Venezuelans staged massive protests in countries around the world on Saturday to denounce alleged fraud in the July 28 elections, where the National Electoral Council proclaimed Nicolás Maduro the winner with 51.95% of the votes compared to opposition candidate Edmundo González, with 43.18%.
In Miami, despite the intense heat wave, the Venezuelan community in exile showed its support for María Corina Machado and González Urrutia, who has been recognized as president-elect by the United States and several countries in the region.
María Teresa Morín, from the ConVzla Command, specifically mentioned Venezuelan political prisoners, some of whom have been granted asylum in the Argentine embassy in Caracas, also protected by Brazil, Efe reports.
In the United States, where approximately 750,000 Venezuelans reside, with 60% concentrated in South Florida, slogans such as “Freedom,” “Maduro genocidal” and “Until the end” resonated during the demonstration in Miami, where elected leaders of all party affiliations joined in a bipartisan call for support for the Venezuelan opposition.
Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava expressed pride in having the largest concentration of Venezuelans in the country, while Christi Fraga, mayor of Doral, the epicenter of the Venezuelan community in Miami, detailed local efforts to pressure political leaders in Washington.
In Latin America, hundreds of protesters gathered in Buenos Aires in front of the Obelisco, with Venezuelan flags and banners reading “Free Venezuela” and “Justice and freedom.”
Argentine Vice-Chancellor Leopoldo Sahores, who was present at the rally, reaffirmed the support of the Argentine government and President Javier Milei for democracy and human rights in Venezuela. He stressed that Argentina is the only country that has welcomed a group of Machado’s close collaborators in its embassy in Caracas since last March.
In Panama, Urracá Square in the capital was the scene of another demonstration with around two hundred people under the slogan “Venezuela won, we triumphed on July 28 and now we are going to get paid,” accompanied by the image of González Urrutia with an electoral certificate and of Machado.
Panama Mayor Mayer Mizrachi joined the protest, expressing his solidarity and camaraderie with Venezuelans in their fight for democracy.
In Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, a hundred Venezuelans gathered in front of their country’s embassy to show their support for Edmundo González Urrutia and their demand for a democratic transition.
The general coordinator of the opposition campaign command in this country, Kleber Correa, said that the demonstrations will continue until the candidate is formally recognized as president.
In Honduras, a group of Venezuelans expressed their support for González Urrutia and the fight for freedom in Venezuela.
Demonstrations in support of democracy in Venezuela also took place in Ecuador, Mexico, El Salvador, Peru, Costa Rica, Paraguay and Colombia.
In Colombia, thousands of Venezuelans gathered in Bogotá, Medellín and Cúcuta, cities bordering Venezuela, to demand electoral justice and respect for human rights.
In Spain, Madrid witnessed a rally called by the Venezuelan opposition that called for international support until Maduro recognises the results. The central Puerta del Sol was filled with Venezuelan flags and banners with messages such as “Freedom for all political prisoners” and “SOS, intervention now.
Keep reading:
• Second bulletin of the presidential elections in Venezuela is published, but the minutes have not yet been shown
• Venezuelan Supreme Court requests election records and evidence of electoral system hacking
• María Corina Machado gathers a crowd in Caracas and defies threats from Maduro