Briefing

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The richest nurse in the world is coming to America! Here's your daily briefing of news

Naky Soto
  • Spain extradited Hugo Chávez’s nurse to the U.S. Claudia Díaz Guillén, a sergeant who was also the National Treasurer, among other roles (you know, Venezuela), is charged with money laundering and criminal organization for her participation in a billion-dollar currency exchange scheme. In 2019, she was sanctioned because she’s allegedly tied to corruption networks in Venezuela. Her extradition has been approved since October 2021, and finally took place yesterday—on National Nurse Day.
  • Several opposition leaders participated in a virtual session of the European Parliament regarding the 2021 regional elections to analyze and follow up on the recommendations of the Electoral Observation Mission. The event revealed the discrepancies on the primaries and the Mexico negotiation process, but the EU chief for the Americas Javier Niño warned that there’s been no progress in the reforms suggested by the mission, on the contrary. They mentioned the irregular reshuffling of the Supreme Tribunal of Justice and stressed that, even with some “economic progress,” the situation in Venezuela remains dire for most people. He said the EU has to keep working on achieving the Mission’s recommendations and he reiterated the EU’s support for the Mexico process: “Our goal is to focus everything on the Mexico process,” but said that if the process is stalled the EU has to keep talking to the regime to work on the recommendations. The Mission’s report is online because they couldn’t come to present it in Venezuela.
    • Gerardo Blyde, the chief of the opposition delegation, expects the mechanism will be reactivated and reminded everyone the negotiation is a tool, not a goal. They will ask for minimum electoral conditions, allowing Venezuelans abroad to vote, and tackling humanitarian and social problems.
    • María Corina Machado highlighted that over 90% of the country is living in poverty and misery, that there’s no rule of law, and that some are living under the fantasy of economic recovery.
    • Henrique Capriles attacked the caretaker government without mentioning it, and said that the most important thing isn’t the election but the economic and social recovery. He asked for the EU and the U.S. to align and “open channels of communication.” He said there isn’t a blockade and that the deterioration isn’t because of the sanctions.
    • Juan Guaidó insisted on Venezuelans needing a date and a calendar for free and fair elections that have been owed to the country since 2018. He highlighted the importance of a free and fair election as an answer to the crisis and that we should make efforts to achieve an agreement to allow for unity within the opposition.
  • Minister for University Education Tibisay Lucena assured that payroll is being paid without a problem and there’s “some dissidence” between unions.
  • NGO Acceso a la Justicia warned that the draft law for international cooperation being reviewed by Nicolás’s National Assembly would allow the regime to impose more restrictions and obstacles for NGOs, with the regulation of aspects not contemplated by the law. Control Ciudadano thinks that this draft law is “a threat on members of NGOs in Venezuela.”
  • NGO Defiende Venezuela denounced a pattern by security forces during their special ops where they illegally raid, extort, repress and also arbitrarily detain citizens. They use the operation in Altagracia de Orituco as an example.
  • At least 7 out of 10 Venezuelan refugees in Peru and Ecuador have experienced gender violence, according to an investigation published by Plan International: 89% of Venezuelan women surveyed in Peru and 72% surveyed in Ecuador said that they’ve endured some kind of gender violence.
  • The president of the Caracas Stock Exchange Gustavo Pulido assured that the market has reacted well to the news about CANTV going public and that the organization is ready to carry out any bidding. Oh, boy.
  • Súmate director Roberto Abdoul said before the European Parliament that one of the most important tasks that the CNE should carry out is updating the national electoral registry in the country and abroad.
  • Mexican president Andrés López Obrador is making an effort to include dictatorships like Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua in the Summit of the Americas.
  • On Wednesday, 18 representatives out of 100 of the Progressive Caucus sent a letter to President Joe Biden requesting sanction relief for Venezuela, since the sanctions “worsen the humanitarian crisis.” 
  • Gazprom, the state company monopolizing the market, will shut down one of its largest supply pipes to Europe because its Polish operator was sanctioned by the Kremlin. 

Naky Soto

Naky gets called Naibet at home and at the bank. She coordinates training programs for an NGO. She collects moments and turns them into words. She has more stories than freckles.

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