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CARACAS: Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado called on supporters on Wednesday (July 31) to “mobilize” after President Nicolas Maduro Controversial election.
Machado’s comments come at a time of deep uncertainty in the South American country after Maduro was declared the winner in Sunday’s election but electoral authorities failed to disclose detailed results to back up that claim.
16 people have died Protests after the electionThe opposition claimed that its candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, was the legitimate winner.
The opposition released a trove of voting data, saying he had defeated Maduro by a huge margin, just as pre-election polls had shown.
“We spent months building a strong platform that would defend the vote and demonstrate our victory beyond any doubt. And we succeeded,” Machado, who was barred from participating in the election, said on X Wednesday night.
“Now it’s time for all of us to stand up for what we all know to be true,” she said. “Let’s act. We will succeed.”
Many countries, including Brazil, the United States and the European Union, have demanded that Venezuelan authorities release detailed voting data, and the White House warned on Wednesday that international patience was running out.
Speaking to reporters outside the Supreme Court, Maduro said he was “ready to submit all the records” and appeal what he called “an attack on the electoral process.”
But he expressed anger toward Machado and González Urrutia, saying they “should be in jail.”
Security forces fired tear gas and rubber bullets at Venezuelans on Monday after thousands took to the streets chanting “Freedom, freedom!” and “This government must fall!”
Machado said 177 people had been detained and 11 had been “forcibly disappeared.” While Justice Minister Tariq William Sabu said more than 1,000 people had been arrested in the protests and some of them could face terrorism charges.
He also said one officer was killed and 77 officers were injured.
Despite this, thousands of people gathered again in several cities on Tuesday for peaceful demonstrations in support of the opposition.
“We advise the regime to accept its defeat democratically and move forward with negotiations to ensure a peaceful transition,” Machado said on TV X.
“Yet they chose the path of repression, violence and lies.”
Sunday’s election was held under the shadow of Maduro’s warnings of a “bloodbath” if he lost and amid widespread fears the vote would be rigged.
Late on Wednesday, Luis Almagro, secretary general of the Organization of American States (OAS), said in a post on the X website that he would ask the International Criminal Court to indict Maduro for the post-election violence and issue an arrest warrant for him.
“Maduro promised a bloodbath … and he is doing it,” Almagro said.
Not “democratic”
Brian Nichols, the top U.S. diplomat for Latin America, said polls released by the opposition provided “irrefutable evidence” that Maduro was “losing by millions of votes.”
But an emergency meeting of the Organization of American States on Wednesday failed to pass a resolution calling for the “immediate” release of detailed results, with Colombia and Brazil abstaining from the vote.
Maduro, who has led the oil-rich nation since 2013, has seen Venezuela’s gross domestic product fall 80 percent under his rule, leading to the emigration of more than 7 million of its once-affluent 30 million citizens.
He has been accused of jailing critics and harassing opponents amid rising authoritarianism.
Maduro was re-elected president in 2018 but was opposed by dozens of Latin American and other countries, including the United States and European Union members, who called his candidacy a sham.
Years of crippling U.S. sanctions have failed to remove the president, who enjoys the loyalty of the military leadership, electoral bodies, courts and other state institutions, and the support of Russia, China and Cuba.
Peru on Tuesday recognised González Urrutia as Venezuela’s legitimate president, prompting Caracas to sever diplomatic ties.
Venezuela has withdrawn its diplomatic staff from eight key Latin American countries and asked their envoys to leave its territory.
That includes Argentina, whose embassy in Caracas is offering asylum to several of Machado’s associates.
Meanwhile, hundreds of pro-Maduro protesters took to the streets of Caracas on Wednesday to show support for the embattled president in response to global criticism.
“They said the same thing in previous years, in previous elections they always talked about ‘fraud,'” Maduro supporter Edwin Blanco, 30, told AFP.
Laidis Rodriguez, 65, told AFP she found the opposition’s actions “painful”.
“Who do you think is backing them? They are backed by foreign countries.”
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