Faithful compatriots, the union is strength

CARACAS.- On January 23, after 61 years of overthrowing the vicious dictatorship of Marcos Pérez Jiménez, Venezuelans once again had a democratic holiday.

Pérez Jiménez had been elected fraudulently by a Constituent Assembly in 1953. His presidency was to end in 1958, but by the end of 1957, instead of calling for free and transparent elections, he organized a plebiscite against his government and was elected in a process. rigged. After a series of demonstrations and the fracture of the military army, Venezuelans regained democracy on January 23, 1958.

Today, we Venezuelans face once again the challenge of restoring democracy and rebuilding the country, but in the context of a humanitarian emergency: a dramatic shortage of food and medicine, basic services collapsed, increasing number of minors they suffer from child malnutrition and the diseases that have been eradicated have returned.

We have one of the highest homicide rates in the world, compounded by political persecution and repression against opponents of Nicolás Maduro's regime. This tragedy has resulted in the largest exodus of our hemisphere with three million compatriots in exile.

I want to clarify what is happening in Venezuela: the elections of May 20, 2018 were illegitimate, as recognized by the international community. Therefore, since January 10, the end of the presidential term 2013-2019, Maduro usurps the presidency of the republic.

My appointment as Interim President is based on Article 233 of the Constitution, which states that if the new president is not elected, the President of the National Assembly will be responsible for the power up to the end of the term. To hold free and transparent elections For these reasons, my swearing-in of January 23, 2019 can not be described as "self-proclamation".

He was 15 when Hugo Chávez came to power in 1998. He later lived in the coastal state of Vargas. In 1999, torrential rains caused a huge landslide that left thousands of people dead in the state. I lost several friends and my school was buried under the mud. Since then, the meaning of the word resilience has been engraved in my mind. My two grandparents served in the National Armed Forces and instilled in their children the value of hard work, through which my family and I went from one place to another. I realized that if I wanted a better future for my country, I had to get up and devote my life to public service.

When it became clear that with Chavez the country was heading towards authoritarianism, I joined the student movement that contributed to the first major political defeat of President Chávez in the referendum for an indefinite reelection in 2007. Later, I got involved in local politics In 2015, I was elected deputy to the National Assembly by Vargas.

Today, the same generation of brothers and sisters of my time in the student movement are at my side, alongside Venezuelans from all political horizons who unite to try to restore democracy. But to achieve this, we must first recover freedom.

We learned that the Maduro diet operated according to a pattern. When popular pressure intensifies, it triggers repression and persecution. I know it because I carry in my body the projectiles that the armed forces fired against the peaceful protesters during the demonstrations of 2017. Mine is only a small wound in front of the sacrifices of my compatriots.

Under the Maduro regime, more than 240 Venezuelans were killed during demonstrations and 600 political prisoners, including the founder of my party and brother wrestler, Leopoldo López, imprisoned for five years. When repression does not succeed, the Maduro operators propose a false dialogue. But we are already immune to manipulation.

Given that the Maduro regime can not legitimately retain power, our strategy rests on three fronts of action: the institutional component, which aims to strengthen the role of the National Assembly as the last bastion of democracy. democracy; internationally, to strengthen the support of the international community – in particular the Lima Group, the Organization of American States, the United States and the European Union – and the popular, whose principle is the self-determination of our people.

More than 50 countries have recognized me as president in charge or have recognized the National Assembly as the only legitimate authority in Venezuela. I asked UN Secretary-General António Guterres and various humanitarian agencies for support to alleviate the humanitarian crisis. I initiated the appointment of ambbadadors and the identification and rescue of the nation's badets abroad.

A broad consensus emerges among Venezuelans: 84% reject Maduro. That is why we have organized democratic councils, where we freely discuss our present and our future.

The transition will require the support of key sectors of the armed forces. We met with military officials and security forces by secret means and offered an amnesty to those who did not commit crimes against humanity. The withdrawal of military support in Maduro is decisive for the change of government.

Maduro has little time to usurp the presidency, but to reach his exit with the least blood possible, all Venezuelans must remain united and press for the definitive rupture of the regime. For that, we need the support of governments, institutions and peoples of the world who believe in democracy and freedom. The union is the strength and the salvation of all Venezuela.

The author is president of the National Assembly of Venezuela.