Accord in Venezuela.

• Author: Conaway, Janelle
• Position: OAS

IN CARACAS, Secretary General Cesar Gaviria said a new agreement signed by representatives of the government and opposition benefits all Venezuelans and opens the door for a "peaceful, democratic, electoral, and constitutional" outcome in the politically polarized country.

"In this agreement there were neither victors nor vanquished," Gaviria said at the signing ceremony on May 29. He urged all citizens to practice tolerance, avoid confrontation, and seek national reconciliation.

"Such a reconciliation," he added, "should be compatible with the prevalence of conflicting political ideas, legitimate, democratic competition, and the pluralism embodied in the Constitution," he said.

Gaviria has facilitated negotiations between the government and the Coordinadora Democratica coalition for more than six months, in a process coordinated by the OAS, the Carter Center, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). A six-nation Group of Friends--made up of Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Portugal, Spain, and the United States--provided additional support to the Secretary General's facilitation efforts.

Under the agreement, both sides concur that the way to resolve the country's crisis through the electoral process is by applying provisions in Venezuela's Constitution that allow for recall referendums to be held midway through the terms of elected officials. Any referendum would have to be formally requested by the requisite number of voters and approved by the National Electoral Council, whose composition is being decided by the National Assembly.

At the signing ceremony, Gaviria stressed the urgency of the National Assembly's task, adding that the selection of a new Electoral Council is "essential in order to have a reliable, transparent, and impartial electoral arbiter." He also urged the...