Originally posted by the Voice of America.
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Venezuelan Opposition Courts Attention With Event at OAS

by Mitzi Macias

   An installation ceremony for magistrates appointed by Venezuela's
   opposition-led parliament is taking place Friday at the Organization of
   American States' Washington headquarters. Whether they are recognized
   as a valid Supreme Court forced into exile or a "parallel and
   illegitimate" operation is a matter of interpretation.

   Domingo Javier Salgado, one of 15 judges at the late-morning ceremony,
   contends they're part of the constitutionally mandated "autonomous and
   independent" bench -- unlike the predominantly pro-government justices
   based in Caracas, the capital. "This is sending a very positive message
   both to the international community and to Venezuelans," he told VOA
   earlier this week.

   Venezuela's attorney general, Tarek William Saab, has called the
   magistrates illegal and dismissed their installation ceremony as "a
   macabre plan" -- a ploy to get unwarranted credibility at home and
   abroad.

   Complex maneuvering

   Regardless, the event represents one of the latest twists in a
   complicated saga.

   Just before political opponents of leftist President Nicolás Maduro
   took control of the parliament or National Assembly in early 2016, the
   ruling Socialist Party installed more like-minded justices on the high
   court, critics contend. Last March, amid an escalating political and
   economic crisis, the court tried to wrest legislative authority from
   the assembly -- backing down after withering domestic and international
   criticism but setting off months of often-violent street protests. More
   than 120 people died.

   In July, the National Assembly swore in 33 alternative judges -- a move
   also condemned in some quarters as setting up a parallel system.

   Maduro immediately ordered their arrest, calling them "usurpers" and
   freezing their assets.

   "That forced us to take shelter outside the national territory," said
   Salgado, who was interviewed earlier this week via Skype from Miami,
   Florida, where he said he was "in transit."

   Most of the assembly-appointed magistrates fled Venezuela. This week,
   five showed up in Santiago, Chile, after spending the interim under the
   protection of that country's embassy in Caracas.

   Three others have quit, Salgado said. As for the rest, "Venezuelans can
   be sure that their justices, who were duly sworn in, will continue
   fulfilling the constitutional duties for which they were appointed."

   He did not elaborate on how he and his colleagues would work or from
   what location.

   OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro -- a fierce Maduro critic -- spoke
   at the ceremony, though the event was not sponsored by the
   pro-democracy alliance. Venezuela is one of its 35 member states, but
   Maduro announced plans in April to leave, a two-year process.

   'Illegitimate' or 'situation of hope'?

   In his interview, Salgado said the assembly-appointed magistrates'
   installation creates "a situation of hope" for Venezuelans.

   "Little by little," he explained, "we're going to restore autonomy and
   independence" to the judicial and legislative branches, as the
   constitution requires. These should not be subordinate to the executive
   branch, he added.

   The installation "has symbolic importance," said Michael Shifter,
   president of the Washington-based think tank Inter-American Dialogue.

   "This is an effort to try to project that the opposition in the
   National Assembly is legitimate," he said. Democratically elected in
   2015, the legislature's members have "the right to pick a Supreme
   Court. '¦ But this has been completely annulled by the Maduro regime."

   The legislature has been overshadowed by the powerful and controversial
   new Constituent Assembly, whose 545 members were chosen in a July 30
   election widely considered a sham. It's not formally recognized by the
   United States and many other regional neighbors, as well as the
   European Union.

   Alexander Main, an international policy expert at the Washington-based
   Center for Economic and Policy Research, anticipates a negative
   response to installing "this parallel and illegitimate Supreme Court."

   "It's not actually with the mandate of the member countries of the
   OAS," Main said. He denounced the move as "a personal initiative" by
   Almagro, "who has waged a relentless campaign against the government of
   Maduro. '¦"

   Main also questioned the symbolism of "establishing a parallel court in
   the heart of Washington, D.C., only a few meters from the White House
   and from Donald Trump. I think it will be very striking for
   Venezuelans, and I don't think it will play in favor of the
   opposition."