Venezuela, Trump, and international justice: more than one thing can be true at once.
The crisis in Venezuela is real.
The Maduro regime has undermined democracy, repressed dissent, and caused immense human suffering. That demands accountability.
At the same time, US moves to take Nicolás Maduro to the United States raise serious concerns. Justice pursued unilaterally and selectively, through the courts of a powerful nation, risks replacing international law with might-makes-right - even when the allegations are grave.
We can be clear about both:
- Maduro should face justice.
- But strongman justice isn’t the answer.
The international court system is essential - and it is not good enough. It is too slow, too constrained, and too vulnerable to geopolitics to deal effectively with leaders accused of serious abuses. That failure doesn’t justify bypassing international law; it demands urgent reform.
Australia can, and should, be pushing for:
- stronger, faster international accountability
- targeted sanctions on individuals, not populations
- protection for journalists, Aid workers/organisations and civil society
- multilateral action grounded in human rights
Australia has a clear interest in a rules-based world - applied equally, not selectively - and we know we are not alone in this interest.
We don’t fix a broken system by breaking it further. We fix it by making international justice fit for purpose.
