Venezuela’s autocratic leader is cracking down on dissent. Hundreds have been arrested and lawmakers are moving to shutdown social media sites and close non-governmental agencies.
MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
Last month, Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro said he won the country’s presidential election. His opponents say he stole it. And in the weeks since election day, Maduro’s authoritarian government has arrested thousands of people. His allied lawmakers are cracking down on dissent, too, vowing to curtail social media sites and shutter civic groups. NPR’s Carrie Kahn reports.
CARRIE KAHN, BYLINE: Following Venezuela’s disputed presidential election late last month, the opposition flooded the streets, like this huge demonstration in Caracas, where tens of thousands belted out the national anthem.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: (Singing in Spanish).
KAHN: And with many bringing their favorite protest prop, an old pot, or cacerola.
(SOUNDBITE OF POT BANGING)
KAHN: Since those first heady days where opponents of Maduro’s 11-year rule were optimistic they had ousted the authoritarian leader, the mood has rapidly shifted, says this Caracas housewife. Carmen, who asked NPR not to use her last name for fear of government retribution, says she doesn’t go to street protests and even stopped banging her pot out her window.
CARMEN: (Speaking Spanish).
KAHN: The mother of three says, just two days after the election, messages were passed around that government drones were flying over her working-class neighborhood, gathering evidence on protesters. Her barrio is quiet now, not even that long favorite cacerolazo is heard anywhere.
CARMEN: (Speaking Spanish).
KAHN: “It’s best not to talk much on the street,” she says, “and keep your opinions within the family.” Since election night when President Maduro claimed victory without providing proof, he’s ordered security forces to round up demonstrators. Human rights groups say more than 1,300 people have been detained, many for attending or being present near protests. Maduro is even urging people to use a government app to denounce those he says are exhibiting antigovernment behavior, and lawmakers in Maduro’s controlled National Assembly yesterday began debating laws restricting social media sites in Venezuela.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
JORGE RODRIGUEZ: (Speaking Spanish).
KAHN: “The truth is that these rats are coming for us,” says Jorge Rodriguez, the head of the National Assembly, in a lengthy speech yesterday. Referring to the heads of Facebook, X and Amazon, Rodriguez says such sites want to destroy humanity and spread hate and fascism.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
RODRIGUEZ: (Speaking Spanish).
KAHN: “We are here to stand up to them and encourage others in the world to do the same,” he said. Rodriguez denounced all foreign criticism of Venezuela. He wants civic groups that receive foreign funds to be shuttered and called a UN report released yesterday garbage. It denounced last month’s election as not meeting basic measures of transparency and integrity.
International condemnation, however, continues, as do calls for election officials to provide evidence that Maduro won. Phil Gunson, with the International Crisis Group and based in Venezuela, says Maduro isn’t budging.
PHIL GUNSON: It’s hard to be optimistic because there’s no clear indication that the government is willing to sit down to talks.
KAHN: Many hoped Maduro would listen to his leftist allies in the region, but in a blow to that effort, Mexico’s president yesterday said he won’t continue talks with his counterparts in Brazil and Colombia hoping to push Maduro to find a peaceful resolution.
GUNSON: The Brazilian-Colombian initiative seems to be the only viable proposal, but right now, it seems to be going nowhere.
KAHN: Opposition leaders who say they’re in hiding have called for more protests this weekend. Hector, who was a poll worker for the opposition during the election, says he’s been terrified of being arrested. He asked NPR not to use his full name.
HECTOR: (Speaking Spanish).
KAHN: He says every time he leaves his house, he’s worried – “you never know if you’ll get picked up and not be able to return.” But he says he’s decided to join this Saturday’s protest. Carrie Kahn, NPR News.
(SOUNDBITE OF KEHLANI SONG, “BETTER NOT”)
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