Venezuela: In Mass Demonstrations, the People Demand Return of President Maduro

With emotions running high, but with determination and great loyalty, the Venezuelan people mobilized in great numbers on Sunday from the Plaza de la Candelaria in Caracas to demand the release of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, who were abducted by the US.

On an early January Sunday, when due to the season, public transit is very infrequent in the capital of Venezuela and when many holidaymakers have not returned to the city, thousands of Venezuelans flooded the streets showing the strength of Chavismo, the political force that supports the Bolivarian Revolution. As evidenced by photos and video footage, hundreds of thousands of civilians took to the streets, although of course, it is difficult to provide precise numbers.

Such is the case of Norma Azuaje, who recalled the words of Commander Hugo Chávez and noted that the people are ready to defend the sovereignty of the nation.

“Chávez taught us that under any circumstances we will continue to have a homeland, and the message for our president is to hold on, this people will rise up, we are here standing ready to fight,” Azuaje said.

With courage and commitment to the homeland, Vanessa Machado stated that the mobilized people will achieve the release of the national leader:

“Here we are, the women, daughters of Bolívar, defending this homeland in full awareness that it is the mobilized people who will guarantee that Nicolás returns from the abduction he is currently experiencing,” she emphasized.

Another demonstrator, Yorvy Rivero, said that the people of Venezuela are a people of peace, love, and joy: “Here, what prevails is contentment; wanting peace is not a sin. We here ask the world for peace and joy, that is why we ask. Give us back our president,'” Rivero added.

Raising their voices with slogans, flags, and photos of the beloved Chavista leader Nicolás Maduro, Ángela Couute reminded everyone that President Maduro was elected by a majority of Venezuelans and demanded that he be released so that he can fulfill the duties of head of state: “The people elected Nicolás Maduro as the constitutional president. We want to see our president here, doing his job; the people need him. We don’t want him kidnapped.”

“No one here gives up. We are in the streets for dignity, for the truth, and for the return of our president,” said one of the protesters on Bolívar Avenue, where the large march passed.

Similar protests were replicated in most major cities of Venezuela.

The motorbike force is mobilizing in support of President Maduro
The motorbike force, as an important bastion of the revolution, also took to the streets of Caracas to express its support for the government and demand the release of the constitutional president, Nicolás Maduro.

“We Venezuelans will not allow Donald Trump to seize Venezuela’s resources,” said one of the motorcyclists from El Valle, adding that they will not leave the streets until President Maduro and Cilia Flores are released.

The protesters, known as the “steel horses,” reiterated that Nicolás Maduro was democratically elected and that they would not allow imperialism to install a foreign government in Venezuela. They also reaffirmed their commitment to defending Venezuela’s sovereignty.

This force departed from Petare with the conviction that Venezuela will never again be a colony of any country, and they promised to remain mobilized nationwide until the head of state and the first lady, Cilia Flores, are freed.

Venezuela will not surrender and will emerge victorious
For her part, the governor of Aragua state, Joana Sánchez, stated that Venezuela will not surrender to the imperial threat and added that it is determined to emerge victorious.

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She also rejected the media campaign that seeks to spread misinformation about the current situation in the country, emphasizing that “social media is not the streets. We are the ones who control the streets, and we are not going to leave them. We demand the return of our president.”

The massive demonstration in Caracas was filled with outrage at the imperial onslaught, which not only violated national sovereignty but also inflicted damage to state facilities, murdered civilians, and resulted in the abduction of President Maduro and his wife.

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