opposition leaders, since the election.
“On July 28, the Venezuelan people overwhelmingly and unequivocally expressed their desire for democratic change. The election results and the will of the people cannot be merely swept aside by Maduro and the Venezuelan electoral authorities. We stand with González Urrutia in his call to continue the struggle for liberty and the restoration of democracy in Venezuela.
“The United States strongly condemns Maduro’s decision to use repression and intimidation to cling to power by brute force rather than acknowledge his defeat at the polls. In the past six weeks, Maduro has unjustly arrested nearly two thousand Venezuelans, used censorship and threats to silence opposition to his rule, and violated Venezuelan laws to remain in power against the will of the Venezuelan people.”
Gonzalez said Sunday his departure from the country came despite “coercion and threats” that he would not be allowed to leave – though he did not make explicit who had made those threats. In an audio note shared with CNN en Español by his press team, Gonzalez said he trusts that “very soon, we will continue the fight for freedom and democracy in Venezuela,” and thanked his followers for their messages of solidarity.
He said later that he had decided to leave “thinking of Venezuela and that our destiny as a country cannot, should not be, one of a conflict of pain and suffering.”
He also thanked the Spanish government for granting him protection and called for continued political dialogue within Venezuela.
Venezuela’s Attorney General Tarek William Saab told CNN on Sunday that authorities will close the case against Gonzalez after his departure.