Page 12 - AT

A12 WORLD NEWS
Tuesday 24 december 2019
Buzz over Venezuela's Guaido fades as Maduro holds firm

By SCOTT SMITH driguez declared the "at-
Associated Press tempted coup d'etat" led
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) by President Donald Trump
— Tour operator Alejandro a failure as she spoke last
Palacios joined hundreds week to the National Con-
of thousands of Venezue- stituent Assembly, a body
lans protesting in the streets the government created
early this year, wanting to to bypass the opposition-
believe that things would dominated congress.
finally change in the coun- "They don't understand
try as upstart opposition what's happening within
leader Juan Guaidó rallied Venezuela," Rodriguez said.
international support and "They follow Hollywood
promised a swift end to scripts but don't have an
President Nicolás Maduro's ending our political proj-
rule. ect."
To Palacios, Guaidó Maduro has agreed to sev-
seemed different from the eral rounds of negotiations
string of past opposition over the years, including
leaders who had chal- some sponsored by the
lenged Maduro and his Vatican and the govern-
predecessor, the late Hugo ment of Norway that raised
Chavez, over 20 years of hopes of a breakthrough
increasingly authoritarian In this Dec. 16, 2019 photo, Venezuela's National Assembly President and self-proclaimed interim to the political crisis, only to
President Juan Guaido speaks during an interview with the Associated Press in Caracas, Venezu-
socialist rule. ela. have them fall apart.
The United States and doz- Associated Press Accelerating the opposi-
ens of nations had thrown tion's downfall have been
their support behind the to protest, nor do most of in 2020 as long as the elec- sis, with many believing he revelations of corruption.
youthful congressional the others who once filled toral board running the would rid them of Maduro The National Assembly that
leader, recognizing him the streets. vote remains packed with within three months. Guaidó heads has sus-
as the country's legitimate Cracks have even ap- Maduro loyalists. "Guaido became the out- pended seven opposition
president, arguing that peared in Guaidó's base of Still, Guaidó insists his do- sider that people were lawmakers — three of them
Maduro's re-election was support in the National As- mestic and international looking for to face Madu- from Guaido's Popular Will
invalidated by fraud and a sembly, the only major insti- support will only grow. ro," said Datanalisis' presi- party — who are accused
ban on most opponents. tution controlled by the op- Guaidó, the hand-picked dent Luis Vicente Leon. of lobbying on behalf of
And there seemed to be position. His re-election as successor to then-detained "A kind of hope formed businessmen who were
signs that the military might congressional president is opposition leader Leop- around him." under investigation both in
heed Guaidó's repeated no longer assured and leg- oldo López, leaped onto Today that support has Venezuela and the U.S. for
calls for soldiers to aban- islators' official terms expire the stage last January at a sunk by 20 percentage allegedly defrauding Mad-
don Maduro. A few joined in a few months. dark moment in the once- points, said Leon, a sign uro's landmark food subsidy
him in the streets in a quick- Throughout, the 36-year- wealthy nation's history. that Venezuelans are start- program.
ly quelled uprising. The U.S. old Guaidó has admit- Despite sitting atop the ing to think that removing In January, the National As-
and other nations sent car- ted no mistakes, and nei- world's largest proven oil Maduro from power may sembly must decide wheth-
avans of aid to Venezuela's ther he nor his backers in reserves, gasoline shortag- be impossible. er to extend Guaidó's ten-
borders to be distributed Washington have offered es plague the nation, most Maduro, whose approval ure, and he said he is confi-
by Guaidó's backers, and a fresh strategy to rescue homes don't have reliable ratings in the other polls dent he has the backing to
they were put in charge of their floundering battle to drinking water or electricity have dipped closer to 10%, be re-elected as assembly
many Venezuelan embas- unseat Maduro. The Trump and there are shortages of has proven more resilient president. Analysts say ap-
sies and assets abroad. administration has con- food, medicine and spare than many expected. pointing any alternative
Then February turned to tinued to pile economic parts. Venezuela's oil production would be devastating for
March, and the months and travel sanctions onto Roughly 4.5 million people has inched up for the sec- the opposition.
marched by. No interna- members of Maduro's inner have left the country, fig- ond consecutive month Adding to his obstacles,
tional aid made it through circle, but so far with little ures that rival mass migra- after crashing to a seven- Maduro's government has
Maduro's blockade. The effect. tion from war-torn Syria. decade low under U.S. stepped up its campaign
military stayed loyal. Even "We're up against a dicta- Seizing on the nation's des- sanctions, and shoppers to undermine the opposi-
the nation's catastrophic torship," Guaidó said in an peration, Guaidó drew are increasingly pulling U.S. tion, offering large bribes to
economy began to im- interview with The Associ- masses into the streets dollars from their wallets lawmakers to vote against
prove slightly. Maduro re- ated Press. "I think that is 11 months ago when he — a sign the economy is Guaido, Elliott Abrams, the
mains in power. central." claimed to be Venezuela's bouncing back, or at least U.S. special envoy to Ven-
"Here we are today, like Guaidó said he remains legitimate interim president stabilizing, due in part to an ezuela, told reporters in
nothing ever happened," focused on winning over after congress declared easing of currency controls Washington on Friday.
said a disillusioned Pala- the military, the linchpin of Maduro's re-election illegal. that the government had Maduro's government
cios, 26, who has watched support for Maduro, and he The bold move overnight earlier resisted. also recently charged
many relatives pack up dismissed the idea of fur- turned Guaidó into the na- Maduro also appeals to four opposition lawmak-
and leave in desperation ther negotiations with the tion's most-popular politi- many Venezuelans who still ers with treason and rebel-
while he stayed behind to socialist administration — cian since Chavez burst mistrust an opposition seen lion, bringing to roughly 32
care for his parents living talks his side says Maduro onto the political scene in as corrupt and elitist and the number of legislators
on a government pension has used to defuse protests the early 1990s. More than who honor the memory of who have been detained,
constantly shrinking under without making conces- 60% of Venezuelans viewed Chavez, who died before forced into exile or had
the world's highest inflation. sions. him favorably in February, the economic collapse hit their constitutional immu-
Palacios no longer answers He also said he favors boy- according to Caracas- home. nity from prosecution re-
the opposition leader's call cotting legislative elections based polling firm Datanali- Vice President Delcy Ro- voked. q