Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - January 10, 2025, Winnipeg, Manitoba Read the Winter 2024 issue at winnipegfreepress.com/fp-features Available at Manitoba Liquor Marts - while supplies last! P I C K U P Y O U R C O P Y T O D A Y ! MANITOBA W I N T E R 20 2 4 TOP MANITOBA SKI SPOTS MANITOBA’S PREMIER FOOD, DRINK AND LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE INSIDE SAVOUR HOLIDAY 2024 ISSUE DON'T MISS THE FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2025 A8 ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM NEWS I WORLD Machado leads protests that end in confusing arrest claims Venezuela’s opposition leader defies Maduro C ARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuela opposition leader María Corina Machado’s aides said she was de- tained on Thursday, followed moments later by official denials of her arrest, in a confusing episode that capped a day of protests seeking to block President Nicolás Maduro from clinging to power. It remained unclear what exactly happened after Machado bid farewell to hundreds of supporters, hopped on a motorcycle and raced with her security convoy down a main Caracas avenue. At 3:21 p.m. local time, Machado’s press team said in a social media post that security forces “violently inter- cepted” her convoy. Her aides later told The Associated Press that she had been detained, and international condem- nation poured in from leaders in Latin America and beyond, demanding her release. But about an hour later, a proof-of-life, 20-second video of Machado emerged online in which she says she was fol- lowed after leaving the “wonderful” rally and had dropped her purse. Her aides later claimed in a social media post that the video message had been coerced, and that after recording it, she was freed. They said she would provide details of her “kidnapping” later. In recent years, the word kidnapping has been associated with the govern- ment practice of detaining real or per- ceived opponents without following the law. It’s seen as part of a campaign to repress anti-government protests that broke out after the election results were announced. Late Thursday, Machado in a post on X said she was “in a safe place and with more determination than ever” to continue her effort to get Maduro out of office. She also said that a person was shot “when the repressive forces of the regime arrested me.” The Associated Press was unable to contact Machado for clarification of her statement. She told supporters she would explain the day’s events in more detail today. Meanwhile, Maduro’s supporters denied Machado had been detained, claiming that government opponents were trying to spread fake news to gen- erate an international crisis. “Nobody should be surprised,” Com- munications Minister Freddy Nanez said. “Especially since it’s coming from the fascists, who were the architects of the dirty trick.” Earlier Thursday, Machado ad- dressed hundreds of supporters who heeded her call to take to the streets a day before the ruling party-controlled National Assembly was scheduled to swear in Maduro to a third six-year term despite credible evidence that he lost the presidential election. “They wanted us to fight each other, but Venezuela is united, we are not afraid,” Machado shouted from atop a truck in the capital minutes before she was reported detained. Machado, 57, is a hard-liner and for- mer lawmaker who stayed and fought against Maduro even after many of her allies among opposition leaders went into exile in the face of repression, join- ing an exodus of more than 7.7 million Venezuelans who’ve abandoned their homeland since 2013. Loyalists who control the country’s judiciary banned her from running against Maduro last year. In a deft move, she backed an unknown outsider — retired diplomat Edmundo González — who crushed Maduro by a more than two-to-one margin, according to voting machine records collected by the op- position and validated by international observers. González, invoking the title of presi- dent-elect recognized by the United States and other countries, demanded her immediate release. “To the security forces, I warn you: don’t play with fire,” he said in a social media post from the Dominican Repub- lic, where he met with President Luis Abinader and a delegation of former presidents from across Latin America. President-elect Donald Trump weighed in on Machado and Gonzalez’s efforts. “These freedom fighters should not be harmed, and MUST stay SAFE and ALIVE!” Trump said on Truth So- cial. There was a relatively small turnout for Thursday’s protests as riot police were deployed in force. Venezuelans who have witnessed Maduro’s security forces round up scores of opponents and regular bystanders since the July election were reluctant to turn out in large numbers as they have in the past. “Of course, there’s fewer people,” em- panada vendor Miguel Contreras said as National Guard soldiers carrying riot shields buzzed by on motorcycles. “There’s fear.” Demonstrators blocked a main av- enue in one opposition stronghold. Many were senior citizens and dressed in red, yellow and blue, answering Machado’s call to wear the colors of the Venezuelan flag. All condemned Maduro and said they would recognize González as Venezuela’s legitimate president. The deployment of security forces as well as pro-government armed groups known as “colectivos” to intimidate opponents betrays a deep insecurity on the part of Maduro, said Javier Cor- rales, a Latin America expert at Am- herst College. Since the elections, the government has arrested more than 2,000 people — including as many as 10 Americans and other foreigners — who it claims have been plotting to oust Maduro and sow chaos in the oil rich South Amer- ican nation. This week alone, masked gunmen arrested a former presidential candidate, a prominent free speech ac- tivist and even González’s son-in-law as he was taking his young children to school. “It’s an impressive show of force but it’s also a sign of weakness,” said Cor- rales, who co-authored this month an article, “How Maduro Stole Venezuela’s Vote,” in the Journal of Democracy. “Maduro is safe in office,” said Cor- rales, “but he and his allies recognize they are moving forward with a big lie and have no other way to justify what they are doing except by relying on the military.” Venezuela’s National Electoral Coun- cil, also stacked with government loyal- ists, declared Maduro the winner of the election. But unlike in previous con- tests, authorities did not provide any ac- cess to voting records or precinct-level results. The opposition, however, collected tally sheets from 85 per cent of elec- tronic voting machines and posted them online. They showed that its candidate, González, had thrashed Maduro by a more than two-to-one margin. Experts from the United Nations and the Atlan- ta-based Carter Center, both invited by Maduro’s government to observe the election, have said the tally sheets pub- lished by the opposition are legitimate. The U.S. and other governments have also recognized González as Vene- zuela’s president-elect. Even many of Maduro’s former leftist allies in Latin America plan to skip today’s swear- ing-in ceremony. President Joe Biden, meeting González at the White House this week, praised the previously unknown retired diplomat for having “inspired millions.” “The people of Venezuela deserve a peaceful transfer of power to the true winner of their presidential election,” Biden said following the meeting. — The Associated Press REGINA GARCIA CANO AND JOSHUA GOODMAN ARIANA CUBILLOS / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Opposition leader María Corina Machado gestures to supporters during a protest against President Nicolás Maduro the day before his inauguration, in Caracas, Venezuela, on Thursday. ;