Venezuela's Supreme Court: Ruling on the outcome of presidential election 'binding'
Holder of the Office Nicolás Maduro had called the Supreme Court himself on August 1st to "confirm" his disputed victory, both at home and abroad. He had filed a complaint with the court against what he called an "attack on the electoral process". Looking at opposition politicians María Corina Machado and Edmundo González Urrutia, Maduro had said at the time that they "should be behind bars". Most observers assume that the judges are loyal to Maduro.
The similarly largely government-loyal electoral authority had officially declared Maduro the winner of the presidential election on July 28th, despite international criticism and fraud allegations from the opposition. The opposition claims the election victory for themselves.
After Maduro's controversial re-election, there were massive protests in Venezuela against the election outcome. According to human rights organizations, more than 2200 people were arrested and at least 24 people died during the protests. The state prosecutor's office initiated investigations against the two opposition leaders Edmundo González Urrutia and María Corina Machado for "incitement to rebellion". Both opposition politicians have not been seen in public for days due to the threat of arrest.
Maduro's challenger González Urrutia called on the head of state to renounce violence on Saturday. The 74-year-old opposition figure urged Maduro "in the name of all Venezuelans, to end violence and persecution and immediately release all arbitrarily detained Venezuelans", he stated on online networks.
"Enough of persecution and violence, enough of attempts to spread terror, enough of disregard for the will of the Venezuelans for change", wrote González Urrutia. "Accept what our people have expressed and let us all begin to lead our country out of this crisis."
Several countries, including the USA, Peru, and Argentina, had officially recognized González Urrutia as the winner of the election last week. The EU has not done so yet, but has rejected the recognition of Maduro's re-election.
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The European Parliament, being part of the Commission, could express its concerns about the human rights situation in Venezuela and the arrests of opposition leaders. The Commission, assisted by the European Parliament, might issue a statement urging the release of arbitrarily detained individuals and an end to violence.
