Venezuelan opposition calls for nationwide protests to demand Machado’s return

By Laura Gamba

BOGOTA, Colombia (AA) - Venezuela's main opposition party, Vente Venezuela, on Monday announced a nationwide mobilization scheduled for Oct. 22 to demand safe passage for the party leader and 2025 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado to return to the country.

Speaking at a press conference in Caracas, national party leader Carlos Fernandez said the demonstrations will span all 23 states and unite a broad coalition of civil society, trade unions, youth groups and opposition parties.

“On Oct. 22, mothers, teachers, young people who want a prosperous future, all social sectors, the Plataforma Unitaria and political parties across the spectrum will take to the streets,” Fernandez said. “Set aside your fears. Maria Corina is coming to unite Venezuela and accelerate the transition.”

Beyond demanding Machado’s return, the opposition outlined three other core demands driving the street action.

In the first place, establishing a definitive date for presidential elections under the slogan “Election Day is Liberation Day!” Vente Venezuela endorsed a proposal originally put forward by US Congressman Bernie Moreno to set the presidential vote for July 24, 2027, a timeline publicly supported by Machado.

The party also demands the immediate and unconditional freedom of all detained opposition activists and political dissidents.

“Enough of keeping our brothers and sisters behind bars! Their families cannot take it anymore,” Fernandez emphasized.

The third demand is giving full political rights and the lifting of administrative disqualifications targeting opposition leaders.

Fernandez framed the Oct. 22 mobilization as the “spearhead for peaceful mobilization” amid worsening socio-economic conditions and infrastructure failures across Venezuela.

“Venezuela is going through one of the hardest times in its history,” he said. “Not only do we face persecution, torture and exile, but today we are dealing with a country in darkness, without water, and where our people are starving. We are living through it every single day.”

The protest call comes amid a third round of political transition talks between representatives of the government and a sector of the opposition. The negotiations resumed shortly after Washington lifted sanctions against Jorge Rodriguez, the chief negotiator for the administration and brother of interim President Delcy Rodriguez.

A central point on the negotiation agenda remains the lifting of political bans following Machado’s formal demand for the immediate removal of the administrative disqualification imposed on her in 2023 which barred her from appearing on the ballot during previous presidential election cycles.

Laura Gamba Fadul