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News > Latin America

Mujica Publicly Breaks with OAS Head over Venezuela Comments

  • Former Uruguayan President Jose Mujica publicly broke with his former foreign minister Luis Almagro over his comments criticizing Venezuela's upcoming elections.

    Former Uruguayan President Jose Mujica publicly broke with his former foreign minister Luis Almagro over his comments criticizing Venezuela's upcoming elections. | Photo: EFE

Published 20 November 2015
Opinion

OAS head Luis Almagro wrote an 18-page letter to the president of Venezuela’s electoral council criticizing the country's plan for upcoming parliamentary elections.

Former Uruguayan President Jose Mujica publicly broke Thursday with his former foreign minister and the current secretary-general of the Organization of American States, Luis Almagro, over the his comments questioning the Venezuelan electoral process.

“I lament the path that you have followed and I know it is irreversible, that is why I formally say goodbye and part ways with you,” said Mujica in a letter obtained by the magazine Busqueda.

Uruguayan Senator Lucia Topolansky, also Mujica's wife, confirmed to EFE that a letter had indeed been sent to Almagro by Mujica, though she did not confirm its contents.

After news of Mujica's letter emerged, the hashtag “AdiosAlmagro” or “GoodbyeAlmagro” became a trending topic on Twitter in Venezuela.

“Because he preferred the path of disloyalty, of lies, and treason! Venezuela must be respected #GoodbyeAlmagro​”

“#GoodbyeAlmagro For interfering and being lackey of the empire listen carefully, neither the OAS nor all empires can deal with the people's revolution”

Mujica's break with his former minister comes on the heels of a denunciation by a faction of Almagro and Mujica's political party in Uruguay, which said that statements undermining the legitimacy of Venezuelan elections on Dec. 6 “not only hinders the electoral process in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela but also helps to delegitimize it and hinder democratic life in that country.”

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Earlier this month, Almagro wrote, in his capacity as OAS secretary-general, a letter to the president of Venezuela’s CNE electoral council, Tibisay Lucena, cautioning that the conditions in place were not sufficient to see a fair result on the Dec. 6 parliamentary elections.

The election of Almagro as head of the OAS was seen as an opportunity for the hemispheric organization to break with its record of interference in the sovereign affairs of member-states. However, Almagro's recent actions have drawn into question his stated commitment of reforming the OAS:

In December, Venezuelans will vote to elect 167 seats in parliament, including 164 state representatives and three indigenous representatives.

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