Peruvian presidential candidate recognizes Maduro as interlocutor in Venezuela crisis

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Peruvian presidential candidate Verónika Mendoza affirmed this Friday, April 2, that an eventual government of hers would recognize Nicolás Maduro as an “interlocutor” to try to solve the political crisis in Venezuela. She also said that the “Lima Group” of countries had not been “effective” in helping to solve this situation.

“In practice and reality he is (the) interlocutor with whom we will have to promote this process of dialogue to be able to get out of this crisis, together with summoning all sectors of the opposition,” said Mendoza during a teleconference with the Association of Foreign Press in Peru (APEP).

The candidate of the leftist coalition Juntos por el Perú (JP) proposed, in this way, an eventual turn in Peru’s international policy regarding Venezuela, since the country now considers Maduro’s regime a “dictatorship” and recognizes since January 2019 the oppositionist Juan Guiadó as “president in charge” of that country.

THE LIMA GROUP

Mendoza, who is part of a group of candidates vying for second place in the elections of April 11, also said that “the evidence shows that the role of the Lima Group has not been the most effective” to help solve the crisis in Venezuela and “has been weakened with the recent withdrawal of Argentina.”

In this sense, she announced a proposal “from the Peruvian State to promote a coordination between the Lima Group and the Contact Group” to establish “a new strategy to solve Venezuela’s political crisis.”

She reiterated that the issue would be discussed within the scope of these international coordinations to seek “a rapprochement and the search for a common strategy, not contradictory, between the Lima Group and the Contact Group.”

Maduro “is the interlocutor at this time with whom these spaces are acting, and this is what we will also have to do on our part, at the same time that we promote recognition and dialogue with all sectors of the opposition,” she added.

REGIONAL INTERESTS

The JP candidate also indicated that Latin America has suffered in the last years a “logic of polarization and confrontation between aligned blocks” that must be “overcome”, for which a government of hers will have “a non-aligned position, putting the interests of the region” and its peoples first.

She considered that this would strengthen cooperation in education and health, as well as an integration policy to, among other points, protect the Amazon, “which is tremendously threatened by depredation, deforestation and global warming.”

Mendoza also said that she would maintain Peru’s historic opposition to the blockade of Cuba “because it has been a tradition” of the Peruvian Foreign Ministry “and because it is only fair.”

She also stressed that China “is an important trade partner for Peru”. Still, she considered that work should be done to “diversify investments” from that country, in addition to setting “higher labor standards” to protect national workers.

NEW CONSTITUTION

Referring to domestic politics, she reiterated her intention to call for a referendum to seek a change in the current Constitution, promulgated in 1993 during Alberto Fujimori’s regime, but clarified that she does not seek to “impose” this proposal.

“Our impression is that the people do demand a new Constitution,” she said before reiterating that if the opposite result is given, she will respect “that popular will” and will seek “to promote some reforms from Congress.”

The candidate remarked that the interest of her party is not only to change the economic chapter of the current Constitution but that “it should be established that health and education are rights that the State must guarantee,” as well as access to the Internet,

Mendoza said that “the State cannot continue to be limited to a mere subsidiary role” in the economy. Although she will call and welcome foreign investment, she will give “priority to national investment” because she intends to protect it.

NATIONALIZATION OF GAS

The candidate, who was born 40 years ago in Cusco, recalled that in that southern region is located the vast Camisea gas field, which is not distributed in the Peruvian south but reaches Lima and is exported to Mexico, Europe, and Japan.

“It is unworthy, senseless, to have this resource at hand and not be able to take advantage of it,” she emphasized before reiterating that he proposes a “nationalization” of this resource so that “it benefits first and foremost the Peruvian people.”

She detailed, however, that this process could involve making “alliances” with private companies “so that they can continue extracting the resource.” Still, the final decision of “where it goes” will be taken by the Peruvian government.

Referring to the election campaign, occurring in the midst of the health emergency, she said that it is “a complicated scenario,” since in her case, it is based “a lot on contact with the people,” and she has had less participation in the media.

She assured that in her country, it is necessary “to be together to get out of this great sanitary and economic crisis,” for which she plans to “summon all the political forces around a concrete proposal that has to do with the attention of the national emergency”.

Source: efe/sw