Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Meda remembers the last sunrise he enjoyed outside the embassy.
She woke up early to attend meetings with opposition leader Maria Corina Machado to discuss the escalating pursuit of the Venezuela government – and decide who would represent the coalition of the upcoming presidential election.
The government had already banned Machado to run, despite its victory with a landslide in the main opposition.
Then news arrived that changed everything. Venezuela General Tarek William Saab appeared on television to announce arrest orders for a string of opposition members – and the name of the honey was on the list.
“We had to run, hide and shelter. It was a brutal situation,” said Meda, who was the manager of the Machado campaign during the election. She spoke with Al Jazeera through written correspondence sent electronically.
“I will never forget that call to my husband to give him the news,” she added.
Two of her colleagues have already been detained this day. In a viral video, hedgera Hernandez, the political secretary of the opposition, could be seen screaming for help while agents put it in a silver vehicle.
Honey and others had to act quickly. In the past, opposition members have sought asylum within the embassies, taking advantage of an international treaty – the 1954 Caracas Convention – which allows diplomatic missions in Latin America to provide asylum to persons who face political persecution.
In addition, the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations does not allow the authorities of the host country to enter the premises without prior permission.
In the case of honey would be the Argentine Embassy, which would secure the decisive asylum. His government has long been critical of the reported violations of human rights under Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro and offers honey and five other refuge at the embassy's residence.
At first, honey and her colleagues not only found physical safety in the walls of the embassy, but also a space to continue their work on the presidential campaign before the 2024 election.
But a year on the situation of the group became more unusual – and Maduro is still in power.
After the voice on July 28, Maduro said Pobeda, despite the published vote, which showed that he had been destroyed by opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez.
In December, the Committee on Human Rights of the United Nations opened an investigation to analyze evidence that the vote was supported. He ordered the Maduro government to refrain from destroying any election while the probe continues.
After Argentina refused to acknowledge Maduro's contested victory, his diplomats were expelled. Argentina transferred control to the Embassy in Brazil, but the diplomats of this country failed to enter the premises blocked by local authorities.
Today, five opposition members are left alone at the empty embassy.
Venezuelan intelligence and armed forces are located on the street outside. Security employees have taken over the homes nearby, and those at the embassy say that the state -owned electricity company has come to take the fuse from the electric box, leaving them only with a power generator.
Human Rights Groups have condemned Venezuela for violating international asylum rules, including the right to pass safely.
Carolina Jimenez Sandoval, president of the Washington Latin America, an advocacy group based in the United States, described the situation as a siege.
“One goal is to violate them psychologically – to make them feel that it is better for them to leave the embassy and then leave the Venezuelan security forces to hold them,” Himenes explained.
“By preserving the building or diplomatic mission in permanent siege and cutting of electricity and water, the Venezuelan government shows how ready it is to violate international rules to achieve its own purpose.”
