More rallies are expected Tuesday in Venezuela, where tensions continue to rise after the deaths of at least four people and hundreds of arrests during protests against the re-election of President Nicolas Maduro.
Faced with an international community increasingly critical of Caracas, a showdown is underway between the government and the opposition. Led by its leader Maria Corina Machado and the candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, who replaced her at short notice when she was declared ineligible, the opposition denounces “massive fraud”.
Symbolic after 25 years of Chavist power, two statues of Hugo Chavez were toppled by protesters in the country, now bled dry after years of crisis and international sanctions. Socialist president of Venezuela from 1999 until his death in 2013, Hugo Chavez had chosen Nicolas Maduro as his successor.
On Monday in Caracas, security forces fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters. Shouting “Freedom, freedom!”, the protesters expressed their anger after Maduro was re-elected for a third six-year term in Sunday’s vote.
The death toll from the protests is now at least four.
In addition to “44 injured”, the NGO Encuesta nacional de hospitales recorded three deaths – two in Maracay, 100 km west of Caracas, and one in the capital – while the organization Foro penal recorded one death in the state of Yaracuy (northwest).
The Defense Ministry reported 23 wounded soldiers. Attorney General Tarek William Saab reported the arrest of “749 offenders” in connection with the protests, some on “terrorism” charges.
In this context, the opposition denounces an “escalation of repression” and announced on Tuesday morning the arrest in Caracas by the police of an important member of the Voluntad Popular (VP) party, Freddy Superlano.
“Fascist coup”
Nicolas Maduro, 61, was officially proclaimed president on Monday, after the results were announced by the National Electoral Council (CNE).
Without providing details of the results, the CNE said that Mr. Maduro obtained 5.15 million votes (51.2%) ahead of Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, 4.5 million votes (44.2%).
Brushing aside criticism from the opposition and the international community, the head of state denounced an attempted “fascist coup d’état in Venezuela.”
But opposition leader Maria Corina Machado told the media on Monday evening that the opposition had the means to “prove” her candidate’s victory.
According to her, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, a discreet 74-year-old diplomat, won 6.27 million votes (73%), against 2.7 million for Maduro. “We are going to fight for our freedom,” Gonzalez Urrutia said Monday evening.
Mme Machado claimed that these “proofs of victory” were provided to “leaders.”
“Assemblies” and “marches”
Maria Corina Machado called on her fellow citizens to participate in “popular assemblies” across the country on Tuesday to support a peaceful transition.
The presidential candidate’s campaign manager, Jorge Rodriguez, called for “large marches starting this Tuesday to celebrate the victory and defend the peace of the Republic.”
In a sign of the tension, queues have formed outside supermarkets. Some stores, in the poorest neighborhoods, are keeping their gates closed and only letting customers in one at a time.
The army’s attitude will be key in the post-election crisis that is opening. On Tuesday, the Minister of Defense, General Vladimir Padrino, “reaffirmed” the “absolute loyalty” of the armed forces to President Maduro.
The latter can welcome the support of China and Russia, which called on the opposition to “accept its defeat”, as well as its traditional allies (Cuba, Nicaragua, Honduras and Bolivia).
However, it appears increasingly isolated with the influx of critical or sceptical international reactions.
The Organization of American States (OAS) on Tuesday denounced “aberrant manipulation” during the vote.
Nine Latin American countries (Argentina, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Dominican Republic, Uruguay) called in a joint statement for a “complete review with the presence of independent electoral observers.”
Brazil and Colombia, two countries with left-wing presidencies, have called for an audit of the vote count, while the United States has said it “is concerned that the announced result does not reflect the will or the vote of the Venezuelan people.”
The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, called for “total transparency”.
Caracas responded by withdrawing its diplomatic personnel from seven Latin American countries (Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Panama, Peru, the Dominican Republic and Uruguay) and announcing the suspension of flights to Panama and the Dominican Republic from Wednesday.