Venezuelan authorities are investigating opposition leader Maria Corina Machado for alleged treason after she expressed support for a US bipartisan bill that seeks to block Washington from doing business with any entity that has commercial ties with the government of Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro.
In a statement, the country’s Attorney General’s Office said Machado’s support is considered a “terrible criminal act against the Venezuelan people.” Machado is also being investigated for conspiracy with foreign countries and association to commit a crime.
Machado – one of the country’s key opposition leaders – was banned from running in Venezuela’s July presidential election, which was marred with allegations of foul play that saw opposition figures arrested, opposition witnesses allegedly denied access to the centralized vote count, and overseas Venezuelans largely unable to cast ballots.
The US bill – introduced by Florida Reps. Mike Waltz (R) and Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D) – was passed on Monday by the House of Representatives.
Waltz, who President-elect Donald Trump has asked to serve as his national security adviser, wrote on X Wednesday that Machado “remains a beacon of hope for Venezuelans who rejected Maduro and his socialist authoritarianism” as he announced the bill.
“I’m proud the House passed my bill, the BOLIVAR Act, to block the federal government from doing business with anyone who has commercial ties to Maduro’s regime,” Walz wrote.
Machado, who’s in hiding, later thanked Waltz and the House of Representatives for approving the initiative.“It is a crucial step to hold the Maduro regime accountable,” she wrote on X on Wednesday.
During a televised event on Wednesday, Maduro criticized the bill and said that the opposition’s actions against him will not be successful.
Venezuela has been in a state of crisis in its aftermath when the nation’s electoral authority – a body stacked with Maduro allies – declared him the winner with 51% of the vote against candidate Edmundo Gonzalez.
Even after Venezuela’s electoral and judicial authorities announced Maduro’s victory, they have not shown detailed results and electoral records to support it, prompting anger and concern across the country and abroad.
Several countries, including the US, have formally recognized Gonzalez as the country’s president-elect following the disputed election.