VENEZUELA

The National Constituent Assembly (ANC) on August 12 set up a Special Committee to evaluate the possibility of bringing forward the elections for the National Assembly, a branch of government presided by Juan Guaidó. Legislative elections had initially been scheduled for December 2020. ANC leader Diosdado Cabello said the election date will be announced shortly. 

The Committee is comprised of the constituents María Alejandra Díaz, Francisco Ameliach and Diosdado Cabello, who are all members of the ruling party. “The Constitution says legislative elections should be held in 2020, come rain or shine,” stated Cabello. 

The Constituent Assembly also agreed to strip three opposition deputies of their parliamentary immunity: José Guerra, Tomás Guanipa and Juan Pablo García. They are to be prosecuted by the Supreme Court of Justice for “having flagrantly committed the crimes of treason, conspiracy, instigation to insurrection, civil rebellion, conspiracy to commit a crime, usurpation of functions, public instigation to disobedience of the laws of hatred,” as announced by Cabello. So far, 23 lawmakers in the National Assembly have been stripped of their parliamentary immunity during Maduro’s administration.