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REDACTED Page 82 of 190 September 2012 that the GoV withdrew from the American Convention on Human Rights following a series of decisions against the GoV by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR).337 Maduro was also designated by Chávez to fulfil his presidential duties while he was battling cancer for over a year. 338 In December 2012, Chávez announced that his recurring cancer had returned and publicly declared that should his condition worsen and a new Presidential Election be called, Venezuelans should vote for Maduro to succeed him.339 Maduro, who was Venezuela's interim leader since Chávez's death on from the 5 March 2013 and thereafter until the elections, made his position clear when he stated: "I am not Chávez, but I am his son."340 In April 2013, Nicolás Maduro narrowly won the elections341 called for by the NEC342 and upon taking power, Maduro made several statements to the fact that he would continue to implement Chávez ideologies and policies.343 In his victory speech on the 14 337 AI. (2013) Venezuela’s withdrawal from regional human rights instrument is a serious setback. Amnesty International. [Online] 6 September. Available from: https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2013/09/venezuela-s-withdrawal-regional-human-rights- instrument-serious-setback/ [Accessed 28 August, 2015] 338 INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP. (2012) Dangerous Uncertainty ahead of Venezuela’s Elections. International Crisis Group. [Online] 26 June. Available from: http://www.crisisgroup.org/en/regions/latin-america-caribbean/andes/venezuela/042-dangerous- uncertainty-ahead-of-venezuelas-elections.aspx [Accessed 28 August, 2015] p.4 339 JAMES, I. (2012) Venezuela's Chávez says cancer back, plans surgery; INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP. (2012) Dangerous Uncertainty ahead of Venezuela’s Elections; PENFOLD, M. (2013) Maduro Moves Up. Foreign Affairs. [Online] 12 March. Available from: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/venezuela/2013-03-12/maduro-moves [Accessed 28 August, 2015] 340 SHOICHET, C. (2013) Maduro: From bus driver to Venezuelan leader. CNN. [Online] 15 April. Available from: http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/11/world/americas/venezuela-maduro-profile/ [Accessed 28 August, 2015] 341 The CNE’s first bulletin, with over 99 per cent of the votes counted, indicated Maduro had won with 7,505,338 votes (50.66 per cent) over Capriles who obtained 7,270,403 (49.07 per cent). See: CNE. (2013) Divulgación Presidenciales 2013. Consejo Nacional Electoral. [Online] 1 July. Available from: http://www.cne.gob.ve/resultado_presidencial_2013/r/1/reg_000000.html [Accessed 28 August, 2015]; NYT. (2013) Maduro gained 50.8% of the vote to 49.1% to Capriles. Venezuela Gives Chávez Protégé Narrow Victory. New York Times. [Online] 14 April. Available from: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/15/world/americas/venezuelans-vote-for-successor-to- Chávez.html [Accessed 7 September] (noting that in an unexpectedly close race, Nicolás Maduro, Hugo Chávez’s handpicked political heir, was chosen by Venezuelans to serve the remainder of Chávez’s six- year term as president); USA TODAY. (2013) Officials say Maduro defeated Henrique Capriles by only about 200,000 votes. USA Today. [Online] Available from: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/04/14/venezuela-election-maduro- capriles/2081677/ [Accessed 28 August, 2015] 342 EL UNIVERSAL. (2013) 234.935 votos dan la victoria a Maduro. El Universal. [Online] 15 April. Available from: http://www.eluniversal.com/nacional-y-politica/elecciones-2013/130415/234935- votos-dan-la-victoria-a-maduro [Accessed 28 August, 2015] 343 Maduro’s op-ed at The Guardian is titled: “Under my presidency, Chávez's revolution will continue”. “The media myth that our political project would fall apart without Chávez was a fundamental misreading of Venezuela's revolution. Chávez has left a solid edifice, its foundation a broad, united

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