In Venezuelan “to be painted on the wall” means to be ignored, not taken into account, and it turns out that today eight million Venezuelans are living outside our country, being politically persecuted or moved for reasons of subsistence, we are a reality, not a fiction. The dictatorial regime of Nicolas Maduro It intends to ignore us and prevent us from exercising our citizen right to give our opinion on the destiny of Venezuela, to vote in referendums and to elect our leaders.
Of the eight million Venezuelans abroad, approximately five million are voters, citizens with the right to participate in the political life of the country and forge their path. Of the five million, only 107 thousand are registered in the Electoral Registry, barely 2%, a figure that is decreasing; In fact, in the previous cut-off, 108 thousand voters were reported; The decrease is due to the death of some of them, naturally, and to not allowing the incorporation of new voters, which constitutes a crime against humanity, a massive violation of human rights.
We have an Electoral Registry abroad that is decreasing, while the number of Venezuelans outside our country is increasing exponentially. We ask the guarantors of the Barbados Agreement to do their part, we demand that they help us do justice, that the Electoral Registry be opened to all citizens who wish to participate, otherwise, Can we speak of an impartial and inclusive election?; The call is for the United States, Great Britain, the European Union, Canada and Norway, as well as for international organizations, the OAS and the UN, among others.
The Maduro regime has a single objective, its permanence in power, to prolong the agony that will soon turn 25 years old; For this purpose, it is not important that Venezuelans abroad vote, they know that our rejection of the regime is unanimous; It is the same reason why there are more than three million young people in Venezuela who have recently turned 18 years old and have not been able to join the Electoral Registry; It is obvious that youth reject tyranny and oppression.
The Barbados Agreement establishes the regime’s obligation to generate conditions of transparency for the free exercise of the right to vote, which is a human and constitutional right. We ask the International community to focus on it.
Along with the right to vote, Venezuelans – like any citizen of the world – have the right to identification, to have an identity card and passport. Expediting the obtaining of our identification instruments is a priority for compliance with the Barbados Agreement, since the regime expressly keeps identification stagnant, to generate political control and prevent the exercise of citizen rights. Here we have another point to be focused on by the international community.
Venezuelans abroad “are not painted on the wall” and we raise our voices. Last Sunday, November 26, we demonstrated in Miami and other cities in the Americas and Europe, demanding the exercise of our right to vote. We have to quicken our pace and prevent the exercise of our political rights from being stolen from us. “We are not painted on the wall.” www.venamerica.org.
By Paciano Padrón*
*President of VenAmérica
