The Mayor of Miami, Francis Suarez, addressed the huge Venezuelan community

The Venezuelans in Miami They reacted on Tuesday with a mixture of hope and caution to events taking place in their country, where the Opposition leader Juan Guaidó, recognized as interim president by more than 50 countries, launched with the help of the army the operation "Freedom of Operation".

Francis SuarezThe mayor of Miami said that his office – which deals with a densely populated city in which there is a huge community of Venezuelan emigrants – observed for months "the situation of Venezuela in democratic transition". The news "of President Juan Guaidó with the Leader of the opposition Leopoldo López"in his call to the military to" support this transition, "he led him to make a statement in which he proposed to" do everything possible to help them and reach that moment of freedom and deserved democracy"

José Antonio Colina, president of the organization Vpersecuted political enezolanos in exile (Veppex)He told Efe that it was "a big step forward", but the success of this action will depend on the reaction of the Venezuelan people, "if he goes mbadively into the street".

The Republican Senator from Florida Marco Rubio He asked Venezuelans not to be mere spectators and to follow Guaidó's call to go down the street. He said: "You should support your legitimate constitutional government, do not let them seize this opportunity, do not let this moment pbad." He stressed: "It may not come back."

The Republican Senator Rick Scott, former governor of Florida, said in a statement that it was time that "the whole army joins Juan Guaidó and fights for the freedom of the people". The whole world, he says, "looks and waits: it's time to leave the evil realm of [Nicolás] Mature in the ash pile of history, "he said.

On the Democratic side, the Florida congressman Donna Shalala He said that Venezuela woke up with an "air of freedom" and expressed solidarity with Guaidó and the Venezuelan people "in these decisive hours for the restoration of democracy".

In Doral, a city in Miami-Dade County, home to a large Venezuelan community, the El Arepazo restaurant, a meeting place for exiles and opponents of Maduro, more than 150 people gathered at noon with the flags of their country.

Vicente Pugliese of Veppex told Efe that the Venezuelans in Miami "supported the citizens and officers who placed themselves on the right side of history" and wanted the mobilization "to lead to the exit of the" cartel "usurping power in Venezuela".

Carlos Pereira, another Venezuelan based in South Florida, said the "madrugonazo" of today is the result of a "recoil – less discontent" and said that "people respond to "the call launched in the street" a new Venezuela. "

The Cuban Resistance Assembly, formed by organizations of exiles in Miami and by the opposition within the island, demonstrated on Tuesday its support for Guaidó in his "just demand for cessation of the usurpation of the regime. Nicolás Maduro ".

"The time has come, we are with you in Venezuela !!!" said the badembly, which said Tuesday began the end of "impunity" for the "regimes of Venezuela, Cuba and the United States. Nicaragua, responsible for undermining democratic values ​​and principles in our region "

According to Venezuelan sources in Miami, at the closing of the Consulate General in 2012, some 20,000 Venezuelans were registered on the electoral lists. By 2018, this number had risen to about 220,000 in South Florida, due to the unprecedented economic and social crisis

The president's words come after other members of his government, such as Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, have expressed their support for Guaidó, the 50-year-old recognized leader of Parliament. country. the restoration of "freedom and democracy" in Venezuela.

In the early hours of Tuesday, Guaidó announced the launch of "Operation Freedom", from La Carlota Air Base, as well as opposition leader, Leopoldo López, released from his house arrest. "The cessation of the usurpation began today, at the Liberty Operation, at the Committees of Aid and Freedom, I invite you immediately to activate it, for to walk the streets of Venezuela. " May 1st began today. He called on other members of the armed forces to accompany this feat "within the framework of the Constitution, as part of a non-violent struggle".

For his part, the Executive Vice President of Venezuela, Delcy Rodriguez, said Tuesday that he had "defeated the coups" and that he would do it "again" with the uprising of Guaidó, who was mentioned with a group of soldiers.