The opposition is not standing down in Venezuela even as the repression comes hard and fast from the regime of president Nicolás Maduro.
Maduro claimed victory in Sunday’s elections, but the opposition led by Maria Corina Machado and Eduardo González Urrurtia has also claimed victory. Internationally, the EU has called for an independent count of the votes, and governments from Argentina to the U.S. are questioning the results put forward by Maduro.
Even the Carter Center, invited by Maduro to observe the elections, has not recognized his victory nor have governments with leaders usually friendly and ideologically aligned with Maduro, such as Chile.
“Do not look for us to negotiate results, results are not negotiated. Popular sovereignty is not negotiated!” Machado stressed in a speech in Caracas to a crowd of hundreds of thousands gathered—symbolically calling for the international community to support the opposition—outside the offices of the United Nations on Tuesday. “The only thing we are willing to negotiate is a peaceful transition with guarantees for all parties.”
Machado, who is the heart and soul of the widespread opposition to Maduro, was disqualified from running in the election by the Maduro regime at the beginning of the year. She appeared at the demonstration with Edmundo González Urrurtia, the official presidential candidate for the bloc of ten parties, a long-time diplomat, and Machado’s surrogate who she selected to take her place as a presidential candidate. Many in the crowd chanted “President!” proclaiming González’s victory.
The day before, Venezuelans turned out en mass in front of the presidential palace protesting Maduro with chants of “Freedom! Liberty!”
So far, police have killed six protestors.
The opposition is calling on the Venezuelan security forces—typically loyal to Maduro—to respect the will of the people. In some cases, police have removed their uniforms and sided with the crowds.
Maduro also issued an arrest warrant for Machado, while another opposition leader, Freddy Superlano, was arrested during a protest. But while Maduro remained hidden in the presidential palace, Machado stood on the back of a truck without protection encouraging the opposition.
Independent exit polls gave the opposition a landslide win of 70% in the elections, while Maduro claimed it had only garnered 44% of the vote to 51% for himself.
The opposition also managed to collect just over 70% of the printout verifications for each polling station, which can be used to verify election results. It has digitized them and put them up on a website, where Venezuelans can enter their national ID card number and see the results for their polling station.
The largest protests against Maduro are concentrated in Carácas but protests are taking place in areas throughout the country.
Machado has made “Until the end!” the motto of the opposition. The hard work of keeping up the pressure on the regime until it caves has just started.
