'The regime is only sustained by terror': María Corina Machado calls for action one year after the electoral fraud in Venezuela

A year after the electoral fraud in which Nicolás Maduro proclaimed himself re-elected president of Venezuela, without official records or international recognition, opposition leader María Corina Machado issued a forceful video message calling the Venezuelan people to action.

In her statement, she called the date an "irreversible break" in the country's history, denounced the repression unleashed after the electoral fraud, and called for intensifying efforts to put an end to the regime.

"It has been 365 days of continuous work inside and outside Venezuela because these brave people decided to be free," Machado affirmed, highlighting the citizenry as "the best prepared generation in our history to conquer freedom."

The leader of Vente Venezuela argued that Maduro "lost ugly" in the elections, was "knocked out," and, since then, "cannot and will not get up."

Machado traced a narrative of resistance and call to action, pointing out that since the opposition primaries of 2023, the opposition has "occupied land, conquered hills, and controlled strategic positions," which allowed it to defeat the regime "with votes and minutes" in the electoral arena.

"We left them exposed before the whole world," she assured, referring to the electoral process that, according to her, marked a historic milestone. "That day changed everything forever. It has remained for history as the day of popular sovereignty," she emphasized.

The leader denounced that, after rejecting a negotiated solution, the regime opted for "the bloodiest repression in our history," with disappearances, tortures, and imprisonments. "They declared war on us citizens (...). Today they are only sustained by terror," she affirmed, accusing Maduro of allying with "drug cartels, organized crime, guerrillas, Islamic terrorists, and enemies of the West."

In contrast, she stressed that Venezuelan society has "powerful international allies" and represents "justice, order, and the forces of good."

In her message, Machado also addressed the Armed Forces and police forces, urging them to "continue preparing to act at the decisive moment." She stressed that the struggle for democracy has no fixed deadline: "I do not ask you for patience; I ask you for perseverance, focus, and discipline. This is a spiritual and existential struggle. When what we have at stake is the life and future of our children, there is no time limit."

With a combative tone, the opposition leader asserted that "the regime is going backwards" and that its external accomplices "increasingly understand better what it means to ally themselves in dark pacts with a criminal regime that has already been designated as a drug trafficker and terrorist."