Turmoil in Venezuela: Is Election Being Used to Continue Dictatorship?

Editorial

17:18 JST, August 5, 2024

Anti-U.S. leftist President Nicolas Maduro has declared victory in the presidential election held in the South American nation of Venezuela. The opposition camp has claimed voting fraud, and protests have resulted in a number of deaths and injuries.

Antagonism with neighboring countries has also deepened, destabilizing the situation in South America.

In the presidential election, Edmundo Gonzalez, a former diplomat and the only candidate fielded by the opposition camp, had a significant lead in opinion polls prior to the election. However, the country’s election commission, which is under the influence of the administration, announced a Maduro victory.

The tally at each polling station has not been released, and election observers sent by the opposition were reportedly barred from polling stations.

The administration did not allow any leading opposition politicians other than Gonzalez to run for office. It had promised to accept a group of European Union election observers, but ultimately broke that promise.

It is not surprising that the opposition suspects that the vote was manipulated to have Maduro win the election.

If Maduro insists that he won, he should disclose detailed vote counts.

Maduro took office in 2013, succeeding President Hugo Chavez, whose stance was notably anti-American.

This presidential election tested whether there should be a change in administration for the first time in the quarter century since Chavez rose to power. The protests that spread across the country after the election must show how deeply the public is dissatisfied with Maduro.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken of the United States, which is opposed to Maduro’s administration, expressed concern, saying that the outcome does not reflect the will of the Venezuelan people. Leaders from Latin America, including Chile and Argentina, also questioned the election results.

The Japanese government called for “ensuring transparency in the electoral process” from the standpoint of respecting democracy based on free and fair elections.

On the other hand, China and Russia congratulated Maduro on his “victory.” It is obvious that they aim to deepen relations with Venezuela — which is located in South America, where U.S. influence is strong, and which is a country with the world’s largest oil reserves — and to keep the United States in check.

Dependent on oil revenues for many years, Venezuela continued its policy of pork-barrel handouts even after oil prices fell, resulting in a financial collapse. The United States imposed economic sanctions on the country for reasons including the suppression of the opposition, and a shortage of foreign currencies and inflation became the norm.

Fleeing economic hardship and authoritarian rule, more than 7.7 million people, or a quarter of the total population, have left Venezuela for Brazil, Colombia and the United States among other countries, with more likely to follow.

If the practice of using elections to legitimize autocracy becomes rampant, faith in democracy will be damaged. Japan must not stay indifferent.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Aug. 5, 2024)