Venezuela: How Goes the Attempted Coup?
The President made a call, in the event of an assault on power by those attempting to carry out the coup d’état: “Launch yourself into the streets.”
By Marcos Teluggi
Tension, minute by minute, declarations, networks, May 1st was lived as a continuity of April 30th. The right had announced that this date would be the beginning of the definitive moment of the “operation freedom”, a phase that finally came forward at dawn on Tuesday with the images that went around the world. For the first, Guaidó had announced that the mobilization would be from several points of concentration. The question was: what would they try to do in view of the need to keep the bet in play after the failed coup?
The day was presented calmly. Guaidó spoke past noon, and, as he has been accustomed to in his speeches, he talked about the need not to lose the street, to stay mobilized, as well as the plan to start a staggered strike until a general strike was reached. His followers expected a radicalism that was not. The roadmap after his speech was diffused, particularly because it is not the first time he announces a strike that then does not take place, and because -that is the reason- his active social base does not have strength among most of workers.
The activities on the right occurred at several points simultaneously. The epicenter was again Altamira, with a greater presence than yesterday. There episodes of confrontation occurred as part of the scenario programmed by the right that needs to maintain levels of tension to generate images and news.
The opposition did not deploy more actions in the afternoon. Leopoldo López for his part remained silent from the embassy of Spain. In Guaidó’s event, the question was heard about the situation of the fugitive leader of Voluntad Popular (VP), the party to which Guaidó belongs, which is at the forefront of the national coup along with Primero Justicia, party of Capriles Radonski and Julio Borges. Guaidó did not give answers about López, an important piece in the local strategy of the assault plan.
The international cadre also presented movements: Mike Pompeo, US Secretary of State, met with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, to discuss the Venezuela issue (see page 4), and the interim defense secretary of the United States canceled his trip to Europe because of the crisis in Venezuela. President Donald Trump yesterday threatened a complete blockade of Cuba if the island does not “withdraw its troops and militias.” As for the special envoy for the Venezuelan issue, Elliot Abrams said that the Chavistas with whom he negotiated “have turned off their cell phones”, in line with the statements of the national security adviser, John Bolton, who affirmed on Tuesday that several high-ranking leaders level had already been folded to their plan, but this finally had not happened.
El chavismo movilizado este #1May en Caracas. Otra demostración de fuerza en las calles. #TrabajadoresPorLaPatria pic.twitter.com/7b9eV0xPU1
— Marco Teruggi (@Marco_Teruggi) May 1, 2019
The first of May was also a day of mobilization of Chavismo. As it is every year, the march was great, in a new demonstration, like yesterday and since the beginning of January, of the street capacity of the Chavista movement. The final event took place in the vicinity of the Miraflores Palace, where several leaders spoke, as well as Maduro.
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In this context, Maduro referred to the current situation of attack by the United States, and its allies, and made a call in case there was an assault on power by those trying to achieve the coup: “Throw all the local committees of supply and production, communal councils, Bolivarian militias, the Hugo Chavez Battle Units into the streets, people on the street, do not doubt for a second”. At the same time he announced that there will be days of dialogue, action and proposal on the weekend of May 4 and 5 together with the different popular power structures, the United Socialist Party of Venezuela, and the governors. The objective: to tell Maduro what changes are necessary, to draw up a corrective plan.
The first of May ended with surface tranquility and many questions. What are the next steps in the overthrow attempt? What was the goal of March 30? Was it a test balloon to measure forces? An action effectively failed? A leadership replacement for Leopoldo López to enter the game? The next days, weeks, will give more answers to these questions. The coup agenda does not stop, the North American plan that seeks a fast outcome continues in movement, works at all levels, looks for internal breaks that manifest themselves on the day of events. In that sense, the most relevant fact of the 30th seems to have been that of the now former director of the Bolivarian Intelligence Service.
Venezuela continues in unstable equilibrium, the assaults faced by Chavismo, the inability of the coup strategy to achieve the outcome and the wear and tear of the economic picture and the impact of destabilization operations. The situation seems far from nearing a resolution point.
Translated by JRE\EF
