Dear John,
This has been an eventful week for Venezuela, after it was announced that representatives of the government of Nicolás Maduro and the opposition Unitary Platform coalition will resume formal talks in the negotiations framework that began in Mexico City in 2021.
We applaud the restart of these negotiations, as well as reports of a humanitarian accord that could benefit those in great need.
Read our statement to learn more about the announcement and the importance of including the voice civil society in these negotiations. If you want to know what the United States can do to help ensure these negotiations lead to positive changes in Venezuela, you should read this opinion piece by Geoff Ramsey, WOLA’s Venezuela Director and David Smilde, professor of sociology at Tulane University and a senior fellow at WOLA. You can also sign-up for a roundtable discussion with representatives of civil society organizations on their perspective of the ongoing negotiations.
Also this week, we analyze how new setbacks in a key case in Guatemala impact the lives of victims of human rights violations.
Finally, please join me at the International Anti-Corruption Conference in Washington D.C., on December 6-10 where I’ll be speaking about the importance of standing side-by-side human rights defenders across the Americas.
Best,
