Leopoldo López, Venezuelan dissident, former political prisoner, and co-founder of the World Liberty Congress, addressed the 18th Annual Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy on February 18, 2026.
Full Prepared Remarks:
Excellencies, distinguished delegates,
January 3 changed Venezuela.
It did not solve everything. It did not magically erase years of repression. But it opened a door that had been sealed shut for decades. For the first time in many years, Venezuelans feel something real: hope.
We are better than we were before January 3. But we are not yet free. And that distinction matters.
Before January 3, we tried everything.
We tried elections. We organized. We mobilized. We won — and our victory was stolen. We tried negotiations. Agreements were signed. Promises were made. The structures of repression remained intact. We tried non-violent protest. Millions marched peacefully. They were met with bullets, prison, exile.
We endured sanctions, international pressure, resolutions, reports. And still — repression continued.
January 3 did not happen suddenly. It happened after every peaceful democratic path had been blocked.
Now, some speak of sovereignty. Some speak of international law. Some speak of dangerous precedent.
Let us be clear.
Sovereignty belongs first to the people. What about the sovereignty expressed at the ballot box — when Venezuelans voted and their will was denied? If sovereignty protects the ruler but not the voter, it is not sovereignty. It is control.
International law exists to defend human dignity. But law without enforcement becomes language. And language does not stop repression.
That debate is not the future. The future is what we build now.
The main responsibility of the democratic leadership and the democratic movement is clear:
We must build the path to a fully free and democratic Venezuela. Not partial reform. Not cosmetic change. Not a rearrangement of power. A fully democratic Venezuela.
And democracy requires one undisputed foundation:
A free and fair general election.
Because elections are how sovereignty is expressed peacefully. Elections are how legitimacy is restored. Elections are how power obeys the people. But elections cannot be theater.
For a real general election to take place, certain conditions are non-negotiable.
First: the immediate release of all political prisoners. No citizen can vote freely while others sit in prison for dissent.
Second: an end to repression. The structures and figures that represent persecution must no longer dominate public life. Fear cannot coexist with free choice.
Third: the return of exiles. Millions who were forced out must be able to come home. A nation cannot vote if part of its nation is absent.
Fourth: the full reopening of civic and political space — freedom of expression, freedom of association, legal political parties, independent media.
And fifth: a new, independent, credible electoral authority. Without a trustworthy electoral board, elections are performance — not sovereignty.
Without these conditions, elections are theater. With them, elections are sovereignty.
Today, Venezuela stands at a turning point.
We are in a better position than before January 3. There is movement. There is space. There is cautious optimism. But hope alone does not build democracy. Discipline does. Clarity does. Unity does.
The destination is clear:
A fully free and democratic Venezuela. Not negotiated dignity. Not conditional liberty. Full democracy.
And until that is achieved, we will continue — peacefully, firmly, relentlessly — to build that path. Because the only undisputed expression of sovereignty is the free vote. And in a true democracy, power must obey it.
Thank you.
18th Annual Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy, U.N. Opening, Tuesday, February 17, 2026
Key Quotes:
“It’s bewildering to hear people talk about sovereignty of a dictator and not defending the sovereignty of the people that voted”
“We have heard claims about international law. People nervous about breaking the international law because of the capture of a dictator of a criminal. The international law that did not support millions of Venezuelans while they were being victims of the crimes committed by Nicolas Maduro and his regime.”
“When Venezuela transitions to democracy, Cuba will transition to democracy. Nicaragua will transition to democracy. And the impact will be felt in Africa, in Asia, Eastern Europe, and in the Middle East. Because this fight, my dear friends, is a global fight for freedom. So long live freedom.”
“For years we have been fighting for an idea that for some, is theoretical for us is vital. We have been fighting for freedom. And we understand what freedom is not from theory, not from poetry, not from music. We learn what freedom is. I myself did when I was in a solitary confinement cell for four years and condemned to confinement for seven years and I understood that freedom is not one thing. Freedom is the sum of many things. Freedom is the possibility to do what I’m doing today that I cannot do in my country to speak.”
