‘Venezuela will be free’: Anti-Maduro protests roil Caracas
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A demonstrator waving a Venezuelan flag on Jan 9 in Caracas, during a protest by opponents of Mr Nicolas Maduro on the eve of his inauguration as president for a third six-year term, following a contested July election.
PHOTO: AFP
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CARACAS - Opponents of Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro took to the streets on Jan 9 in a last-ditch protest against his swearing-in for a third six-year term as president.
After a July election that many believe was stolen, hundreds of opposition supporters began gathering in Caracas on the eve of his planned inauguration.
Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who has vowed to come out of hiding to lead the protests, has called for Venezuelans to turn out in their “millions.”
She hopes to end a quarter century of military-backed rule that began with Maduro’s late mentor Hugo Chavez.
“Get out and leave the country in peace” read one Caracas protester’s placard.
Mr Maduro has swatted away the pressure to cede power and warned that “fascists” who try to prevent his inauguration will be severely dealt with.
Mr Maduro’s loyal supporters are holding a rival demonstration in Caracas, setting the stage for a repeat of post-election violence that saw 28 killed, hundreds wounded and thousands jailed.
Much will now depend on how many anti-government protesters are willing to risk a confrontation with heavily armed security forces.
Pro-Maduro police and other security service have locked down key parts of the capital and have previously been willing to brutally suppress pro-democracy protests.
But 70-year-old Mr Rafael Castillo said he would risk his safety to see Mr Maduro ousted.
“I will leave my skin on the asphalt for my children, but it will be worth it because Venezuela will be free” he told AFP.
In the run-up to his inauguration, Mr Maduro has accused his old foe, the United States, of plotting to overthrow him.
He claimed that among a group of seven “mercenaries” arrested this week there was one senior FBI official.
US denies coup plot
The State Department said allegations of US involvement in a plot to overthrow Mr Maduro were “categorically false.”
Mr Maduro has ruled Venezuela since 2013 and despite a sustained economic crisis that has seen seven million citizens leave the country, he shows no intention of relinquishing power.
Pro-government militiamen paraded in Caracas this week brandishing Russian-made assault rifles and on Jan 8, about 3,000 pro-Maduro bikers roared around the capital, horns blaring.
Ahead of the protests, several activists and opposition figures, including a politician who ran against Mr Maduro in July were reported arrested.
Writing on X, United Nations rights chief Volker Turk said he was “deeply concerned” at reports of “arbitrary detentions and intimidation.”
‘Wanted’
Exiled presidential candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia this week visited the White House and toured Latin American capitals in an effort to up pressure on Mr Maduro to relinquish power.
The United States and several Latin American countries have recognised Mr Gonzalez Urrutia as the legitimate winner of July’s election.
In Washington, he met outgoing US President Joe Biden, who backed a “peaceful transfer back to democratic rule” as well as members of President-elect Donald Trump’s team.
Mr Gonzalez Urrutia had at one point suggested he might fly back to Caracas to try to take power.
In a sign of the fate that awaits him if he does, “Wanted” posters offering a US$100,000 (S$136,000) government reward for his capture were pasted on street signs around the capital.
With neither the charisma nor the flush oil revenues of his mentor Chavez, Mr Maduro is accused of relying on brute force to hold on to power and of driving the economy into the ground.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro meeting Russian leader Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of a Brics summit in October 2024.
PHOTO: AFP
Russian, Cuban support
Mr Maduro never produced detailed election results to prove his victory.
Only a handful of countries, including perennial Venezuela allies Russia and Cuba, have recognised his re-election.
The opposition said its tally of results from polling stations showed Mr Gonzalez Urrutia winning by a landslide.
The last presidential election in 2018 was also marred by fraud allegations.
Attempts by Trump to force Mr Maduro out during his first term as US president by recognising a parallel opposition-led government and imposing sanctions on Venezuela’s oil sector came to naught however. AFP
