The 75-year-old stated in an audio message sent by his press team shortly after he landed on a military aircraft that he was “confident that soon, we will continue the fight to achieve freedom and the recovery of democracy in Venezuela.”
Opposition leader Maria Machado stated earlier on X that Urrutia’s decision to flee was made because “his life was in danger,” citing a “brutal wave of repression” following the election.
Authorities issued an arrest warrant for Urrutia, who Maduro has stated belongs in jail alongside Machado. She remains in hiding, save for spearheading a few anti-Maduro protests since the disputed vote. Urrutia had replaced Machado on the ballot at the last minute after she was disqualified from running by institutions loyal to Maduro, accused by observers of human rights violations. Venezuela’s regime-loyal CNE electoral authority declared Maduro the election winner, but the opposition cried foul, and much of the international community refused to accept the result until seeing a detailed vote breakdown, which has not been provided.
Edmundo González Urrutia, a retired diplomat, left Venezuela after ignoring three summons to appear before prosecutors, arguing it risked his freedom. The regime’s increasing threats, subpoenas, arrest warrants, and attempts at blackmail and coercion show its obsession to silence him. Madrid will grant Urrutia asylum, and Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez described him as a “hero who Spain will not abandon.” There has been no political negotiation between the Spanish and Venezuelan governments.
Venezuela’s Vice President, Delcy Rodriguez, has agreed to the safe passage of opposition figure Urrutia, who took refuge at the Spanish embassy in Caracas. Attorney-General Tarek Saab said Urrutia’s departure marked the end of a “farcical theater,” and the investigation against him is ongoing. The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, and the European Union’s foreign affairs chief, Josep Borrell, demanded the end of repression and the release of political prisoners.
He might get a 30-year prison term.
The accusations originate from the opposition’s choice to make public the total number of votes cast at the polling station level, claiming that Urrutia received almost two-thirds of the total.
The electoral body of Venezuela has claimed that a cyberattack on its servers prevents it from providing a breakdown of the election results.
According to observers, there isn’t any proof of this kind of hacking.
Venezuela’s post-election violence has left 192 people injured and 27 people dead, according to the government, which also claims that 2,400 people have been arrested.
In the midst of widespread allegations of fraud, Maduro also declared victory following Venezuela’s most recent election in 2018. He was able to hold onto power in spite of international sanctions with the help of the military and other institutions.
During his leadership, the nation’s GDP fell by 80% in ten years, forcing over seven million of its thirty million residents to escape.
