The interim president of Venezuela is banned from the UK for targeting political opponents, Sky News has confirmed.
Delcy Rodriguez was sworn in as Venezuela‘s interim president after Nicolas Maduro was captured by the US in its weekend raid on the South American nation.
Formerly vice president, Ms Rodriguez has been a controversial figure for her role within the oppressive Maduro regime.
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Sky News has confirmed via Treasury documents that she had been sanctioned by the UK in 2020, and still appears on the list.
This included her being subject to an asset freeze, disqualified as a director and subject to a travel ban.
The reasons given for her being added were: “There are reasonable grounds to suspect that her actions on the Presidential Commission and then as president of the Constituent Assembly have undermined democracy and the rule of law in Venezuela, including usurping the powers of the National Assembly and using them to target the opposition and prevent them taking part in the political process.”
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Ms Rodriguez was added to the UK sanctions list after EU sanctions were grandfathered into the British list after Brexit, having been designated by the bloc in 2018.
Tory MP Ben Obese-Jecty told Sky News: “Yesterday, the foreign secretary couldn’t confirm to me whether the newly sworn in president of Venezuela, Delcy Rodriguez, was already sanctioned by the UK.
“How can we expect the situation for the people of Venezuela to improve if its new president is part of the regime already deemed by us to be illegitimate?”
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UK documents say the regulations “impose financial, director disqualification, trade and immigration sanctions” to encourage the Venezuelan government “respect democratic principles and institutions, the separation of powers and the rule of law; refrain from actions, policies or activities which repress civil society; participate in negotiations with its political opponents in good faith to bring about a peaceful solution to the political crisis; and comply with international human rights law and respect human rights”.
And the travel ban means: “Designated individuals will be refused leave to enter or remain in the UK.
“Any applications they make for a visa to travel to the UK, including for transit purposes, will be refused.
“Any foreign national who is subject to a travel ban under these regulations, and who is currently in the UK, will have their permission to stay in the UK cancelled, and steps will be taken to remove them from the UK.”
Many members of the Maduro regime appear in the sanctions list, but notably not the man himself.
A nation’s leader being sanctioned is not novel, with the likes of Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Belarus’s Alexander Lukashenko and Myanmar’s Min Aung Hlaing all currently under similar measures.
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Asked about the sanctions, senior Labour MP and chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee Dame Emily Thornbery said swathes of the Venezuelan government are sanctioned, including senior members of the judiciary and military.
She added: “There is a very sizeable chunk of the establishment at the top of Venezuela… now, if you’re going to change Venezuela, you don’t just snatch Maduro in the middle of the night.
“There is much more work that needs to be done, and that is the reality.”
A Downing Street source said they would not comment on sanctions.
Sky News has approached the FCDO for comment.
