The leader of the democratic opposition, María Corina Machado, published a message this Sunday, January 19th, through her account on X (formerly Twitter), where she highlighted the achievements made to date in the fight to restore democracy and freedom in Venezuela.
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Machado stated that, despite the repression, Nicolás Maduro’s regime is both increasingly isolated internationally and fractured nationally. “Venezuelans, as of today, January 19th, what we have achieved is extraordinary! We have united a country, we have demonstrated our victory and we have united the support of the entire democratic world with our cause for democracy and freedom in Venezuela,” she declared.
She also described the current repression as a desperate tactic that reflects the regime’s fear of losing control to an opposition that has proven more powerful than the government is willing to acknowledge.
In her statement, Machado outlined seven fundamental principles to guide the fight for freedom and democracy in Venezuela. The first principle reaffirms that the popular mandate of July 28th, 2024 must be fulfilled without delay. “On July 28th, 2024, Venezuelans issued a popular and sovereign mandate that must be complied with and enter into force as soon as possible. This mandate does not expire,” she said, stressing that this is a commitment to the future of the country.
“The result must and will be respected. Until that result comes into force, it is not appropriate to participate in elections of any kind. Voting again and again without respecting the results is not defending the vote, it is distorting the popular vote,” said Machado
The second principle appeals to the co-responsibility of all citizens, including the military and police, in the defense of the popular mandate. “You are missing. The nation’s weapons are to defend the nation.”
The following principles address the legitimacy of the struggle, national unity, the integrity of the elections, negotiation only for a democratic transition and the need for democratic governance. “For this reason, Venezuelans have the right to gather all the force that is necessary to enforce this sovereign mandate of July 28th (…) The only purpose of national unity is to enforce the sovereign mandate of July 28 and this country will not admit maneuvers with secondary ends or personal power projects,” Machado pointed out.
Finally, Machado concluded her message on a note of determination and faith, stating that the fight for Venezuela’s freedom will continue until its victorious culmination. “With these seven guiding principles, we are now going into the next round, which will be the definitive and winning round. Here, no one stops until we conquer freedom and bring our children back home. This fight is to the end and we are going hand in hand with God.”