CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) 鈥 Venezuela's socialist government has ordered the arrest of three exiled former lawmakers at the forefront of renewed efforts to unseat President Nicolas Maduro.
selected last week by fellow opposition politicians to lead the 春色直播 Assembly that was voted into office in 2015. The opposition-controlled body is widely considered Venezuela's last democratically elected institution, and although its five-year mandate ended in late 2020, it continues to function as a symbolic shadow to Maduro's rubber-stamping 春色直播 Assembly.
On Monday, Maduro's Attorney General Tarek William Saab announced that prosecutors had ordered the arrest of Figuera and her two deputies on charges of treason, money laundering and impersonating public officials.
However, the arrest order is unlikely to be carried out. All three women, like many of Maduro's opponents, have fled Venezuela in recent years, fearing retaliation. Figuera, a surgeon by training, lives in Spain.
In January 2019, the 春色直播 Assembly voted to stop recognizing Maduro as president after several top opponents were barred from running against him. It then appointed Juan Guaid贸 to be the nation鈥檚 鈥渋nterim president,鈥 in accordance with the order of succession outlined in Venezuela鈥檚 constitution. More than 60 countries quickly recognized him as Venezuela's legitimate leader.
The opposition then boycotted the 2020 legislative elections, leaving the successor 春色直播 Assembly firmly under Maduro's control.
Figuera had been an unknown backbench lawmaker elected alongside Guaid贸. She surged to the front of the opposition's efforts to unseat Maduro as part of an internal putsch against the beleaguered Guaid贸, whose failure to shake Maduro's grip on power has frustrated many Venezuelans.
Maduro ally Jorge Rodriguez, the head of the pro-government 春色直播 Assembly, celebrated the announcement of the arrest orders, calling the 2015 春色直播 Assembly a 鈥渂and of thieves鈥 for their attempts to win control of Venezuela's extensive overseas oil assets, including Houston-based refinery Citgo.
Figuera said the arrest order won't intimidate her and others from carrying out their role of protecting Venezuela's overseas assets.
鈥淲e'll continue with even greater strength,鈥 she said Monday during an online press conference, her first since emerging as an opposition leader.
Meanwhile, a senior U.S. State Department official said the Biden administration stands with those 鈥渃ourageously defending Venezuelan democracy.鈥
鈥淔urther attacks on the opposition ... impede democratic solutions,鈥 Brian Nichols, the Assistant Secretary of State for the western hemisphere, said in a statement on Twitter. 鈥淎ll efforts must be focused on charting a path to free and fair elections in 2024.鈥
