Venezuela's opposition reaffirms María Corina Machado as its leader
The opposition alliance presents 14 proposals for a democratic transition but no election date. The Nobel laureate is still unable to return home.
Archive image · Photo: Carlos Díaz / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0 (cropped and resized)
Members of the opposition Unitary Democratic Platform (PUD) agreed in Caracas on Sunday to 'recognise and support the leadership of Maria Corina Machado'. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate has lived in exile since leaving Venezuela last December to receive the prize. Her party, Vente, says she has tried at least seven times to return and has been blocked.
The alliance presented 14 proposals for a democratic transition, including the release of all political prisoners, safe return for exiles and freedom for political parties. No date has been set for a presidential vote; Machado told the Financial Times she wants elections by July next year. Former opposition candidate Edmundo González wrote: 'The will of the Venezuelans must once again govern the destiny of our nation.'
Since the US captured Nicolás Maduro in January, his former deputy Delcy Rodríguez has governed as interim president with Washington's backing. A third round of talks between the government and part of the opposition is under way, without Machado's involvement.