Allies of Venezuela’s most influential opposition leader, María Corina Machado, say she has been “kidnapped” from the streets of Caracas by regime officials after sneaking out of her hideout to lead a major protest against the authoritarian president, Nicolás Maduro.
Maduro is set to be sworn in for his third presidential term on Friday, despite widespread suspicions that he stole last year’s election. Hugo Chávez’s heir has produced no proof of his claim to victory while Machado’s movement has published detailed voting tallies offering compelling evidence that its candidate, Edmundo González, actually won.
On Thursday, thousands of opposition supporters took to the streets of cities across Venezuela to protest against Maduro’s planned swearing-in at the behest of Machado, who went into hiding shortly after the 28 July 2024 vote to avoid capture.
After more than 133 days holed up in a secret location, Machado, 57, reappeared on Thursday afternoon at the heart of a large crowd of protesters in Caracas. Clambering on to a truck, the politician led them in chants of: “We are not afraid.”
After delivering an impassioned speech, Machado left the rally but was “violently intercepted”, her representatives said in a short statement.
“Regime officials opened fire on the motorbikes that were transporting her,” Machado’s representatives added.
Carla Angola, a prominent Venezuelan journalist, wrote on X: “The regime has kidnapped María Corina.”
Another top Venezuelan journalist, Luz Mely Reyes, said that before she was taken Machado had told her team “not to negotiate her freedom”.
Speaking to journalists on Wednesday, in one of her most recent major interviews, Machado said Venezuela was approaching “one of the most important moments in Latin American history”.
“The only thing the regime has left is repression – the only thing it has left is instilling fear in Venezuelans and if Venezuelans can overcome this fear, repression will be pointless,” she added.
More details soon …
Article by:Source Tom Phillips, Latin America correspondent
