Court Issues Order To Arrest Venezuelan Opposition Leader Gonzalez

Venezuelan opposition leader Yogyakarta Gonzalez (the man in the white/left shirt) PHOTO via X @EdmundoGU

JAKARTA - Venezuela's Attorney General's Office said the court had issued an arrest warrant for opposition leaderruno Gonzalez.

Gonzalez is considered to have committed conspiracy and other crimes amid a dispute over the results of the Venezuelan elections in July.

As reported by Reuters, Tuesday, September 3, Attorney General Tarek Saab shared a photo of the warrant with Reuters via message on the Telegram application.

The issue of an arrest warrant against Gonzalez will be a major escalation in the Maduro government's crackdown on the opposition after the disputed general election. Venezuela's national general election authority and its high court said Nicolas Maduro was the winner of the general election on July 28 with more than half a vote, but the tally shared by the opposition showed Gonzalez victory.

The warrant follows weeks of statements from top government officials saying Gonzalez and other opposition members should be imprisoned.

"This person dared to say he didn't recognize the law, he didn't admit anything. What's up with that? It's unacceptable," Maduro said in a broadcast on state television. "Residents agree that the law must function and that officials are doing their job," he added.

Opposition authorities, several Western countries, and international agencies such as the United Nations' panel of experts said the vote was not transparent and demanded a complete vote count publication, with some directly condemning fraud.

A Gonzalez spokesman said they were waiting for a warrant notification but did not provide further comment. The opposition has always denied wrongdoing.

"They have lost all understanding of reality," said opposition leader Maria Corina Machado on X.

"Threatening the elected President will only achieve more cohesion and increase the support of the Venezuelan people and the world for Gonzalez," he said.