Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro hit with new sanctions as he begins third termExBulletin

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores arrive at the National Assembly for his inauguration ceremony for a third term in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday January 10, 2025 Matias Delacroix/AP .

switch captionMatias Delacroix/AP

BOGOTA, ColombiaVenezuelan President Nicols Maduro was sworn in Friday for a third consecutive term, as the United States, European Union and United Kingdom announced a new round of sanctions against an increasingly authoritarian government.

The US, EU and many neighboring countries have recognized opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzlez as president-elect and accused Maduro of fraud.

The Venezuelan president's inauguration ceremony follows controversial elections in July last year that sparked large-scale protests in which thousands of people were arrested.

Even though he takes office for a new six-year term, he finds himself increasingly isolated on the international scene.

On Friday, the Biden administration not only imposed new financial sanctions on eight Maduro government officials, but it also increased the reward for information leading to Maduro's capture and arrest from $15 million to $25 million.

Maduro was charged with narcoterrorism in 2020 by U.S. prosecutors who accused him of supporting a terrorist group in Colombia and facilitating cocaine shipments to the United States. Maduro denies the accusations, which he has described as part of an attempt to violently remove him from office.

At his inauguration, Maduro struck a defiant tone as he celebrated in a red-carpeted room, surrounded by loyalists and dignitaries from China, Russia and other countries friendly to his government. The Cuban and Nicaraguan presidents were the only Latin American leaders present at the inauguration.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro arrives at the National Assembly for his inauguration ceremony for a third term in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, January 10, 2025. Matias Delacroix/AP .

switch captionMatias Delacroix/AP

“The Venezuelan people have defeated imperialism and its underhanded diplomacy,” Maduro said.

Maduro promised his new term would be a “period of peace.” But in recent months, things have been anything but. On Thursday, thousands of Venezuelans took to the streets again to protest Maduro's election.

Many protests across the country were quickly dispersed by security forces who remain loyal to Maduro's government.

Still, some analysts see Thursday's protests as a sign that Venezuela's opposition still has a chance to guide the country toward democratic rule.

“Today's story should not be about Maduro being sworn in (by force), everyone expected that,” said Tamara Taraciuk Broner, a human rights lawyer and Venezuela expert. at the Inter-American Dialogue.

“Rather, it is the story of how thousands of Venezuelans took to the streets despite fear of repression and how this can be used as a catalyst for a democratic transition.”

Thursday's protests in the capital Caracas were led by Maria Corina Machado, the Venezuelan opposition leader who was barred from participating in July's elections.

Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado stands before supporters during a protest against President Nicolas Maduro the day before his inauguration for a third term, in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, January 9, 2025. Ariana Cubillos/AP hide the legend

switch captionAriana Cubillos/AP

Machado had been in hiding since August due to government threats to arrest him.

In a brief speech, Machado assured his supporters that the Venezuelan government was “digging its own grave.”

After leaving the rally, the opposition reported that Machado was briefly detained by members of the Venezuelan police, who stopped her convoy and dragged her off her motorcycle.

Machado said she was released about an hour later and forced to record a video in which she claimed she was not injured.

“What is happening to me shows that there are deep divisions within the regime,” Machado said. “Maduro may have worn a presidential bracelet today, but it’s more of a chain around his ankle.”

Venezuela's powerful Interior Minister, Diosdado Cabello, denied ordering Machado's arrest and accused her of faking her own arrest, in order to agitate her supporters.

Venezuelan opposition leader Edmundo Gonzalez waves a Venezuelan flag during a meeting with his supporters in Panama, Wednesday, January 8, 2025. Agustin Herrera/AP .

switch captionAgustín Herrera/AP

A United Nations report released Thursday said at least 16 political activists and human rights defenders were arrested in the days leading up to Maduro's inauguration ceremony.

Among those arrested recently are the director of a free speech group and the son-in-law of Edmundo Gonzlez, the retired diplomat who became an opposition alternate candidate in July's elections and is now in exile.

Gonzalez had pledged to return to Venezuela, but did not specify how or when. The government threatened him with arrest and put a $100,000 price on his head.

Phil Gunson, a Venezuelan analyst at the International Crisis Group, said Venezuela's transition to democracy depends largely on the military, the traditional broker in that country's politics.

The military's top brass have long sided with Maduro and backed his claim that he won the July election with 51% of the vote.

But Maduro has provided no evidence to support that claim, while the opposition has assembled tally sheets from thousands of voting tables across Venezuela that indicate his candidate Gonzlez won the election with two-thirds of the vote. voice.

A street vendor walks past members of the Bolivarian National Guard before the swearing-in of President Nicolas Maduro for a third term, in Caracas, Venezuela. Matias Delacroix/AP .

switch captionMatias Delacroix/AP

Gunson said it was essential for the opposition to build bridges with the military. And offer them incentives to support a transitional government.

“The military has been compromised in human rights abuses,” Gunson said. “And they are unlikely to abandon Maduro, unless it is clear that there is a way out of this situation that allows them to avoid prison and keep at least some of the wealth that 'they have accumulated.'

Nearly eight million people have left Venezuela over the past decade, according to the United Nations. Most head to neighboring countries like Colombia, but thousands head to the United States each year on a long overland journey that includes crossing Mexico and the dangerous Darien jungle.

Many exiles also participated in protests against Maduro's new mandate.

Alfredo Gomez, a petroleum engineer who participated in a rally in Bogota, Colombia, said change won't happen “with people in the streets.”

“We need military personnel, especially those at the middle and lower levels, to stand with the Venezuelans,” he said. “Once Maduro's corrupt government knows that it does not have the power to repress the Venezuelan people, it will run like rats to Cuba, to Moscow, wherever.”

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