Of the many ignominies perpetrated against Venezuela’s populace over the past two decades, the spiral into authoritarianism, violence, hunger and disease under President Nicolas Maduro stands out.
The strongman successor to Hugo Chavez has laid waste to his country and its economy. People can’t get enough to eat most days, either due to shortages, rampant inflation, or their lack of employment.
With his new six-year mandate, Mr. Maduro has now also debased the country’s democratic process.
In the course of assuring Mr. Maduro’s re-election, the country’s lapdog electoral authorities banned the leading opposition parties and some of their politicians from taking part in the campaign.
That, along with brutal repression and jailings, prompted millions of Venezuelans to protest by refusing to take part in a vote they knew to be a farce. Turnout was far lower than in recent elections, and Mr. Maduro received 1.5-million fewer votes than he did in his first election in 2013.
The U.S. State Department called the exercise a “sham.” Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland judged it “illegitimate and anti-democratic” and further pared back diplomatic ties with Caracas.
The question is what to do next. It’s certainly appropriate for Canada and other members of the Lima Group – which includes most major Latin American nations – to support U.S.-led sanctions aimed at reining in Mr. Maduro.
As well, several Venezuela experts and exiles have called on Ottawa to designate the country a state sponsor of terrorism, and to agitate for its removal from the United Nations’ Human Rights Council.
Those options can be explored, but punitive isolation only goes so far. And the suffering of Venezuelans, which is already profound, must not be compounded. Canada can play a role in ensuring it isn’t.
As host of the G7 summit in Quebec next month, Ottawa has an opportunity to spearhead a diplomatic effort aimed at restoring the democratic process in Venezuela.
Venezuelans’ future depends on them being able to choose their leaders freely and fairly.