Election changes in Venezuela cause concern
The National Constituent Assembly (ANC) of Venezuela has decreed that the country’s presidential elections will be held by April 30, 2018. Organizations that defend human rights have expressed concern over the news and have urged Venezuela’s electoral authorities to adhere to the Constitution.
According to the organizations, the ANC decree directly violates Article 298 of the Constitution, which clearly states that “the law that regulates electoral processes may not be modified in any way in the period between election day and the six months immediately preceding it”.
“The Venezuelan people deserve solidarity in the affirmation of their fundamental democratic rights, which this decree threatens to undermine,” said the organizations, adding that they were especially alarmed by the fact that the announcement had been made by the ANC, a body that was convened outside of Venezuela’s constitutional order.
Conectas, CELS (Center for Legal and Social Studies), DeJusticia and WOLA (Washington Office on Latin America) have released a joint statement expressing their concerns and they asserted that elections not meeting these conditions “will lack legitimacy and credibility”.
