Mariana Martinez | We Need All Eyes on Venezuela

For over a decade, Venezuela has been subjected to an authoritarian regime under a tyrannical president, Nicolás Maduro. His regime has been characterized by human rights violations that have affected over seven million refugees. Shockingly, the United States and the Biden administration have been making life easier for dictator Nicolás Maduro. 

On July 28, the Venezuelan National Electoral Council reelected Maduro despite existing evidence of fraud. According to the voting records, the opposition candidate Edmundo González secured a victory with 67% of the vote, yet Maduro refuses to acknowledge this and claims a victory of 51%. 

The international community has been awfully silent. The United Nations has yet to chime in, even though human rights are on the line. During the first 24 hours following the elections, there were already reports of more than 50 missing people who were known to be protesting Maduro’s tyranny. Additionally, Maduro has already threatened to imprison the opposition’s leaders María Corina Machado and Edmundo González, completely undermining all democratic principles. Moreover, the Venezuelan police are also on the hunt for anyone who opposes his regime, using violence to silence them. Maduro has expressed on social media his plan to build high-security prisons to “reeducate” anyone who opposes him. This last plan dangerously resembles the idea of a concentration camp. 

The Organization of American States has also turned its back on Venezuela, as countries like Colombia, Brazil, Bolivia and Honduras have abstained from taking a vote that compels Maduro to show the official voting results that would prove his legitimacy. While the United States Secretary of State has recognized Edmundo González as the winner, the American administration has taken a rather passive stance: The Secretary of State has said that “[n]ow is the time for the Venezuelan parties to begin discussions on a respectful, peaceful transition in accordance with Venezuelan electoral law.” This comes off as a way to wash their hands of this problem, something uncharacteristic of a nation that throughout history has claimed to be a defender of democracy and good governance. 

This silence is thunderous. It’s heartbreaking to see how people who claim to be activists for social justice are turning their backs on this. I can’t do much, except write. So I sit down and write this article in the hopes of informing readers about the Venezuelan crisis, hoping that more advocates will join this fight. 

Venezuela, once one of the most prosperous countries in Latin America and known for its promising oil reserves, came under the totalitarian control of Hugo Chávez in 1999. He crafted an entirely new constitution that shut down the opposition, seized the Supreme Court of Justice of Venezuela, and threatened journalists and human rights defenders.

After Chávez’s death in 2013, his heir Nicolás Maduro seized power. The past years have seen Venezuela deal with hyperinflation of 130% and patterns of abuse from the government leading to the largest displacement crisis in the world.

Maduro’s regime resorts to torture and killing as tools of repression. Additionally, the regime has employed specialized police units that have engaged in several human rights violations and are characterized by a brutal modus operandi. Guerrilla groups like the National Liberation Army and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia are also allowed to operate freely with a reign of terror that not only affects Venezuela but also Colombia, a neighboring country. 

The ability of the Venezuelan people to vote has been restricted, making it possible for Maduro to keep “being reelected” even if over 70% of the population does not agree with his regime.

In spite of American claims for “a democratic Venezuela” on several occasions, little has truly been done in the past four years to make that happen. Biden’s policies are a disappointment. 

In 2022, under the Biden administration, the severity of the U.S. sanctions on Venezuela decreased. After Russia invaded Ukraine, and the world seemed to face skyrocketing oil prices, the United States allowed Venezuela to produce and trade oil once again. This Biden policy undermines the democratic opposition and simply makes life easier for Maduro. An open path for the state-owned oil company to produce caused a rise in barrel production, strengthening the regime. I don’t think it was a coincidence that it was during that period of time that repression grew steadily as well. 

The United States’ reason for lifting the sanctions was supposedly to urge Maduro to carry out free elections in 2024; however, it’s important to question the administration’s motives, as the United States benefited greatly from lifting these sanctions in the form of keeping oil prices low. It’s important to question whether Biden always had in mind the intention of defending democracy and helping Venezuela ease back into a non-authoritarian regime. 

Furthermore, Biden released Alex Saab, who was extradited to Miami after being convicted of more than eight charges for money laundering as well as falsifying documents to obtain government contracts. Saab was a key player in one of the most notorious corruption schemes in Venezuela, and yet, under the excuse of negotiations, Biden chose to release him. 

Now, after the July 28 elections have been rigged and Maduro is proclaiming himself as president, I can only wonder what the United States will do. Will Biden accept that his policies were flawed? Or will he continue to negotiate with a dictator? And with the upcoming 2024 presidential election, will the new candidates put forward an efficient foreign policy plan to properly address the Venezuelan crisis? It’s past time the international community moves up the Venezuelan crisis in politics and policy priorities; American intervention is imperative. 

MARIANA MARTINEZ is a rising College sophomore from Bogotá, Colombia. Her email is marmari@sas.upenn.edu.