Venezuela AG received affidavit from opposition leader, lawyer says

CARACAS (Reuters) -The lawyer for Venezuela opposition leader Edmundo Gonzalez said on Wednesday the attorney general's office received his affidavit explaining why Gonzalez ignored three summons, amid an ongoing election dispute.

The summons came before an arrest warrant was issued for Gonzalez, the opposition's erstwhile presidential candidate, on Monday on accusations of usurpation of functions, falsification of public documents and conspiracy, among other charges.

The summons were based on a related case - an investigation into a website where the opposition posted copies of vote tallies from July's disputed election that has led to deadly protests and the arrests of high-profile opposition figures.

Venezuela's national electoral authority and its top court have said President Nicolas Maduro was the victor of the election with just over half of the votes, but opposition tallies show a resounding victory for Gonzalez.

The opposition, some Western countries and international bodies like a United Nations panel of experts have said the vote was not transparent and demanded publication of full tallies, with some outright decrying fraud.

Many countries, including the U.S., have also criticized the arrest warrant, which followed weeks of comments from top government officials that Gonzalez and other members of the opposition should go to jail.

The Brazilian and Colombian governments said in a joint statement late on Tuesday they were profoundly concerned about the warrant. Colombia's foreign minister said the presidents of Colombia, Brazil and Mexico may hold a call with Maduro to express their position.

DEFENSE DIFFICULTIES

In his letter to the prosecutor, Gonzalez said he was not responsible for the publication of voting tallies and that the electoral council's authority was not violated because the law permits the supply of tallies to candidates' witnesses.

"The objective was to present a document that clarifies all the details for which Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia did not appear," the candidate's lawyer, Jose Vicente Haro, told journalists after leaving the attorney general's office in Caracas.

"We hope they recognize that the acts they wish to attribute(to Gonzalez) are not criminal in nature, which is the main point," Haro added.

Venezuelan law does not allow those over 70 to serve sentences in jails, instead requiring house arrest. Gonzalez turned 75 last week.

PROTEST DEATHS

At least two dozen people died at post-election protests and several major opposition figures have been detained.

The government calls the opposition a fascist movement allied with imperialist forces abroad and blames it for the protest deaths. Opponents accuse the government of carrying out a campaign of repression.

Advocacy group Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a report on Wednesday it had received credible allegations of the deaths of 23 protesters and one member of the national guard. It said it had documented in detail six cases of people killed during the demonstrations.

In some cases security forces like the police and national guard were present when people were fatally injured or killed, HRW said, while in others ruling party-allied motorcycle gangs called 'collectives' attacked protesters.

"The repression we are seeing in Venezuela is shockingly brutal," said Juanita Goebertus, HRW's Americas director, in a statement. "Concerned governments need to take urgent steps to ensure that people are able to peacefully protest and that their vote is respected."

The government, which has asked citizens to report "fascist activities" using an app, says 27 people died in the protests and it has arrested some 2,400 people. It did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the HRW report.

(Reporting by Levis Palma, Vivian Sequera and Carlos Ramirez; Writing by Julia Symmes Cobb and Oliver Griffin; Editing by Rosalba O'Brien and Stephen Coates)