Harsh responses from Lacalle Pou and Gabriel Boric to Lula for supporting Nicolás Maduro and the Venezuelan regime

Lula da Silva's attempt to promote regional integration at the summit of South American presidents suffered its first setback left and right when Uruguay's Luis Lacalle Pou and Chile's Gabriel Boric were outraged by the Brazilian's political support for the regime of Venezuelan Nicolás Maduro, which faces serious allegations of human rights violations.

Both Lacalle Pou and Boric responded harshly to Lula, who had described as "narrative" the questioning of the Venezuelan autocracy. With their critical speeches, both sought to make it clear that they will not blindly support a final declaration of the summit – which is being promoted by Lula's team – where the issue is avoided and Maduro is legitimized.

"I was surprised to read, in the statement that is being negotiated at the moment, that what is happening in Venezuela was spoken of as a 'narrative.' You know what we think about Venezuela and the government of Venezuela," the Uruguayan president said.

"If there are so many groups in the world trying to negotiate so that democracy is full in Venezuela" and "that human rights are respected so that there are no political prisoners, the worst thing we can do is cover the sun with a finger," Lacalle Pou said in direct criticism of Lula's words.

Chilean President Gabriel Boric in Brasilia. AFP Photo

The message

The message of the Uruguayan was disseminated by Instagram when the debate took place behind closed doors of the leaders in the Itamaraty Palace, in Brasilia, attended by the presidents of Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Uruguay, Suriname and Venezuela.

On behalf of Peru, Alberto Otárola, president of the Council of Ministers, attends.

Lacalle Pou even questioned that the summit was preceded on Monday by a bilateral meeting between Brazil and Venezuela in which Lula pointed out that the Venezuelan government was elected "democratically."

The Uruguayan president stressed that it is not in his hands "to choose a government", but that he does have "the possibility of giving his opinion", after which he questioned one of the points of a joint declaration being negotiated at the Brasilia summit.

The declaration, according to Lacalle Pou, "speaks of democracy, speaks of human rights and speaks of celebrating institutions," but from his point of view it does not end up reflecting the Venezuelan situation.

Luis Lacalle Pou and Lula in Brasilia. Photo Reuters

"Narrative"

"Obviously, we do not have the same definition, which I think is one in the Royal Spanish Academy, of what respect for institutions, human rights and democracy are," the Uruguayan president said in the video.

Then it was the turn of Boric, who spoke in the same terms. "We are happy that Venezuela returns to multilateral instances because we believe that these are spaces where problems are resolved and not with statements where we attack each other," he began.

However, he clarified that "that cannot mean sweeping under the carpet or turning a blind eye to issues that for us are principled and important, and there I respectfully stated that I had a disagreement with President Lula. It is not a narrative construction, it is a serious reality," he emphasized.

"I have had the opportunity to see it in the eyes of thousands of Venezuelans who are in our homeland, who demand a firm and clear position, that human rights must be respected everywhere, regardless of their political position, and that is for all of us," he added. Finally, he indicated that "as a leftist president it was important to raise it in front of Maduro now that we could meet."

Earlier, Lula had urged his guests to iron out the rough edges for greater integration after years of disagreements, many of them ideological. It was not this proposal that angered Lacalle Pou and Boric, but his praise for Maduro, who governs in a country where there are hundreds of political prisoners and more than 7 million expelled citizens.

"Maduro's presence is a stone in the shoe. Venezuela, since (the late President Hugo) Chavez to here, has always become a serious problem for Latin America since it ends up setting the agenda," said analyst Jorge Arias, of the Polilat consultancy. "We'll see if they're able to get around that stone," he added.

Source: AFP, AP and EFE

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See also

Lula da Silva-Nicolás Maduro: human rights are not talked about

Lula da Silva bets on regional integration and asks to abandon the dollar as a currency of exchange