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In an opinion column in the newspaper El Pais, Venezuelan opposition member Maria Corina Machado recalled the “important event” that marked just a year ago the primaries in which she was elected as a candidate for the 2024 presidential elections and thanked the Venezuelans who, with their efforts, the votes had made “what was thought impossible possible.” .
“Today marks one year since the civic event that has marked before and after our struggle for freedom and democracy in Venezuela: the primaries of October 22, 2023.recalls Machado, who secretly runs opposition efforts to achieve a return to democracy in Venezuela.
Since receiving nearly 2.3 million votes in that primary that legitimized her as the DUP’s presidential candidate, the former MP has been roaming the political scene, despite her disqualification preventing her from being the one to compete in the presidential election. After polls with Nicolas Maduro on July 28, his popularity continued to rise.
Machado’s exclusion prompted Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia to present himself as an opposition candidate in the presidential election in which the National Electoral Council awarded victory to Nicolás Maduro, while the majority bloc was in opposition.
The Democratic Unionist Platform (PUD) party insists that voting records are proof that the winner was González Urrutia, who is currently in exile in Spain.
Machado confirms in his forum that his exclusion “It did nothing but strengthen the primaries“.
“The spirit of rebellion increasingly took root among citizens, determined to challenge the authoritarian regime that was, at the same time, betting on the failure of the electoral process and trying to preserve its form. To this end, five days before the vote, their representatives signed the Barbados Accords with the delegates of the Unionist Platform. It won’t take long for them to violate all the points agreed upon there.Yes,” he confirms.
On October 22, 2023, “no one knew what the outcome of that operation would be, once the moment of truth arrived. I admit – he points out – that the best expectations were to exceed one million voters. But the Venezuelan people gave us a new lesson: nearly three million people came out to vote!
As for the opposition candidate at that time, the Venezuelan people regained confidence.”To defeatMaduro in the presidential elections scheduled for July 28 with Edmundo González Urrutia as a candidate, who, as he explains, achieved a “resounding victory” that was not recognized by the regime.
This is last yearIt was a journey full of obstacles, traps and attacks. Previous experiences have led many to claim that it is an impossible task to achieve.“Continues the Liberal Opposition Leader.
According to Machado, the regime fostered frustration through an extensive propaganda apparatus that kept hundreds of submissive journalists, analysts, academics, lobbyists and politicians, supposedly oppositionists, aligned inside and outside Venezuela.
but “None of the barriers imposed by the regime succeeded in preventing people from exercising their right to choose. At the end of the process, people remained at the voting centers to do with great emotion what they had not been able to do for 20 years (because of the electronic voting imposed by Chavismo): count each vote publicly, “a little piece of paper by a little piece of paper!”“
He concludes that “With incredible effort, humility and transparency, the primaries achieved their primary goal: defeating the totalitarian lie, restoring confidence in voting, and reviving hope for change once again. Since then, the civil movement that today includes and unites all of Venezuela has grown without interruption.“.
Even in hiding, Machado has received signs of support from around the world and recognition such as the Vaclav Havel Human Rights Prize from the Council of Europe.Because he is a defender of democracy“Discriminations he appreciates through letters in which he reiterates that his battle against Chavismo – which has been in power since 1999 – will continue.”till the end“.
The Venezuelan opposition, with its representatives Machado and González Urrutia, is one of the three finalists for the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize.The winner will be announced on Thursday, October 24th. Evie
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