MADRID Jan. 11 () –
The president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, have expressed their “support” for the people of Venezuela and have urged the president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, who took office this Friday surrounded by controversy, to resume dialogue with the opposition and to enable the “return of democracy and stability to the country.”
“The President of France and Lula called on Nicolás Maduro to resume dialogue with the opposition. France and Brazil are willing to facilitate this resumption of trade, which should allow the return of democracy and stability to Venezuela,” declared the French Presidency. in a statement.
The two leaders have thus reaffirmed their “full support” for the people of Venezuela after this Friday Maduro took office at the headquarters of the National Assembly surrounded by controversy after the elections of July 28, in which the opposition denounced fraud in vote counting.
“Then they condemned in the strongest terms the attempted arrest of María Corina Machado during a peaceful demonstration. In this context, the head of state and President Lula together asked that no intimidation or repressive measures be exercised against members of the opposition” , they have asserted.
The French president also communicated today with opposition leader Edmundo González Urrutia and María Corina Machado to find out about their health and safety, reaffirming France’s commitment to the defense of Human Rights in Venezuela.
Regarding the demonstrations that occurred in the country called by the ruling party, both presidents have asserted that “the rights of Venezuelan citizens to demonstrate and assemble peacefully must be respected.”
“They also said that all those detained for their opinions or political commitments should be released immediately,” they denounced.
Venezuela held presidential elections at the end of July in which the ruling party gave victory to Maduro, although the opposition denounced fraud in the vote count and claimed González’s victory, supported by part of the international community.
Although González had assured that he would travel to Venezuela this Friday to take office, in the end this was not the case. Maduro, for his part, who had also assured that he would be sworn in as president of the country, received the presidential sash in an event at the National Assembly in Caracas surrounded by authorities and representatives from more than a hundred countries.
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