Ecuador pleads for peaceful exit in Venezuela

Ecuadornews:

The Ombudsman’s Office added to the rejection of the statement made by the OAS Secretary, who does not rule out a “military intervention” against Nicolás Maduro.

The People’s Defender of Ecuador, Gina Benavides, spoke in favor of the country’s position on the situation in Venezuela and adds to the statement made by the Government. Last week, the Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), Luis Almagro, argued about the situation in Venezuela that does not rule out military alternatives to divest Nicolás Maduro of power.

In that sense, Gina Benavides, defender of the People, said that “all institutions and people working for human rights advocate a peaceful way out. We condemn any armed intervention that you want to give. “ This was stated in the framework of the opening of the regional forum “Challenges in the protection of the rights of the Venezuelan population in human mobility in Latin America.” Her words are in addition to those of the National Government to seek a peaceful and democratic solution to the crisis in Venezuela. According to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), 2.6 million Venezuelans left that country due to their humanitarian situation.

In a statement, the Government rejected the position of the Secretary General of the OAS last weekend. “The future of Venezuelans should be decided only by Venezuelans.” She also urged the international community to support the organization of a “true national dialogue, transparent, democratic and international oversight in Venezuela.”

In the forum organized by the Ombudsman’s Office, migration and human rights organizations participated in shaping a regional strategy to promote citizen rights. From this meeting a declaration will be generated (integral proposal) that will be delivered to each one of the states of the region. It will also be presented to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.

Clarification of Almagro

The Secretary General of the OAS made a statement on his Twitter account after the reactions in the region to his statements. In the social network he posted a video in which he claims that they “misinterpreted” his statements about the situation in Venezuela. He asserted that his intention was rather to say that all diplomatic channels should be exhausted. “What we have done all these years is to defend human and diplomatic rights. It would be a childishness to fall into that provocation, “said Almagro.

Almagro’s statements come after governments and regional bodies questioned his pronouncements during the weekend. One of them was the Government of Venezuela, who announced that it will denounce to the United Nations (UN) and international bodies the Secretary General for allegedly promoting military intervention in that country.

Likewise, last week the Lima Group broke away from Almagro’s position and rejected its statements. Eleven of the 14 countries that make up the group signed a document, which was disclosed by the Peruvian Foreign Ministry in which they expressed “their concern and rejection of any course of action or declaration that implies a military intervention or exercise of violence, threat or use of force in Venezuela.”

The Lima Group was formed in August 2017 with the objective of taking a position on the Maduro government. At that time they signed the Declaration of Lima to “condemn the breakdown of democratic order in Venezuela.” The agency, which is not Ecuador, has reiterated on several occasions its support for the installation of a democratic national assembly and has condemned the alleged violation of human rights and repression in the Caribbean country. (I)

Source: https://www.eltelegrafo.com.ec/noticias/politica/3/ecuador-venezueladefensoriadelpueblo-oea