As happened in 2002 the radical opposition, incapable of taking power in free elections, unleashed actions with the objective of breaking the constitutional order.

 

1. Nicolás Maduro, legitimate President of Venezuela since April 2013, faces a powerful opposition, supported by the United States, that aspires to retake the power that they lost in 1998.

 

2. As they lost the presidential elections of April 2013 by a difference of 1,59%, the opposition began by rejecting the electoral results, supported by the most important international institutions, from the European Union to the Organization of American States, including the Carter Center, and expressing their rage through violent acts resulting in the deaths of eleven Chavist militants.

 

3. Nevertheless, the weak margin that separated the opposition candidate Henrique Capriles from the leading candidate, Nicolás Maduro, galvanized the right, motivated by the perspective of taking power. Because of this, they made a strategic objective of the municipal elections of December 2013.

 

4.  Against all expectations, the municipal elections became a plebiscite in favour of the Chavists in power, who won 76% of the muncipalities (256) against 23% (76) of the MUD coalition that represented the united opposition forces.

 

5.  Disheartened by this serious reversal, and seeing the possibility of taking power by democratic means out of reach again -- the next elections will be the legislative elections in December 2015 -- the opposition decided to once again reproduce the April 2002 attempt to perpetrate a media-military coup d'État against President Hugo Chávez.

 

6.  Beginning in January of 2014, the radical sector of the opposition decided to act. Leopoldo López, leader of the Voluntad Popular party, who had taken part in the coup d'Etat in April of 2002, called for an insurrection beginning on January 2, 2014: "We want to launch a plea to Venezuelans

[...] that we should rise up. We call on the Venezuelan people to say "Enough!"

[...]  to discuss "the way out."  What is the way out of this disaster?"

 

7.  On February 2, 2014, during a demonstration, Leopoldo López accused those in power of all the evils: "The shortages that we suffer from today have a guilty party. This guilty party is the government."

 

8.  On February 2, 2014, Antonio Ledezma, an opposition figure and Mayor of the Capital, Caracas, also made a call for change: "This regime that today has ruled for fifteen years is continually provoking confrontation. Today is the beginning of unity in the streets of all Venezuela."

 

9.  María Corina Machado, an opposition member of the legislature, made a call for an end to the 'tyranny.’ "The people of Venezuela have a response: 'Rebellion, rebellion.' There are some who say that we should wait for elections some years away. Can those who cannot get food for their children wait? Can public employees, campesinos, businessmen, from whom they have taken away their right to work and property wait? Venezuela cannot wait any longer."

 

10. On February 6 2014, during an opposition demonstration, a group of some one hundred hooded students attacked the residence of the Governor of the State of Táchira, wounding some ten policemen.

 

11.  The same week a number of opposition demonstrations took place and all degenerated into violence.

 

12.  On February 12, 2014, another demonstration orchestrated by the opposition, made up of students from the private universities organized as shock troops, resulted in unprecedented violence, with three deaths some hundred wounded and innumerable material damage.

 

13. As happened during the April 2002 coup d'État, the three persons killed were executed by bullets in the head.

 

14. Among these was a Chavist militant, Juan Montoya, and an opposition figure named Basil da Acosta. According to ballistic evidence, both were killed with the same firearm.

 

15. During the following days demonstrators, officially mobilized "against high prices and insecurity" installed themselves in the Plaza Altamira, located in a wealthy quarter of Caracas.

 

16. For several months, Venezuela has been the target of economic warfare orchestrated by the opposition which is in control of large sectors, involving the artificial establishment of shortages, hoarding of products of basic needs and large instances of speculation.

 

17. Thus on February 5, 2014, the authorities in the State of Táchira requisitioned nearly one thousand tons of basic food items (rice, sugar, oil, coffee, etc.) hidden in warehouses. Since January of 2013, the authorities have requisitioned over 50.000 tons of food.

 

18.  The Bolivarian Government has decided to act and to punish those involved in hoarding and speculation. In November of 2013 the Daka chain (domestic electrical appliances) was subject to intervention and the authorities determined to regulate prices. The company had priced their items with a markup of over 1000 %, making them out of reach for the majority of Venezuelans.

 

19. Now the maximum markup may not exceed 30%.

 

20.  President Nicolás Maduro denounced an attempted coup d'État and called on citizens to engage in a common front against "fascism."  Nothing will move us from the paths of the Patria and the ways of democracy," he said.

 

21.  On February 17 of 2014, three US diplomats were expelled from the country because of their involvement in the bloody events that had taken place. According to Venezuelan authorities, they had met with students from the private universities to coordinate demonstrations.

 

22.  On February 18, 2014, Leopoldo López was arrested for his political responsibility for the violent demonstrations and was surrendered to the administration of justice.

 

23.  The Obama administration condemned the Caracas Government for the violence, without mention of a single instance of the responsibility of the opposition in its attempt to perpetrate a coup d'État. On the contrary, the Department of State demanded the immediate release of Leopoldo López, the principal instigator of these dramatic events.

 

24.  Western media deliberately ignored the violent actions of small armed groups (metros and public buildings sacked, Mercal shops -- where the public could obtain food – were burned), as well as the fact that the public television Venezolana de Televisión was attacked with firearms.

 

25. Western media, far from reporting the dramatic events that occurred in Venezuela with impartiality, took the part of the golpist opposition against the democratic and legitimate Government of Nicolás Maduro. They do not hesitate to manipulate public opinion and present the situation as a massive popular uprising against the Government in power. In reality, Maduro enjoys massive support from the majority of Venezuelans, as may be seen in the gigantic demonstrations in favour of the Bolivarian Revolution.

(Translation:

 

- Salim Lamrani (Opera Mundi), doctor in Iberian and Latin American studies from the University of Paris Sorbonne-Paris IV. He is a titular professor with the University of Reunion and a journalist, specialized in relations between Cuba and the United States. His latest book is titled Cuba, les médias face au défi de l'impartialité, Paris, Éditions Estrella, 2013, published with a prologue by Eduardo Galeano.

 

lamranisalim@yahoo.fr ; Salim.Lamrani@univ-reunion.f

 

Original Spanish: http://operamundi.uol.com.br/conteudo/babel/34102/25+verdades+sobre+las+manifestaciones+en+venezuela.shtml