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For many years Venezuelans instinctively understand what it means when someone makes a plea. situation In conversation, rich people start leaving the country because situation– Everyone would go crazy if they drove at night. La Citación del Pais– Main characteristics of The “state of the country” in the years surrounding President Hugo Chavez’s death in 2013 was that the economy was in decline. The shelves in the supermarket are empty. and the normalization of new forms of crime, such as “quick kidnapping,” where a ransom is paid via a quick bank transfer and the victim is released within hours.
People don’t talk about it anymore. situation– But they began to use words that rhymed: Goodbye repetition Since the July 28 election, it is likely that two-thirds of voters will reject incumbent President Nicolas Maduro. Venezuelans have entered “Silent tunnels,” historian Edgardo Mondolfi told me, they breathe fear. See what they said and mind your own business
For international observers News that things It’s bad in a country where things Being bad for a long time probably doesn’t seem ordinary. Since Maduro Chavez’s successors and heirs rose to power. One in four Venezuelans has already left the country. Why should anyone be shocked that Venezuelans are afraid of the erratic dictator who rules over them?
However, for some Venezuelans Months of escalating repression are painful because they fulfill a short-lived hope. in the two years before the July election. Daily life in Venezuela appears to be improving. Even if it is only an illusion and is not sustainable. Maduro looks down on businesses Ignoring his most ridiculous rules. As a result, some parts of the economy prosper. Foreign currency is still technically illegal. But now Venezuelans can pay in dollars. Cash or sales instead of its own hyperinflationary currency Maduro appears to be making deals with citizens: If you don’t challenge me Life will become more bearable.
On July 28, Venezuelans violated the agreement and voted. Maduro has banned the candidacy of María Corina Machado, Venezuela’s immensely popular opposition leader. So the opposition candidate on the ballot turned out to be a man no one had ever heard of. Yet Maduro had left an obstacle in his opponent’s path. Still, the opposition campaign had generated enthusiasm in every corner of the country.
Almost every report except his own official report Maduro loses election But he still seized power. It rejected pleas from Washington, Bogota and Brasilia to release detailed voting results. and dismissed evidence from opposition-affiliated poll watchers that he might lose. Receiving less than half the votes of his opponent. Now Maduro has decided that the people who humiliated him on election day will pay the price.
Venezuela is not new to repression. Before the campaign season begins Maduro’s government is imprisoned. More than 15,000 An unknown number of politicians, protesters, activists and journalists have been tortured. In the months leading up to the election Such arrests are becoming more common. But it is Venezuelans who clearly do not want to challenge Maduro. It can be reassuring that most of those arrested have political backgrounds. As long as I don’t go out and cause trouble.Many people can tell themselves that I should be fine.
Repression now feels more prevalent. Protesters weren’t just wiped out during protests. since July Authorities pulled a protester of an unknown identity from the home. After only a few days they had been spotted on the street. The National Guard was established. checkpoint It checks people’s phones for compromising content. There was a young man. sent to prison Because he recorded anti-government memes in his phone gallery. The fear spread far and wide. My aunt in Caracas told me that she had uninstalled her social media apps for fear of stopping them. And she deleted many of her WhatsApp chats before leaving the house.
in the past nine months The situation of six people in particular has received a lot of attention. These people are locked in cages, not in houses, and not in the underground cells of Venezuela’s famous prisons. But in a gated house shaded by palm trees. A few months before the election Authorities have issued arrest warrants for eight of Machado’s closest aides. two were detained, but six were able to request asylum in the Argentine embassy. “We feel safe here,” he said. announce Go to the press
They have reason to: ironically under international law known as the Caracas Convention. When the embassy requests a travel permit for a person who has already been granted asylum. The host country must approve the request “immediately.” Chavez and Maduro do not have the best track record of respecting international law. But they had honored this law before Pedro Carmona, who led the attempted coup against Chávez. In 2020, former political prisoner and presidential candidate Leopoldo López arrived in Madrid after more than a year in the Spanish embassy.
This time, however, Maduro took his time issuing travel permits. One hundred days after they first asked for asylum in the Argentine embassy. So do asylum seekers. It is reported that Told they could leave the country only if they agreed to stop working for Machado from abroad, they refused. Then on July 29, the day after Maduro’s election, fired Diplomatic missions of seven Latin American countries which government officials used to use similar words Fraud or ask for detailed counting results Argentina is one of them. Brazil agrees to maintain Argentina’s embassy But President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, once an ally of Chavez, It has shown little interest in playing the role of peace broker in the region. or support the fate of his six guests.
What was once the Argentine Embassy has now become a prison. The Venezuelan government surrounded the property with police and soldiers. In November the villa’s electricity was cut off. Refugees are not allowed to visit. Even Brazilian diplomats were not allowed to enter. They can receive food packages from outside. But the police were able to intercept these. One refugee told me that they were forced to ration what they received. Even the water supply to the villa has been curtailed. The drone makes a buzzing noise. continuously outside I was in close contact with one of the six people who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal.
last Saturday Half of the prisoners held a rare press conference via Zoom. “We are six unarmed civilians,” said Machado’s adviser, Pedro Urrucurtu. and former professor at the Central University of Venezuela said, “We just ask that international law be respected.” The Venezuelan government respond They tried to take advantage of the refugee group in a hostage deal. on Tuesday Maduro suggested he would be open to releasing them in exchange for some prisoners held in Ecuador and Argentina. Two days later, Fernando Martinez, a fugitive serving as minister, The Ministry of Transport in 1990 left the embassy. Some reports say he surrendered to authorities. other people Said he had gone home with his family. In any case He lost his right to receive a travel permit.
repressionIn Venezuela as elsewhere It derives much of its power from unpredictability, so the Maduro regime sets deadlines and conditions that are harder for ordinary people to discern. Last spring, the six people currently in the former Argentine embassy had reason to think that working with Machado was an acceptable risk. Because in the worst case scenario, they can request political asylum from the embassy like others have done before them. But now the rules (if any) have changed.
Surprisingly, the Maduro government has shown little interest in jailing or physically harming Machado himself. The opposition leader remains at an undisclosed location that is no more difficult to find than the government. But Maduro appears to have concluded that arresting such an internationally renowned leader was not worth the headache. Instead, the government chose to punish unknown people who worked or supported her. repression will leave her with the media But they have almost no ability to do anything. Until she was finally forgotten. Maybe Machado has nothing to fear now. But no one in Venezuela can say the same.
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