CARACAS/BOGOTA: Venezuela’s new legislative superbody was criticised by South American governments and Washington after giving itself the power to pass laws, superseding the opposition-led congress while ex-top prosecutor Luisa Ortega fled the country.
President Nicolas Maduro sponsored last month’s election of the 545-member constituent assembly over objections from the opposition, which boycotted the vote, calling it an affront to democracy. In its first session on August 5 the assembly fired Ortega, who had accused Maduro of human rights violations.
The oil-rich but economically ailing country has seen months of political unrest in which more than 125 people have died.
Ortega arrived in neighbouring Colombia on Friday, migration authorities in Bogota said. She told Reuters in an August 10 interview that she feared for her life in Venezuela, although she still considered herself the country’s chief prosecutor.
US State Department meanwhile joined South American trade bloc Mercosur in condemning the new super-assembly.
“As long as the Maduro regime continues to conduct itself as an authoritarian dictatorship, we are prepared to bring the full weight of American economic and diplomatic power to bear in support of the Venezuelan people as they seek to restore their democracy,” the State Department said in a statement.
In practice, the assembly’s assumption of legislative power changed little in Venezuela, where the Supreme Court has shot down nearly every law that congress has approved since it was taken over by the opposition in 2016.
Delcy Rodriguez, a Maduro ally and president of the constituent assembly, insisted the move did not imply a dissolution of the congress.
But trade bloc Mercosur condemned what it called a usurpation of legislative power, according to a statement released by Brazil’s Foreign Ministry. Mercosur founding members Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay will not recognise any measures taken by the assembly, the statement said.
The assembly had invited leaders of the existing congress to join the session. — Reuters
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