Venezuela: Opposition Claims Leader Machado Briefly Detained After Anti-Maduro Protest

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Above: Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado leading a demonstration against the re-inauguration of Pres. Nicolás Maduro on Jan. 9, 2025. Image copyright: Jesus Vargas/Contributor/Picture Alliance via Getty Images

The Facts

  • Venezuela's opposition alleged that security forces briefly detained its leader, María Corina Machado, in eastern Caracas on Thursday after she addressed a crowd of anti-government protesters, with international allies and the Human Rights Watch echoing the arrest story.

  • According to people in the Machado camp, armed men intercepted the motorcycle in which the opposition leader departed from the rally in Chacao, forced her off and took her away. There were reports that shots had been fired on the vehicle.

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The Spin

Establishment-critical narrative

Venezuela's US-backed far-right opposition is doing anything to smear the national government and try to divert attention from the low public support for them. The so-called kidnapping was merely police officers acting in good faith to protect Machado as her driver was driving too fast on the highway.

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Pro-establishment narrative

It's shocking, but hardly a surprise — given the repressive nature of the Maduro dictatorship and that drones were deployed to follow María Corina Machado — that security forces ambushed and kidnapped the opposition leader. Venezuelans are fed up with these injustices, it's time for the international community to step in.

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