Vzla: Win by any means necessary

Only two weeks away from the recall referendum Venezuelan officials surprised everyone again. In clear violation to constitutional precepts Foreign Secretary Jesus Perez stressed upon the necessity of demanding proof of residence to those electors voting abroad. CNE’s Carrasquero, Rodriguez and Battaglini were of course customarily accommodative despite the illegal character of the measure. Article 7 of the new norms establishes that Venezuelans abroad will need to present proof of residence according to the regulations of the country in which they are residing. Not content with that they also declared recently that all of those citizens who register to vote abroad recently and that for some reason do not appear in the final database approved and announced yesterday will not be included and therefore their right to vote has, effectively, being forfeited.

However Venezuelan diplomats, who for one reason or the other did not have the time to register or whose registration did not reach the CNE on time to be included in the roll, were sent a memo assuring them that indeed they will be able to vote regardless of their appearance in the roll or not.