[Politics] (Analysis) Petro must intercede for Venezuela, not for Maduro

[Draeno]

 

Since President Petro was elected, the promises to restore relations with Venezuela were not long in coming. Several instances of the Executive branch, through the Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, have led efforts within their powers to strengthen ties with the neighboring country. One of the most outstanding has been the International Conference on the Political Process in Venezuela, held in Bogotá at the end of April, from which, until now, no great advances have been made to unlock the negotiation between Maduro and the opposition, in Mexico.

This and other milestones within the reestablishment of Colombian-Venezuelan relations have brought different questions to public opinion: there is much talk that the Colombian government "washes face" with Maduro, so it is important to express the priorities that he must have Colombia in the framework of the opportunity represented by getting closer to Venezuela.

Petro has defended on different occasions that the political destiny of Venezuela must be decided by its citizens. The truth is that at least seven million of them are scattered in various countries of the world, having been forced to leave their country by an authoritarian government that has abolished the separation of powers, created a national constituent assembly to serve as the National Assembly , has silenced and harassed its opponents, going through the repression of citizen protest, but none of these violations has received a complaint from Petro during his presidential term.

However, in his two races for the leadership of the country (in 2018 and in 2022) he said that Maduro was "within the leadership of the politics of death" and even invited him to step aside from power when Maduro suggested that Petro belonged to a 'cowardly left'. Now, Petro has moderated to achieve different commercial, economic and political purposes with its counterpart in Caracas.

The same International Conference that had been promoted with great fanfare was bogged down by Maduro's statements a few hours before the start of the event. As if wanting to warn his opponents and Petro himself, he said that, in order to continue in the negotiation, the process against him in the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity should be stopped. This is a sensitive point that had not been touched until now by Maduro, much less used to compromise in the negotiation and be put at the level of the withdrawal of sanctions, as if the will of one or another country could be above an organ independent judiciary of universal character. It should not be forgotten that this investigation is investigating crimes against humanity in the actions of security forces during anti-government protests and against dissident voices since 2014.

The size of Maduro's pronouncement, as well as the moment he used to make it, shows possible intentions to hinder the negotiation in Mexico and buy time to press the lifting of sanctions. Beyond the alarmist presumptions that spread that Petro is a lackey of Maduro, what is certain is that the Colombian president must be careful not to be instrumentalized in a political game in which, although the parties directly involved are the opposition and the ruling party Venezuelans, Petro is also an ostensible token who is risking the image he will have on the international stage. In this role, without a doubt, he must reject the scope that Maduro intends to have in the International Criminal Court, not only because Colombia is part of it, but also because democratic values that Petro has defended before his peers stem from there.

 

https://www.elespectador.com/mundo/america/gustavo-petro-debe-interceder-por-venezuela-no-por-nicolas-maduro-noticias-de-hoy/