By Marco Cacciati
Venezuela has withdrawn an invitation for European Union observers to monitor the presidential election scheduled for July 28, raising concerns about the transparency of the upcoming vote.
The invite was revoked shortly after the opposition coalition, Unity Platform, urged President Nicolás Maduro to issue a formal request for EU observers. The government had previously extended an informal invitation, but this was rescinded due to the EU's 'colonialist practices' of imposing economic sanctions, according to the Maduro-aligned National Electoral Council (CNE) head Elvis Amoroso. He claimed the sanctions have cost Venezuela over $125bn in frozen assets and lost revenue over the years.
'From the CNE, we demand that the EU proceed with the total lifting of the unilateral coercive and genocidal sanctions imposed on our people and cease its hostile position against Venezuela,' Amoroso said on May 28.
Since 2018, countries including the US, EU, Canada, Panama, and Switzerland have slapped punitive restrictions on Venezuelan lucrative oil exports, accusing Maduro of rigging the presidential election that year. Last month, the Biden administration reinstated most energy sanctions against Caracas, citing the government's refusal to allow opposition leader María Corina Machado, who won the opposition’s primaries last October with more than 90% of support, to run for president. Washington, after initially lifting sanctions for a six-month period to reward Maduro for signing the Barbados agreement last October, made good on its threats by allowing General Licence 44 to expire and warned it would impose further restrictions if the July election is deemed not free and fair.
Critics argue that Maduro's decision to block EU observers is a continuation of tactics designed to maintain his grip on power, as his third term is in peril due to historically low popularity ratings.
Polls show him trailing significantly with less than two months to the election. Independent pollster Meganalisis indicates that if the voting were held today in a free manner, the unitary opposition candidate backed by Machado, Edmundo González, would win with 60% of the vote, compared to Maduro's 9%.
The CNE's withdrawal of the EU invitation follows recent moves by Brussels to lift sanctions against four officials linked to the electoral body, including Amoroso, in recognition of steps taken ahead of the election. But in a show of brazen defiance, the Bolivarian official rebuffed the overture, dismissing it as 'selective and insufficient' and demanding a total lifting of sanctions.
An EU statement urged the CNE to reconsider its ban, stressing the importance of credible, transparent, and competitive elections supported by international observation. The EU's 2021 mission to observe Venezuelan regional elections had noted some improvements but still criticised the process as largely unfair and undemocratic.
With the EU invitation rescinded, the Carter Center remains the only significant international body expected to observe the election. Other invited organisations include the BRICS group and the African Union, though their democratic credentials and impartiality are questionable.
