Venezuela’s opposition leader María Corina Machado ‘kidnapped’, allies say | Venezuela

Allies of Venezuela’s most influential opposition leader, María Corina Machado, said she had been “kidnapped” from the streets of Caracas by regime officials after sneaking out of hiding to lead a major protest against authoritarian President Nicolás Maduro.

About three hours after the announcement, Machado supporters said she had been released after being knocked down by a motorcycle and “taken away by force” as she left the rally and forced to record a series of videos.

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 provided no proof of his claim of victory, while Machado’s movement has released detailed vote tallies that offer compelling evidence that its now-exiled candidate, Edmundo González, actually won.

On Thursday, thousands of opposition supporters took to the streets in cities across Venezuela to protest Maduro’s planned swearing-in at the behest of Machado, who went into hiding shortly after the July 28, 2024 vote to avoid capture.

After more than 133 days holed up in an undisclosed location, Machado, 57, reappeared Thursday afternoon at the heart of a large crowd of protesters in Caracas. Climbing onto a truck, the politician led them in chants: “We are not afraid.”

After giving an impassioned speech, Machado left the rally but was “violently intercepted,” her representatives said in a brief statement.

“Regime officials opened fire on the motorcycles 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 his team “not to negotiate for her freedom”.

In a message on X later, Machado thanked those who had come out in protest and expressed sympathy for a Venezuelan she said was wounded by a bullet “when I was detained by the repressive forces of the regime.”

“I am now in a safe place and with more determination than ever to continue by your side UNTIL THE END!” she added. She promised to provide more information on Friday about “what happened today and what is coming.”

Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello called the opposition’s account “a lie” and said that “if there was a decision to detain her, she would be detained.”

At least 17 arrests were made at protests across the country, according to a post on X by Gonzalo Himiob, vice president of the NGO Foro Penal.

Phil Gunson, a Caracas-based analyst for the Crisis Group, said Maduro’s administration had held off detaining Machado for years, figuring that while she was “annoying,” arresting her could potentially backfire by her even more popular. Those calculations appeared to have changed Thursday after her appearance at the protest in Caracas.

“She made them look ridiculous today. They flooded the city with police and military and colectivos (pro-regime motorcycle gangs) and she showed up at the rally and just thumbed their noses. I think it was a step too far,” Gunson said. “She knew this could happen … she was prepared for it — and they’ve taken the bait.”

Machado’s detention sparked international condemnation. “The dictatorial regime is responsible for her life,” Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino tweeted.

Colombia’s former president, ​Iván Duque, called the detention “another demonstration of the vileness of the cowardly dictator Maduro”. Spain’s foreign ministry expressed “total condemnation and our concern”, while Argentina’s presidency condemned “the criminal attack of the Chavista regime”.

Edmundo González wrote on social media: “As president-elect, I demand the release of María Corina Machado (who was) kidnapped by Venezuelan security forces. To the security forces that kidnapped her, I say: don’t play with fire.”

Gunson said the consequences on the ground in Venezuela were unpredictable. “The most important thing is what the reaction of the security forces is. As long as the security forces—or at least the top command—remain solidly behind Maduro, he’s likely to be safe. But it will cause more problems for the government.”

Carlos Lizarralde, the author of a book called Venezuela’s Collapse: The Long Story of How Things Fell Apart, said he saw Machado’s reported detention as a sign that Maduro’s regime was confident of a massive security breach after the election that has seen hundreds of people thrown in. the prison had the desired effect.

“Their game plan has been very clear to me from day one: The game plan is to take control of the streets (with security forces and police); create an environment of terror so that people think twice before any kind of action against the government or any kind of for protest; neutralize any network that might threaten them; consolidate their power within police departments and the military. That’s what they’re doing… and from Maduro’s point of view, things are going swimmingly,” said Lizarralde and added: “I think they feel very, very safe and very much in control.”

US President Donald Trump wrote on social media: “Venezuelan democracy activist Maria Corina Machado and President-elect González are peacefully expressing the voices and WILL of the Venezuelan people with hundreds of thousands of people demonstrating against the regime… These freedom fighters should not be harmed and MUST stay SAFE and ALIVE!”

A White House National Security Council spokesman described González as the “true winner” of the election, saying: “We have and continue to publicly condemn Maduro and his representatives for attempting to intimidate Venezuela’s democratic opposition.”

Pro-regime media journalists called Machado’s alleged kidnapping an opposition figure and released a video – of mysterious origin – that they claimed showed Machado safe and sound. It was unclear how those reporters obtained the video or whether Machado was speaking under duress.

In one of her latest major interviews, Machado told reporters Tuesday that Venezuela was approaching “one of the most important moments in Latin American history.”

“All the regime has left is repression – all it has left is to instill fear in Venezuelans, and if Venezuelans can overcome that fear, repression will be meaningless,” she added.