The political opposition in Venezuela has called for more mass demonstrations as anger continues to simmer over President Nicolás Maduro’s disputed election victory.
Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado called on Venezuelans to take to the streets on Saturday in protest against Maduro’s re-election, which has thrust the South American country into a political crisis and drawn international criticism.
“We must remain firm, organized and mobilized with the pride of having achieved a historic victory on July 28th and the awareness that to claim victory we will also go to the end,” said Machado on social media.
Earlier this week, Venezuela’s National Electoral Council (CNE) formally declared Maduro the winner of Sunday’s presidential vote.
The CNE said Maduro had 51 percent support to win another six-year term, compared with 44 percent for his main opponent, Edmundo Gonzalez.
But the country’s opposition said its tally of about 90 percent of the vote showed Gonzalez received more than twice the support of the sitting president.
The opposition has released detailed counts on a public website, but the government has so far not shared any information beyond the national vote total for each candidate, despite Maduro’s recent promise to release “100 percent of the records.”
The Venezuelan president, who came to power in 2013 after the death of his mentor and predecessor Hugo Chávez, has faced widespread national and international pressure to provide a transparent accounting of the vote.
Maduro accused his political opponents of fueling the unrest, blaming Gonzalez “for everything that is happening in Venezuela,” including “criminal violence… the injured, the dead, the destruction.”
On Friday, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil said the United States was “at the forefront of an attempted coup.”
Meanwhile, the opposition movement led by Machado, Vente Venezuela, said that “six hooded and unidentified men overpowered the security guards” and entered its headquarters overnight on Friday.
“They threatened them and started writing graffiti, breaking down doors and taking equipment,” said Vente Venezuela on X, where it released videos showing walls covered in black paint.
“We denounce the attacks and the lack of security to which we are subject for political reasons”, added the movement.
Maduro’s electoral victory prompted thousands of Venezuelans to demonstrate in the capital, Caracas, and other parts of the country this week, where they were met with tear gas and rubber bullets fired by police.
Human Rights Watch said on Wednesday it had received reports of 20 deaths in post-election demonstrations. More than 1,000 protesters have been arrested, authorities said, amid fears of a wider crackdown.
“We call on Venezuelan authorities to respect the democratic process,” Laura Dib, director of the Venezuela program at The Washington Office on Latin America, a research and advocacy group, said in a statement. video shared on social media.
She also called on Caracas “to refrain from persecution and political repression and guarantee the rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression.”
The leaders of Mexico, Colombia and Brazil – which have maintained friendlier relations with Venezuela than other countries in the region – on Thursday urged Venezuelan electoral authorities to “move forward quickly and publicly release the results broken down in ballots”.
“We reiterate our willingness to support dialogue efforts and the search for agreements that benefit the Venezuelan people,” the leaders said in a statement.
“The fundamental principle of popular sovereignty must be respected through the impartial verification of results.”
The Venezuelan Supreme Court summoned all presidential candidates to a hearing on Friday afternoon, following Maduro’s request to initiate a process to investigate and certify the election results.
Meanwhile, in response to election-related criticism, Venezuela expelled diplomats from Argentina and five other countries – Chile, Costa Rica, Panama, Dominican Republic and Uruguay.
Caracas and Lima expelled each other’s diplomats after Peru recognized Gonzalez as Venezuela’s elected president.
The United States also recognized Gonzalez as the winner of Thursday’s election, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken saying there was “overwhelming evidence” that the opposition leader had defeated Maduro.
Blinken urged “Venezuelan parties to begin discussions on a respectful and peaceful transition, in accordance with Venezuelan electoral law and the wishes of the Venezuelan people.”
In a post on X, Gonzalez on Friday thanked to the USA “for recognizing the will of the Venezuelan people reflected in our electoral victory and for supporting the process of restoring democratic norms in Venezuela”.
This story originally appeared on Aljazeera.com read the full story
