(AFP) – Venezuelans were waiting for more political prisoners to be released on Sunday, as ousted president Nicolas Maduro defiantly claimed from his US jail cell that he is “doing fine” after being seized by US forces a week ago. Interim president Delcy Rodriguez has begun to free prisoners jailed under Maduro, saying a “large” number would be released in a gesture of appeasement for which Washington took credit. Rodriguez, vice president under Maduro, said Venezuela would take “the diplomatic route” with the United States, with President Donald Trump claiming it was “in charge” of the South American country.
“Venezuela has started the process, in a BIG WAY, of releasing their political prisoners. Thank you!” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform on Saturday night. “I hope those prisoners will remember how lucky they got that the USA came along and did what had to be done.” Rights groups estimate there are 800 to 1,200 political prisoners held in Venezuela.
Maduro and his wife were captured in a dramatic nighttime raid on January 3 that began with air strikes across Caracas. They were taken to New York City by US forces to stand trial on drug-trafficking and weapons charges.
– Anxiety over prisoners –
Only 21 people had been released by Saturday evening, including several prominent opposition figures, prisoners’ rights groups, and the opposition said. A detained police officer accused of “treason” against Venezuela had also died in state custody, the opposition and rights groups said on Saturday. “We directly hold the regime of Delcy Rodriguez responsible for this death,” Primero Justicia (Justice First), which is part of the Venezuelan opposition alliance, said in a statement on X.
Anxious relatives have camped outside jails, awaiting the promised release of political prisoners. Families held candlelight vigils outside El Rodeo prison east of Caracas and El Helicoide, a notorious prison run by the intelligence services, displaying signs with the names of their imprisoned relatives. “I am tired and angry,” Nebraska Rivas, 57, told AFP as she waited for her son to be released from El Rodeo. “But I have faith that they will hand him over to us soon,” she said after sleeping on the pavement outside the prison for two nights.
– ‘Trust blindly’ –
Maduro claimed he was “doing well” in jail in New York, his son Nicolas Maduro Guerra said in a video released by his party on Saturday. Around 1,000 protesters, waving flags and placards with the face of the mustachioed ex-leader and his wife Cilia Flores, rallied in the west of Caracas and a few hundred in the eastern Petare district.
“I’ll march as often as I have to until Nicolas and Cilia come back,” said demonstrator Soledad Rodriguez, 69. “I trust blindly that they will come back — they have been kidnapped.” The demonstrations were far smaller than Maduro’s camp had mustered in the past, and top figures from his government were notably absent. Rodriguez was instead seen attending an agricultural fair. She has moved to placate the powerful pro-Maduro base by insisting Venezuela is not “subordinate” to Washington, and vowed in televised comments she would “not rest for a minute until we have our president back.” The other two hardline powers in his government, Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello and Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez, were also not seen at the rallies.
– Oil talks –
Trump vowed to secure US access to Venezuela’s vast oil reserves following Maduro’s capture, and Rodriguez has pledged to cooperate. The White House said Trump has signed an emergency order protecting US-held revenues derived from sales of Venezuelan oil, preventing them from being seized by courts or creditors. Trump pressed top oil executives at a White House meeting on Friday to invest in Venezuela’s reserves, but was met with a cautious reception. Chevron is currently the only US firm licensed to operate in Venezuela, through a sanctions exemption. Experts say Venezuela’s oil infrastructure is creaky after years of mismanagement and sanctions.
Washington has also confirmed that US envoys visited Caracas on Friday to discuss reopening their embassy there. The Venezuelan government did not respond when asked whether the US officials had met with Rodriguez. The US embassy in Colombia warned on Saturday that “the security situation in Venezuela remains fluid” and advised Americans to leave “immediately” as commercial flights become available.
– Javier TOVAR
© 2024 AFP
