Far-right opposition politician Henrique Capriles. Photo: Archive.
After calling on Venezuelans to vote “no” in the consultative referendum on Essequibo, far-right opposition politician Henrique Capriles has now announced that he will participate in the consultation to defend Venezuelan territory.
Through a video published on social media, Capriles firmly expressed his conviction that Essequibo belongs to all Venezuelans. For this reason, he claimed, he will vote this Sunday December 3 in the referendum. He added that voting in the referendum “does not mean giving support to or backing the government.”
“Now, if you vote, does that mean [you are] giving support to the government?” asked Capriles. “Not at all, zero … For me, it is a Venezuelan issue.”
On November 9, Capriles supported the position of the independent opposition politician Andrés Caleca, who announced that he would vote this November 3 and would response “no” for the second and third questions of the referendum.
Question 2 in the referendum asks Venezuelans whether they support to the historical claim of Venezuela based on the 1966 Geneva Agreement that superceded the 1899 Paris Award that disposed Venezuela of its rightful territory. Question 3 asks Venezuelans if they agree with their country’s historical position of not recognizing the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice over this particular issue. Thus, for many analysts, voting no for those questions would constitute renouncing Venezuela’s claim over the Essequibo territory.
Venezuela Announces Questions for Consultative Referendum on Essequibo Territory
The consultative referendum is not a partisan matter, but rather it is a popular consultation on the dispute over a territory that Venezuela claims. For this reason, several opposition politician have already added their support to the government’s position on the consultative referendum, including the mayor of San Cristóbal, Daniel Ceballos, the governor of the state of Zulia, Manuel Rosales, and others.
This Monday, two leading members of Justice First (PJ, Caprilles’ Primero Justicia party) announced that they would vote in the consultation on Essequibo. Marialbert Barrios and Ángel Medina stated that sovereignty is also exercised through voting and participation.
“Venezuela demands the participation of its people, and nothing is done by leaving it adrift,” commented Marialbert Barrios. “Manifesting it this way [by not voting] is the same as letting others solve it for us. You have to participate.”
(RedRadioVE) by Ana Perdigón, with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SL
