Paraguay mourns the exile of Edmundo González

The government of Paraguay regretted the ““forced exile” of the opposition member Edmundo González Urrutia, who arrived in Spain this Sunday, where the government will grant him asylum, and attributed it to the “persecution and harassment of the opposition by the Venezuelan regime.”

«Paraguay reiterates its commitment to the people of Venezuela; demands unrestricted respect for human rightsto the fundamental freedoms of Venezuelans and calls for the immediate restoration of the rule of law in that country,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs published on its X account from Asunción.

Statement on the forced exile of Edmundo González Urrutia pic.twitter.com/BXstWlJsZp

— Ministry of Foreign Affairs (@mreparaguay) September 8, 2024

Edmundo Gonzalez in Spain

Edmundo González Urrutia, 75 years old and candidate of the Democratic Unitary Platform (PUD), the main opposition group in the presidential elections last July, He arrived at the Torrejón air base in Madrid on a Spanish Air Force plane at around 4:00 p.m. local time. (14:00 GMT) with his wife and Spanish authorities.

Venezuela’s executive vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, had reported on Saturday that the opposition politician left the country with a safe-conduct pass granted “for the sake of political peace and tranquility,” after spending “several days voluntarily seeking refuge” in the Spanish embassy.

Initially, the head of Spanish diplomacy, Minister José Manuel Albares, said on the X network that the trip was made at the request of the opposition leader himself.

In a subsequent statement to the press, the diplomat announced that the right to asylum he had requested from Spain would be processed and granted.