Leader of Venezuelan opposition comes out of hiding to lead massive rally against Maduro
The leader of the Venezuelan opposition, María Corina Machado, came out of hiding Saturday and told thousands of followers gathered in Caracas that the country it is on the verge of recovering its democracy despite the brutal repression campaign launched by strongman Nicolás Maduro to crush those protesting against his regime.
Machado, who on Thursday said in an op-ed published by the Wall Street Journal that she was in hiding and feared for her life, stressed that despite the regime’s violent repression, the democratic movement will not stop protesting Maduro’s fraudulent attempts to steal the July 28th presidential election.
“They have their hands stained with blood,” Machado said in reference to the regime’s violent crackdown that left 20 dead and dozens injured. “But we have never been as strong as today and the regime has never been as weak as today... they have lost all legitimacy, the world knows it.”
Standing on top of a truck alongside opposition candidate Edmundo González, who the United States and a handful of other countries believe is the real winner of the election, Machado said Venezuelans are on the verge of regaining their freedom after more than two decades of oppressive rule
“All Venezuelans, inside and outside the country, are living the most important hours of their lives,” she said. “We all knew that this was a complex process. They told us many times that it was impossible to prove the fraud and we were able to prove it successfully. I trust in our brave people and in the truth, which is in our hearts, and which is in every word that we continue to say.”
Read more: ‘Freedom! Freedom! Freedom!’ Thousands of Venezuelans gather in Miami to protest election
The rally attended by Machado and González was just one of several held throughout Venezuela in support of Gonzalez and in defiance of the regime’s crackdown. Similar rallies were held in cities throughout the world with a large population of Venezuelans, including Madrid and Miami. The Venezuelan Observatory of Social Conflict, a non-governmental organization, reported there were 915 protests throughout Venezuela this week.
More than 7.7 million Venezuelans have been forced to leave their home country to escape the lack of freedom and dire economic conditions that they attribute to the autocratic socialist government.
The Caracas regime, which claims it is facing an insurrection prompted by Washington and right-wing extremists, admitted that it has so far arrested more than 2,000 people in the crackdown of a wave of protests triggered by its announcement that Maduro had won the election with close to 52% of the vote.
Maduro said on Saturday that those arrested are being interrogated and will eventually be sent to Tocuyito and Tocoron, two of the worst prisons in Venezuela. “Tocorón and Tocuyito, maximum punishment, justice. This time there will be no forgiveness, this time there will be no forgiveness, this time there will be Tocorón,” Maduro said during his own rally in Caracas.
High-ranking regime officials have called on Maduro’s attorney general to order the immediate arrest of Machado and González. Among those arrested are opposition politician Freddy Superlano, whose whereabouts are unknown and whose wife fears is being tortured.
Opposition leaders claim that Maduro was resoundingly beaten by Gonzalez in the election, with the former Venezuelan ambassador to Argentina obtaining more than 65% of the votes, and the Venezuelan leader obtaining close to 30%.
Maduro’s plans for a third presidential term is further hindered by the fact that the opposition was been able to provide the official registered tallies of the election, called actas, for 80% of all votes and these showed Gonzalez inching close to getting 70% of the total vote.
Several countries, including the United States, have asked Maduro to provide the actas showing that he won the election, but so far the Venezuelan strongman has failed to do so.
Exit polls conducted during the election by respected independent firms also showed Gonzalez winning by at least a 2-1 margin over Maduro.
