Caracas: Fresh protests were expected in Venezuela on Tuesday after one person died as security forces tried to break up protests that began after hotly contested election results gave Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro a third term in power.
Security forces on Monday fired tear gas and rubber bullets at angry protesters challenging Maduro's claimed re-election victory, but the opposition disputed and many other countries questioned.
'Freedom, freedom!' Thousands of people took to the streets of different neighborhoods of the capital. and “This government is falling!”
Some tore down Maduro campaign posters from street checkpoints and burned them.
At least two statues of Hugo Chavez, the late socialist revolutionary who led Venezuela for more than a decade and chose Maduro as his successor, were toppled by protesters.
One person died and 46 were arrested in post-election protests in the northwestern state of Yaracuy, Alfredo Romero, head of the Foro Penal Rights Group, which specializes in political prisoner cases, said on social media platform X. He did not say the cause of death.
The National Electoral Council (CNE) certified Maduro, 61, as re-elected for another six-year term until 2031.
Maduro dismissed international criticism and doubts about the outcome of Sunday's vote, claiming Venezuela was the target of an attempted “coup d'état” of a “fascist and counterrevolutionary” nature.
Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado told reporters that a review of available voting records clearly showed the next president would be “Edmundo González Urrutia,” who replaced him on the ballot after being banned by Maduro-linked courts.
Records showed a “mathematically irrevocable” lead for González Urrutia, she said, with 6.27 million votes to Maduro's 2.75 million.
He called on families to hold nationwide “popular assemblies” on Tuesday to show support for a peaceful transition of power.
“Venezuela has millions of citizens … who want to see their vote counted,” he later posted on X.
Maduro's campaign manager Jorge Rodríguez also called for a “big march starting this Tuesday to celebrate the victory” of X.
In Caracas on Monday, AFP saw members of the National Guard fire tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters, some wearing motorcycle helmets and bandanas over their faces. Some responded by throwing stones.
Protests were also reported in poorer areas of Caracas, considered a stronghold of Maduro's support. Gunshots were heard in some areas.
“We want freedom. We want to go to Maduro. Maduro, leave!”, 42-year-old Marina Suge, who lives in Petar, a poor area of Caracas, told AFP.
The election was held amid widespread suspicions of fraud by the government and a campaign marred by allegations of political intimidation.
The CNE said Monday that Maduro won 51.2 percent of the vote, compared to 44.2 percent for Gonzalez Urrutia.
As the opposition lashed out, Attorney General Tarek William Saab linked Machado to trying to “fudge” the results in an alleged cyber “attack.”
International responses
The United Nations, the United States, the European Union and several Latin American countries called for a “transparent” process, while allies including China, Russia and Cuba congratulated Maduro.
González Urrutia, a 74-year-old former diplomat, on Monday admitted deep dissatisfaction with the CNE's results and vowed that “we will fight for our freedom.”
Nine Latin American countries called for a “full review of the results in the presence of independent election observers” in a joint statement.
The US-based Carter Center, one of the few organizations with observers in Venezuela, urged the CNE to immediately publish detailed polling station-level results.
Brazil and Colombia also called for a review of the numbers, while Chile's president said the results were “hard to believe”.
Peru recalled its ambassador and Panama said it was suspending relations with Venezuela.
The Washington-based Organization of American States called an emergency meeting for Wednesday at the request of Argentina and other countries challenging the CNE tally.
Caracas responded by withdrawing diplomatic staff from Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Panama, Peru, the Dominican Republic and Uruguay.
It also suspended flights to and from Panama and the Dominican Republic.
Criticism
Independent polls predicted Sunday's vote would mark the end of 25 years of “Chavismo,” the populist movement founded by Chávez.
Maduro has been at the helm of the once oil-rich country since 2013. Over the past decade, Venezuela's GDP has declined by 80 percent, pushing more than 7 million of its 30 million citizens to emigrate.
He has been accused of locking up critics and harassing opponents in an increasingly authoritarian environment.
In the run-up to the election, he warned of “bloodshed” if he lost.
Sunday's election was the product of an agreement reached between the government and the opposition last year.
That deal led the United States to temporarily ease sanctions imposed after Maduro's 2018 re-election, which dozens of Latin American and other countries rejected as a sham.
Sanctions were rolled back after Maduro rejected the terms of the deal.
Venezuela boasts the world's largest oil reserves, but production capacity has declined severely in recent years.
Most Venezuelans live on a few dollars a month and struggle with electricity and fuel shortages.
Economic woes in the South American nation have been a major source of immigration pressure on the southern border of the United States, where immigration is a major presidential election issue.
