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Demonstrations in Venezuela: 25 truths. By Salim Lamrani

Just like in 2002 the radical opposition unable to take power through the ballots, multiplies actions to crush constitutional order.

Nicolás Maduro, legitimate president of Venezuela since April 2013 confronts a powerful opposition, supported by the United States that intends to recover the power it lost in1998.
Since it lost the presidential elections in April 2013 by a difference of 1,59%, the opposition first rejected the election results, guaranteed however by the most important international institutions from the European Union to the Organization of American States, including the Carter Center and expressed rage in violent acts that cost the lives of eleven Chavist militants.
However, the small margin that separated the opposition candidate, Henrique Capriles, from the winner, Nicolás Maduro, excited the right wing that saw the possibility of re conquering power. Then they made the municipal elections of December 2013 its strategic objective.
Against all forecasts, the municipal elections became a plebiscite in favor of the Chavists that won 76% of the municipalities (256) against 23% (76) for the coalition, MUD that grouped the opposition.
Demoralized by this serious setback, seeing their re conquering of power democratically dwindle again – the next legislative elections will be in December of 2015 – and the opposition decided to repeat the scheme used in April of 2002 that led to a media-military coups against President Hugo Chávez.
The radical opposition decided to act as of January 2014. Leopoldo López, leader of the Voluntad Popular party that participated in the coup of April 2002 launched a call for insurrection on that date: “We want to launch a call to Venezuela […] to rise up. We call on the Venezuelan people to cry out ‘Enough’ […] With a call for discussion: ‘to leave’ Leave this disaster?”
On February 2 2014, during a demonstration, Leopoldo López accused the government of responsiblity for all the evils: “The shortages we are suffering today have only one guilty party. That guilty party is national power”.
On February 2 2014 Antonio Ledezma, a figure of the opposition and mayor of Caracas also called for a change: “This regime has been in power now for fifteen years, promoting confrontation. Today begins the unity in the streets of all Venezuela”.
María Corina Machado, delegate of the opposition launched a call to end “tyranny”: “The people of Venezuela have an answer: ‘Rebellion, rebellion’. There are some who believe we must wait for elections in a few years. “How long must we wait to get food for our children? Can the public employees, farmers, business persons wait for those who have robbed them of the right to work and for property? Venezuela cannot wait any more”.
On February 6 2014, after a demonstration of the opposition a group of a hundred hooded students attacked the residence of the governor of the State of Tachira, injuring about ten policemen.
That same week several demonstrations of the opposition were repeated in different States and generating all forms of violence.
On February 12 another demonstration, prepared by the opposition in front of the Public Ministry composed by students of the private universities organized in shock groups ended in an unbelievable violence with three dead, hundreds of wounded and countless material damages.
Just like the coup in April 2002 the three persons killed were executed with a bullet to the head.
Among these was a Chavist militant, Juan Montoya and a member of the opposition Basil Da Acosta. According to a ballistic investigation, both were killed with the same weapon.
On the following days the protesters, officially mobilized “against the expensive living conditions and insecurity” settled in the Altamira Plaza in a wealthy neighborhood of Caracas.
For several months Venezuela suffers an economic war orchestrated by the opposition that still controls several sectors, with the artificial organization of hardships, hoarding products of first necessities and increased speculation.
Thus in February 5 of 2014 the authorities requisitioned in the State of Tachira close to a thousand tons of food products of first necessities (rice, sugar, oil, coffee, etc.) hidden in warehouses. From January 2013 the authorities requisitions more than 50 000 tons of food.
The Bolivarian Government decided to act and punish the hoarders and speculators. On November 2013 the chain, Daka, of electrical appliances was intervened and the authorities decided to regulate the prices. The company billed its products with a profit of more than 1.000%, making them inaccessible to the majority of Venezuelans.
Now the maximum margin of profits of companies cannot surpass 30%
President Nicolás Maduro denounced the attempted coup and called on the citizens to confront “fascism”. “Nothing will separate us from the road of the Homeland and democracy”, he emphasized.
On February 17 2014 three U.S. diplomats were expelled from this country for their implication in the bloody events. They had met with students of the private universities to coordinate protests, according the Venezuelan authorities.
On February 18, 2014 Leopoldo López was arrested for his political responsibility in the violent protests and was entrusted to justice.
The Obama administration condemned the Caracas Government for the violence without admitting for a single moment the responsibility of the opposition that intends to perpetrate a coup d’etat. Quite the contrary, the Department of State demanded the immediate liberation of Leopoldo López, main instigator of these dramatic events.
Western media hid the violent acts of armed gangs (metro and public buildings plundered, Mercal stores – where the people shop for food – burned) as well as the armed attack of the public television station, Venezolana de Television.
The western media, far from presenting the dramatic events that occurred in Venezuela with complete impartiality, took sides in favor of the coup opposition and against the democratic and legitimate government of Nicolás Maduro. They do not hesitate in manipulating public opinion and presenting the situation as a massive popular uprising against the government. In truth, Maduro has the massive support of the majority of Venezuelans as demonstrated by the giant demonstrations in favor of the Bolivarian Revolution.

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