The ruling party and the opposition are preparing to take to the streets on Thursday with the purpose of defending and repudiating the presidential inauguration of Nicolás Maduro, on January 10. The state apparatus came out to play strongly in favor of the former and a series of arrests and threats began that coincide with the arrival in Panama of Edmundo González Urrutia, apparently the stopover prior to his return to Venezuela. The Government assured that if he lands at the international airport bordering Caracas, along with a group of former Latin American presidents, he will be arrested and his companions considered “invaders”.
The former candidate in the last elections and former rector of the National Electoral Council (CNE), Enrique Marquez, He was arrested on Tuesday night by state security agents. According to Juan Barreto, leader of the Popular Democratic Front who accompanied Márquez in the race on July 28, also from Centrados, a force that has tried to walk a middle path in Venezuelan politics, “The Government only ratifies its authoritarian drift with these harassments and arbitrary detention which are added to seven others that occurred on the same day.” Barreto has also been the subject of threats.
Márquez is not part of the Democratic Unity Platform (PUD) that has supported the candidacy of González Urrutia and claims his victory at the polls. His status as former rector of the CNE has allowed him to point out all the black holes that allowed Maduro’s victory to be validated without presenting the corresponding minutes. “Like the majority of Venezuelans, he did not support Maduro’s fraud on July 28. He has not committed any crime. We demand that he appear now and be released immediately,” said Voluntad Popular, a right-leaning force with which Márquez had few coincidences, although he did have a common view on what happened after the electoral contest. “A social, democratic, civic, constitutional force materialized, which we must maintain and promote. Not knowing what happened on July 28 will unfortunately have consequences that will bring more suffering to Venezuelans,” the former rector said weeks ago.
These “consequences” are obvious at this time in a militarized Caracas. The wife of the executive director of Espacio Público, Carlos Correa, Mabel Calderín, asked the authorities to report his whereabouts. The activist was approached by a group of hooded men last Tuesday. The same procedure used to arrest González Urrutia’s son-in-law, Rafael Tudares.
Growing tension
“Them or us,” said the Minister of the Interior and Justice as a slogan, Diosdado Hairon the eve of the mobilizations. Maduro, meanwhile, referred to theCapture of seven foreign “mercenaries”two Colombians, two Americans and three Ukrainians. As in the cases of the two Spaniards and the Argentine gendarme, previously arrested, the evidence against them has not been presented so far. “The fascist had plans with mercenaries foreigners to carry out attacks on leaders of the revolution,” he said in reference to María Corina Machado. “We must be aware and prepared. That is why it is wonderful that the activation and training of the fighting bodies of the working class has been implemented,” he assured. According to Maduro, “the power of arms belongs to the people to defend democracy from any threat and ambush, no matter where it comes from.” .
The opposition aspires to be able to demonstrate that the Government will not have territorial control of Caracas on Thursday. The Miraflores Palace has responded with a decree that creates the Comprehensive Defense Management Body (ODDI), to which the military, the security forces and the so-called “collectives” must respond. The hardening in the streets is accentuated as the two key dates of this week approach. “No one will be able to defeat us”Maduro assured. It is not only about controlling the public space but also the virtual one. The NGO Sin Filtro denounced in the early hours of this Wednesday, January 8, that the administration of Nicolás Maduro blocked the social network TikTok for the second consecutive day. On December 30, the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) imposed a fine of 10 million dollars on TikTok. The deadline to pay it expired last Monday.
