Thousands of Venezuelan opposition supporters take to the streets ahead of Maduro’s third inauguration

• Venezuelan opposition parties and their supporters protested across the country on Thursday in a last-minute effort to put pressure on President Nicolás Maduro, a day before he is sworn in for his third six-year term.
• María Corina Machado, the leader of Venezuela’s most popular opposition, appeared for the first time since August when she hid in an unknown location.
• Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, 62, has been in power since 2013.

Venezuelan opposition parties and their supporters – including leader María Corina Machadowho had been in hiding, protested across the country Thursday in a last-minute effort to put pressure on President Nicolás Maduro, a day before he is sworn in for his third six-year term.

The opposition and the ruling party are locked in an ongoing dispute over last year’s presidential election, which both claim to have won.

The country’s electoral authority and top court say Maduro, whose term has been marked by a deep economic and social crisis, won the July vote, although they have never published detailed counts.

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The government, which has accused the opposition of fomenting fascist plots against it, said it will arrest opposition leader Edmundo González if he returns to the country and has detained prominent opposition members and activists in the run-up to the inauguration.

The opposition says González, 75, won in a landslide. He has released his own vote counts as evidence, garnering support from governments around the world, including the United States, which consider González the president-elect.

Machado, who is the country’s most popular opposition leader but has been banned from running in 2024, joined a protest in Chacao, east of Caracas, around 2:20 p.m. local time (6:20 p.m. GMT), dressed in a white shirt and blue jeans. and waving a Venezuelan flag from the top of a truck.

“They lost the streets, which are ours, they are entrenched in Miraflores (presidential palace),” Machado told the crowd. “As of today we are in a new phase.”

His appearance marked his first public appearance since August, when he hid in an unknown location.

Machado, 57, urged protesters to peacefully flood the streets and repeatedly asked members of the police and army, who guarded polling stations during the elections, to support González’s victory.

“I’m not afraid, I lost it a long time ago,” said Neglis Payares, 70, a retired central bank worker, as she met with other opposition supporters in western Caracas in the morning.

“We don’t know how many of them have their hearts on our side,” he added, pointing to security forces who had gathered near the protest.

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Reuters witnesses estimated that about 7,000 people had gathered in Caracas around 2:20 p.m. local time. In the days after the election, thousands of people also took to the streets.

Maduro, 62, has been in power. since 2013. It has the vociferous support of the leaders of the armed forces and the intelligence services, led by close allies of the powerful Minister of the Interior, Diosdado Cabello.

“I’m convinced that nothing will happen,” Cabello said Monday on state television. “But that doesn’t mean we let our guard down.”

The military’s financial interests make loyalty shifts unlikely, BancTrust, a London investment bank, said in a note. “A limited military rebellion would entail significant risks for those involved, thus diminishing incentives to participate,” he wrote.

‘WE HAVE NO WORK’

Security forces set up checkpoints throughout the country.

In the western oil city of Maracaibo, an opposition protest of dozens of people was quickly dispersed by security forces on motorcycles late in the morning. In central Valencia, protesters gathered elsewhere after initially being met with tear gas.

Opposition supporters also gathered in San Cristóbal, near the border with Colombia, in the western city of Barquisimeto and in the east of Puerto Ordaz.

“I’m here because we need to get rid of this government. We don’t have money, we don’t have jobs,” said Roisa Gómez, a 62-year-old housewife, at a protest in the central city of Maracay. “I am fighting for my vote, which I cast for Edmundo González. They cannot steal the elections from me.”

Shortly after, security forces used tear gas to disperse protesters in Maracay.

Many of the protesters were of retirement age and said they wanted a change so that their migrant children and grandchildren could return to the country. More than 7 million Venezuelans live abroad.

The ruling party was holding rival marches across the country, footage of which was broadcast on state television.

“We have gone out to demonstrate that there is democracy. On this side are the patriots who will swear with Nicolás (Maduro), on the other side are the fascists who want (foreign) intervention, war, to sell their country.” “said Manual Rincón, a 50-year-old motorcycle taxi driver from Caracas.

González, who toured America this week and met with US President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump’s national security adviser, has repeatedly promised to return to Venezuela but has not given details on how.

An arrest warrant was issued for González for alleged conspiracy, prompting his escape to Spain in September.

Machado is being investigated by the attorney general in at least two cases, but no warrant against her has been made public.

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The government has detained several high-profile politicians and activists, including a former presidential candidate. This week, the attorney general’s office said it had released more than 1,500 of the 2,000 people, including teenagers, detained during post-election protests.

Venezuelans living abroad also held protests, including in Madrid, where González’s daughter, Carolina González, spoke to hundreds of protesters.

“My dad sends a hug to all of you, glory to the brave people of Venezuela,” he said with a broken voice.