Machado announces ecumenical demonstration against Maduro

Saturday, August 10, 2024 – 08:48 UTC

The international community has understood what it means when Maduro intends to stay by force, Machado said.

Venezuela’s opposition leader announced Friday that “we will not leave the streets” and pledged to hold a global protest in support of her position on the outcome of the July 28 elections, which she said were won by Edmundo González Urrutia of the United Democratic Platform (PUD) with 67% of the vote compared to 30% of the vote against incumbent President Nicolás Maduro, who was announced as the winner by the National Electoral Council (CNE).

“The world must see the strength, determination and decision that we Venezuelans have made, there is no going back. We are not going to leave the streets. This does not mean that we will be on the streets every day. This is managed, it is done with intelligence, with discipline and perseverance,” Machado insisted in a live video on Instagram with influencer Lele Pons.

“We are going to invite and summon the entire world, all Venezuelans and Latin Americans, all peoples who aspire to justice, freedom and truth, to join us in a moment of encounter of all, outside and inside,” she added.

“We will not give up until we achieve our goal. We will not be able to stop until the end and make sure that the votes of millions of Venezuelans are respected,” insisted Machado, who also argued that the crisis in his country was also affecting other nations.

“It is no longer just the whole country that is united, it is also the international community, because it has understood the enormous problem that this means, not only for Venezuela, which Maduro claims to maintain by force,” she stressed.

According to her, Maduro’s recommendation against WhatsApp and the 10-day ban on X proves that they are “afraid.”

Despite her announcement, Machado did not give a specific date for her ecumenical demonstration against Maduro’s alleged fraud. She stressed, however, that such a demonstration must be “organized, civic and peaceful” but “not docile” because it requires “an extremely robust strategy” to end the Chavista government.

Meanwhile, Maduro has rejected any transition negotiations with Machado and called her a “terrorist” and a “fugitive from justice.”

“The only one who should negotiate with Machado in this country is the attorney general,” Maduro said.

In this context, Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino proposed political asylum to Maduro as a possible solution to the crisis. But his proposal was rejected. Diosdado Cabello, a senior leader of the PSUV (Maduro’s party), said that Mulino was acting as a “low-level spokesman for imperialism.”