Spanish parliament symbolically recognises Gonzalez as Venezuela’s true president 

Spain’s national parliament has passed a motion calling for opposition leader, Edmundo González, to be recognised as Venezuela’s true president.

The move is symbolic, but a morale boost to González who has been forced to flee there after being denied the keys to Venezuela’s highest office.

Incumbent President, Nicolás Maduro, held on to power after July’s election claiming a win that the world largely doesn’t believe.

The EU’s foreign affairs chief said in fact “Edmundo González appears to be the winner of the presidential elections, by a large majority, according to publicly available copies of the electoral records.”

The British government said it was “deeply concerned about allegations of serious irregularities in the declared results.”

But Nicolás Maduro, president for more than ten years, has no plans to relinquish power and stands by the official result by the National Electoral Council that declared him the winner.

Since the election, he has forced the opposition into hiding, promising to hunt down González with a raft of charges including treason.

After seeking refuge in the Spanish embassy in Caracas, Edmundo González eventually asked for political asylum. He and his wife landed in Madrid last Sunday.

Venezuela’s economy has been in dire straits for decades. Once the world’s largest petroleum exporter, it has become hampered by corruption, mismanagement and a social experiment which failed to deliver the promised equality and prosperity. Economic woes have been worsened by US economic sanctions.

Human Rights Watch, which sought to monitor the election in July, says “Venezuelans participated massively and peacefully in the presidential election”. It says the authorities are now “committing widespread human rights violations against protesters, bystanders, opposition leaders, and critics.”

Edmundo González was in the public gallery of the Palacio de las Cortes, Spain’s national parliament in Madrid, as MPs approved an opposition-led  motion for the “recognition of Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia as winner of the presidential elections in Venezuela.”

The Spanish government has made it clear that it will stop short of endorsing the vote.

Nonetheless, González, with no sign when it will be safe to return, looked buoyed by the show of support. He stood to receive a standing ovation, a defiant fist held high in the air.

The political situation in Venezuela remains unstable despite Nicolás Maduro’s apparent attempts to stamp out opposition. The economic outlook is even more uncertain. Bloomberg reports that Nicolás Maduro burnt through cash during the election campaign. Unofficial market trading suggests the currency has been weakened and there are fears that the government may not be able to prevent spiralling inflation.