Reacting to the latest developments in Venezuela, Francisco Assis, MEP and S&D spokesperson on EUROLAT and Ramón Jáuregui, MEP and Co-President of the EUROLAT Parliamentary Assembly, said:
"The suspension of the National Assembly by the Supreme Court and the restrictions on the parliamentary immunity of its members violate a basic principle of the rule of law. The separation of powers must be respected by everyone.
"This is an attack on the democratically elected members of the National Assembly and must be repealed. The normal functioning of Venezuela's institutions must be restored. It is the responsibility of Mr. Maduro’s Government to solve this situation immediately. Allowing this situation to continue runs contrary to the National Constitution of Venezuela and its democratic principles.
"As socialists, we will always fight for the respect of the democratic principles, rule of law and the separation of powers and we find the recent decisions by the government very worrisome. Mr. Maduro has not been able to maintain dialogue with the opposition parties and has demonstrated a very clear disregard for the opposition. These latest developments, together with a long history of politically motivated arrests, the violent suppression of the opposition and a clear inability to restore the economic, social and democratic peace to the country must be met by our strongest condemnation."
