06 Jan 2025 | 02:30 PM UTC
Venezuela: Heightened security, protests likely in Caracas and other areas, through at least Jan. 10, due to presidential Inauguration /update 11
Protests, heightened security likely in multiple areas of Venezuela through at least Jan. 10, due to presidential inauguration.
Heightened security, protests, and further disruptions are likely in Venezuela through at least Jan. 10, due to the presidential inauguration. Incumbent President Nicolas Maduro is scheduled to be sworn-in for a third term at the National Assembly in Caracas on Jan. 10; however, the opposition has denounced its victory in the July 2024 elections as fraudulent, with printouts for most voting centers showing the opposition candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, won the election with 67 percent of the vote.
Authorities have launched a security operation in several areas of the country since Jan. 5, deploying over 1,200 members of the military, especially around the National Assembly and the presidential Miraflores palace in downtown Caracas. Reports indicate an added security presence in the Caracas subway system, as well as in major highways around the capital.
Opposition leaders, including Gonzalez Urrutia and Maria Corina Machado, have called for protests nationwide on Jan. 9. Locations of the protests have not been confirmed. However, Machado, who has been in hiding since early August, said she would be in the demonstrations. Gonzalez Urrutia, in exile since September, has also said he plans to return to Venezuela to be sworn-in on Jan. 10, and publicly asked the military to support him. Venezuelan officials have threatened to arrest him if he enters the country and have said any foreign citizen who joins him will be treated as an "invader."
Disruptions are likely, especially in and around Caracas Jan. 9-10. Heightened security and demonstrations are likely to cause ground transport and business disruptions. Clashes between demonstrators and security personnel are also likely, involving the use of tear gas, rubber bullets, rocks and other objects. Security forces have also used lethal force in the past and may do so to disperse protests in the coming days. Destruction of public and private property is also possible.
Avoid all demonstrations as a standard precaution. Reconfirm the status of transport services and road routes before travel. If violence erupts nearby, depart the vicinity and seek shelter in a secure, nongovernmental building. Do not attempt to cross roadblocks set up by protesters. Heed the advice of officials. Maintain contact with diplomatic missions. Plan for disruptions to flights transiting through Chile, Panama, Peru, and the Dominican Republic; consider making alternative transportation plans. Do not check out of accommodations until onward travel is confirmed.
The July 28 election prompted protests immediately after the National Electoral Council (Consejo Nacional Electoral, CNE) announced Maduro as the winner. Hundreds of demonstrators were arrested, and several killed, during the unrest in late July and early August, forcing most opposition leaders into exile or hiding. Demonstrations became more sporadic in the following weeks.
Opposition leaders continue to maintain they won the election, and most governments in the region have either supported their claims or have failed to accept Maduro's victory, as the CNE has not shown any detail of the results. Due to their positions, Venezuelan authorities broke diplomatic relations with Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Peru, Panama, the Dominican Republic, and Uruguay, ordering the removal of their diplomatic staff, and suspending flights to most of these destinations; flight suspensions continue as of early January.
Gonzalez Urrutia left for exile in Spain on Sept. 8, but in recent days has met with authorities in Europe, Latin America, and the US, claiming he plans to go to Venezuela on Jan. 10.
