Venezuela’s opposition has returned to the country for a new round of negotiations with the government led by interim President Delcy Rodríguez, putting judicial reform, political rights and freedom of expression at the centre of talks backed by the US.
The delegation, led by Dinorah Figuera, president of the opposition-controlled 2015 National Assembly, arrived in Caracas ahead of meetings scheduled to resume on September 15. The sides are expected to continue work on restructuring the Supreme Tribunal of Justice and selecting new magistrates, while expanding discussions to civil and political guarantees.
Figuera said the delegation would work on the remaining details of the nomination process for judges and other judicial officials, as well as protections for political activity and free expression. The opposition wants those issues addressed before elections are called and expects to report progress in the next few days.
"We are going to continue working toward a Supreme Tribunal of Justice with honorable, independent, and impartial judges who can provide Venezuela—after so many years—with a transparent and independent judicial system," Jorge Millán, a member of the opposition delegation, said.
Millán said the negotiators would establish clear and verifiable goals at the end of the process, including measures to dismantle what the opposition describes as the repressive apparatus and strengthen freedom of expression.
No election date has been agreed, though the delegation said voting should take place as soon as possible. The first round, held from August 6 to 12, produced partial agreements on judicial reform and efforts to recover Venezuelan state assets held overseas, primarily around $4bn worth of gold reserves stuck in the Bank of England since 2018.
The new phase will broaden the agenda to political prisoners, electoral arrangements and the legal framework governing freedom of expression, with civil-society and NGO representatives expected to participate.
The question of political bans could prove more contentious. The opposition wants to review the rules underpinning administrative disqualifications imposed by the regime of ousted president Nicolas Maduro and restore the political rights of figures including María Corina Machado and Henrique Capriles. Machado, currently exiled in Panama and sidelined by the US in the transition talks, has questioned the dialogue's legitimacy but said she would not oppose it on principle.
The Rodriguez government, which has fully complied with Washington's demands to open up the country's oil and mineral riches to US investors, has taken a different position, arguing that court rulings upholding disqualifications are settled while favouring a broader review of punitive measures or a general pardon rather than case-by-case reversals.
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