“...(true)
politics is the art of presenting a project and convincing the other.”
Pope Francis (1936-2025)
In the last interview conducted by INFOBAE with Pope Francis, and conducted by journalist Daniel Hadad, founder and CEO of the prestigious digital media, originally published in March 2023, the Pope referred in the last minutes to the situation in Venezuela:
“Q: The last three questions have to do with Latin America. The first one has to do with Venezuela. The United Nations Bachelet report talks about rapes, electric shocks, political prisoners, forced disappearance of people. It reminded me of the dark night Argentina went through with the military dictatorship, but 40-odd years later. Do you see any glimmer of hope that Venezuela's regime can change?
A: I think so. I think so because it is the historical circumstances that will force them to change the way of dialogue they have. I think so. That is to say, I never close the door to possible solutions. On the contrary, I encourage it” (see in Spanish, Pope Francis' latest interview to Infobae, in https://www.infobae.com/sociedad/2025/04/21/el-ultimo-reportaje-del-papa-francisco-a-infobae/) (highlighted our).
As everyone knows, Pope Francis has never been particularly explicit in publicly rejecting outright the regime of Nicolás Maduro Moros, always referring to the search for dialogue and the rejection of dictatorships, permanently backing the position of the representatives of the local Catholic Church, that is, the Venezuelan Episcopal Conference.
An example of this was a September 2024 statement to Rome Reports, where to the request for a message to the Venezuelan people, he responded: “I have not followed the situation in Venezuela, but the message I will give to the rulers is that they should dialogue and make peace. Dictatorships are useless and end badly, sooner or later. Read the history of the Church... I will say that the government and the people do everything possible to find a path of peace in Venezuela. I cannot give a political opinion because I do not know the details. I know that the bishops have spoken and the message of the bishops is good” (see in Spanish, Rome Reports, Dictatorships end badly, in https://www.romereports.com/2024/09/16/el-papa-se-pronuncia-sobre-venezuela-las-dictaduras-no-sirven-de-nada-y-acaban-mal/).
However, in that simple language of Pope Francis, which gave no room for other interpretations, he saw us as two opposing groups that should dialogue, and in that particular INFOBAE interview of 2023, he referred in a premonitory way that historical circumstances would force us to change “the mode of dialogue” that we had -and still have- between the opposing sides in the country.
This left me shocked because we Venezuelans have never had a representation that has genuinely “dialogued” with the regime in terms that could be considered equitable. Because if it is considered that “dialoguing” where the “opposition” side is completely discredited and blackmailed by the regime because all negotiators have some “straw tail” that the regime exploits to satiety, tell me if Venezuelans, that is, those whom they claim to represent at that dialogue table, will be able to get any benefit from those negotiations.
And the “historical circumstances” have changed, both outside and inside the country. And they have changed a lot. Now and since October 2023, months after that INFOBAE interview, María Corina Machado (MCM) becomes the undisputed head of the political opposition and supposed new negotiator, if the conditions are right for that with the regime. In fact, the last opposition-regime dialogue that gave rise to the electoral event of July 28, 2024, comes out of the Barbados Agreement that the regime decided to ignore.
But the Pope was right. The new historical circumstances are going to “force a change in their mode of dialogue”. And that will have to happen, even if MCM does not want it, if we want to get out of the stagnation of the Venezuelan political situation. And why do I say so? Because if the tool of politicians is argumentation and the means to convince is dialogue, there is no other way to solve the Venezuelan political situation.
And some of you will say to me, “no, the solution is to take them out by force”. My modest answer would be that this is not the domain of politicians. Politicians are very bad at establishing strategies for violence, having to cede the leadership to the military. Because if Venezuela has reached the point where circumstances indicate that an armed conflict must develop to solve the political problem, we are worse off than I thought, because our politicians still lack a great deal of preparation for that eventuality. The Liberator Simón Bolívar, the Venezuelan who combined political and military discipline in a unique and brilliant way, should have been reincarnated in one of them. And just the thought of it would cause a laugh...
The external situation of the U.S., the internal situation with a hidden opposition and a surrendered opposition that cannot be called opposition, together with the closed street of an electoral solution in which nobody believes anymore, and the increasingly determined steps of the regime to consolidate itself in power with a Constitutional Reform, not to mention the loss of the Armed Forces as we have known it, leave no margin for anything other than changing the mode of dialogue with the regime and entering into a new negotiation. That is the evolution of the political negotiation in Venezuela after July 28, with a mode of dialogue that would be completely different from the one we have had so far.
The MUD/PU negotiation failed, not only because they never genuinely represented us, but because they were mediocre and adjusted to their own political interests. That was not a true negotiation, but a surrender. The negotiation that must take place now with MCM has to be different. I am completely sure that the regime would be willing to negotiate, but there will be no negotiation possible if what is offered in exchange is jail and persecution. The proposal has to be at the height of the exceptional circumstances of the country, so a different negotiation has to be offered.
It is necessary to put on the table a solution in which the interests of the groups in dispute can converge equitably. And what more equitable proposal than a Constituent election, where the people, on one side and on the other, would be summoned to decide the destiny of the country, with the electoral intermediation of the International Community? This is a solution that the regime knows very well and that with the appropriate negotiators could be called, safeguarding the interests of the country and of all the opposing sectors.
In this case, we would not be electing a President of the Republic for any of the sides, but the genuine representation of the people. If they want a Constitutional Reform, we propose a Constituent Assembly, which is what corresponds to the structural reforms, such as those of the communal power they want to make to the Constitution. And that in this scenario, all gathered in a National Constituent Assembly, that this representation decides what will be done, reestablishing the rule of law. This is provided for in the Constitution and constitutes a legitimate and electoral solution that would obviate the distrust of the whole world, including pro-government sectors, in the National Electoral Council, guaranteeing the participation of all Venezuelans.
If the political opposition does not want to negotiate, it would be difficult for me to understand their discourse, because if they want them imprisoned, then they must look for someone to finance and lead a violent solution that can achieve it. But if they have not achieved it, nor do the international conditions exist to proceed with that, then what is left? TO MAKE POLITICS.
And doing politics in this context IS NEGOTIATING. The basic issue is what you propose to the other to negotiate. Hence our proposal, because as things stand, we have the ethical obligation to begin creatively to propose solutions, because the more time passes, the more people are consumed by hunger, in a country increasingly impoverished.
Is what we are proposing far-fetched? I don't think so. I think it is even wilder to continue waiting for someone to “save” us without having the means to do so. If we are serious, we must begin to advance ourselves somewhere to at least start the recovery of the hope of Venezuelans. If true politics is “the art of presenting a project and convincing the other”, it is high time to start forcing ourselves to change the mode of dialogue, as Pope Francis said. Mastery in any art can only be achieved with practice...
Caracas, April 30, 2025
Blog:
TIC’s & Derechos Humanos, https://ticsddhh.blogspot.com/
Email: luismanuel.aguana@gmail.com
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