DORAL, Fla. – Several press conferences were held on Thursday across South Florida centering on the current situation in Venezuela following the country’s presidential election.
Luis Almagro, secretary general of the Washington DC-based Organization of American States, made stops in Miami.
Mayor Francis Suarez and City Commissioner Joe Carollo presented Almagro with a key to the city.
Almagro’s visit was focused on pressing the international community to hold dictator Nicolas Maduro’s regime accountable.
“Part of his remarks is actually about the investigation the international criminal court has been doing into Maduro for almost 10 years now,” said Doral Councilman Rafael Pineyro, who is a Venezuelan-American. “It is a call for the internal criminal court to go ahead and finally act. They [the Maduro regime] are not following any human rights protections, so it is about time for the international criminal court to capture Maduro.”
Almagro cited the recent mass arrests of protestors in the wake of the country’s recent contested presidential election.
The regime has claimed, without evidence, that Maduro clinched an election, one that the opposition coalition says its data shows challenger Edmundo Gonzalez won.
Almagro concluded his remarks by saying that it is necessary to find a path forward for peace, democracy and justice.
The OAS recently held a special meeting about the Venezuela election process at the request of several Latin American countries, the U.S. and Canada.
In attendance were several CEOs of non-profits in service to families in Venezuela.
On Thursday, Doral Mayor Christi Fraga, who represents the home of South Florida’s largest Venezuelan community, summed up the current mood of her constituents this way:
“It is somber, but there is still hope and that is what is incredible,” she said. “For those who fight for democracy and a chance to return to their homeland. As a Cuban-American, unfortunately we have lived this story. I think we always fight for democracy and what is right.”
She said many living in South Florida are afraid for loved ones who have been or could be arrested in their fight for democracy in Venezuela.
ADDITIONAL LINKS
Statement by the OAS General Secretariat on the Situation in Venezuela
OAS General Secretariat Demands Verification of Voting Records in Venezuelan Electoral Process