Venezuela: Constituent Assembly revokes Guaidó’s immunity April 2 /update 10

Event

The government-backed National Constituent Assembly announced on Tuesday evening (local time), April 2, that it has revoked parliamentary immunity for opposition leader Juan Guaidó. Diosado Cabello, the president of the Constituent Assembly, said that lawmakers agreed to a request from the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) to lift Guaidó’s immunity. As of Tuesday night, it is unclear if the government will attempt to arrest Guaidó. Public demonstrations in support of Guaidó or President Nicolás Maduro are possible in the coming days, particularly if the opposition leader is arrested. A heightened security presence is expected in the vicinity of all such demonstrations and clashes between protesters and security forces, as well as arrests, are likely.

Context

Political tensions have remained high across Venezuela, particularly after a recent series of nationwide power outages that have caused disruptions to transportation, water distribution systems, and telecommunications services. The government has claimed outages have been caused by acts of "sabotage" carried out by the US; however, previous outages that had been blamed on attacks were later attributed to infrastructural deficiencies.

Venezuela is experiencing an ongoing crisis spurred by President Nicolás Maduro's inauguration to a second term as president on January 10 following last year's contested election, prompting the National Assembly to declare a national emergency. At least 50 foreign governments, including the US, Canada, and Brazil, among others, have since recognized opposition leader Juan Guaidó as the interim head of state. Guaidó has reportedly coordinated several deliveries of humanitarian aid from neighboring states which have been blocked by the Maduro regime.   

Advice

Individuals in Venezuela are advised to monitor developments to the situation, adhere to instructions issued by their home governments, keep battery-operated devices fully charged whenever possible, remain vigilant for criminal behavior and avoid conspicuous displays of wealth, refrain from discussing political topics in public or on social media, and avoid all public demonstrations due to the risk of violence and arrest. In addition, individuals are advised to be cautious when driving or crossing streets if traffic signals are not functional.

The security situation in Venezuela remains complex. Professional security advice and support should be sought prior to travel.