Canada imposes new sanctions as Venezuelan President Maduro is sworn in despite global condemnation

Canada imposed new sanctions Against 14 Venezuelan officials, as President Nicolas Maduro was sworn in Friday for a third six-year term, extending his increasingly repressive rule until 2031.

This is despite protests and credible evidence that his opponent won the elections.

Venezuela’s legislative palace, where he took the constitutional oath and delivered a fiery speech, was heavily guarded by police, army and intelligence officers. Crowds of people, many wearing pro-Maduro T-shirts, gathered in nearby streets and in a nearby square.

Maduro accused the opposition of trying to turn his inauguration into a “world war,” and said that his faction’s failure to prevent the inauguration was “a great victory for Venezuela.” He accused foreign powers of “attacking” Venezuela, specifically the US government, and promised to guarantee “peace and national sovereignty.”

“Today, more than ever, I feel the weight of the commitment and authority that I represent and the authority that the Constitution gives me,” he said. “I was not appointed president by the United States government, nor by the pro-imperialist governments of Latin America.”

The opposition collected tally lists from more than 80 percent of electronic voting machines after the July 28 election, posted the results online and said they showed opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez won twice as many votes as Maduro. The US-based Carter Center, which monitored the elections at the invitation of the government, declared that the results published by the opposition were legitimate.

Other election experts allowed by the government to watch the vote said voting records posted online by the opposition appeared to show all the original security features.

Canada, the United States and the European Union announce sanctions

On Friday, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Jolie announced the imposition of new sanctions on Venezuelan officials. It targets 14 current and former senior officials of the Venezuelan government, “who participated in activities that directly or indirectly supported human rights violations in Venezuela.” According to a press release.

These include the suppression of post-election protests.

“Maduro’s brazen actions show that democracy and the rule of law cannot be taken for granted. We will not tolerate the erosion of the democratic process or the suppression of citizens seeking to express their rights,” Jolie said in a statement. press release.

“Canada has stood and will continue to stand with the people of Venezuela and their desire to live in a peaceful and democratic society.”

Canada has now imposed sanctions on a total of 131 Venezuelan individuals.

The European Union also imposed sanctions on 15 senior Venezuelan officials who had a role in the country’s 2024 elections, including the president and vice president of the Venezuelan Supreme Court, the electoral agency, and others. The 27-nation bloc said these officials were endangering the country’s democracy.

The US Treasury Department also imposed a new round of sanctions on Venezuelan officials, including the head of Venezuela’s state oil company, Maduro’s transportation minister and the state-owned airline, among others.

Street protests

On Thursday, as hundreds of anti-Maduro protesters took to the streets of the capital, Caracas, aides to opposition leader Maria Corina Machado said she was briefly detained by security forces and forced to record videos.

The popular former lawmaker, who was barred by the government from running for president, came out after months in hiding to join the march to demand that Gonzalez be sworn in instead of Maduro.

Machado spoke at the rally and then left on a motorcycle with her security convoy. Machado’s press team later announced on social media that security forces had “violently intercepted” her convoy. Her aides confirmed to the Associated Press that the opposition militant had been arrested.

Leaders in the Americas and Europe condemned the government for suppressing opposition voices and demanded her release. US President-elect Donald Trump expressed his support for Machado and Gonzalez.

“These freedom fighters should not be harmed, and should remain safe and alive!” Trump said on Truth Social.

Maduro’s supporters denied Machado’s arrest, saying government opponents were spreading fake news to spark an international crisis.

Global condemnation of the results

The uproar leading up to Maduro’s inauguration has added to a litany of allegations of election fraud and brutal repression to silence dissent. Electoral authorities loyal to the ruling party declared Maduro the winner hours after polls closed on July 28, but unlike previous presidential elections, the authorities did not provide a detailed vote count.

Global condemnation of the lack of transparency prompted Maduro to ask the country’s Supreme Court – also filled with allies of his United Socialist Party of Venezuela – to review the election results. The court confirmed Maduro’s victory without presenting comprehensive evidence and encouraged the electoral council to reveal the results of the vote count.

But neither the council nor the ruling party have provided any evidence of Maduro’s victory, even though their voting center representatives are also entitled to receive tally sheets from each voting machine.

The dispute over the results sparked international outrage and nationwide protests. The government responded with force, arresting more than 2,000 protesters and encouraging Venezuelans to report anyone they suspected of being an opponent of the ruling party. More than 20 people were killed during the unrest, and many protesters reported being tortured in detention.

Outside the inauguration on Friday, Maduro’s supporters were thrilled. One of them was Maricarmen Ruiz, 18, who could not hold back her tears.

“I have no words to express my feelings, I am happy,” she said, expressing her relief that Gonzalez was not “imposed” instead as president.

Gonzalez’s brother is kidnapped

It is unclear how many heads of state attended Maduro’s swearing-in ceremony, which was hosted by the National Assembly, which is controlled by the ruling party. Cameras showed Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel as Maduro received delegates from what he said numbered more than 120 countries.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro, a close ally of Maduro, said he would not attend the event, citing the arrest of another Venezuelan opposition member and human rights defender earlier in the week.

Maduro’s last inauguration in 2019 was attended by Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel and then Bolivian President Evo Morales. The 2018 elections were widely considered a sham after his government prevented the main opposition parties from participating.

It remains unclear whether Gonzalez, who left for exile in Spain in September, will fulfill his promise to return to Venezuela by Friday.

Government officials have repeatedly threatened Gonzalez with arrest if he sets foot on Venezuelan territory. Gonzalez said on Tuesday that his brother-in-law, Rafael Todares, had been kidnapped in Caracas. Gonzalez’s daughter, Mariana Gonzalez de Todares, indicated in a statement that the government was behind her husband’s disappearance.

“At what point did the relationship with Edmundo González Urrutia become a crime?” She said.