Venezuela Government, Opposition Meet to Set Election Date
(Bloomberg) -- Venezuela’s government resumed talks with the opposition to set a date for the 2024 presidential election, a rare goodwill gesture that comes amid a crackdown on dissent.
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The parties met Monday in Caracas, government negotiator Jorge Rodríguez told reporters after the meeting. Norwegian mediator Dag Nylander also attended.
The parties last met in October, when an agreement toward holding free and fair elections was signed in Barbados. Both sides had agreed to set a date for the vote in the second half of the year as part of the deal.
The government of President Nicolás Maduro recently stepped up repression of his opponents, including by ratifying a ban on presidential frontrunner María Corina Machado and expelling United Nations human rights workers.
The decision to renew talks could be a sign that the government is willing to make modest concessions to prevent the US from reimposing economic sanctions.
Read More: Venezuela Expels UN Human Rights Staff After Activist Arrest
“Repression must be de-escalated, the procedures that each party agreed to select their candidate must be respected, conditions must be produced that allow for a transparent electoral process,” said Gerardo Blyde, the head of the opposition’s delegation, following Rodríguez’s remarks.
(Adds context in fifth paragraph, Blyde’s comments in sixth paragraph)
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