Venezuela: Machado’s staunchest supporter returns. Signs of a thaw, one small step at a time

Following the controversy over the fact that, at the very same time as the meeting between Trump and Delcy Rodríguez, María Corina Machado had failed in three further attempts to return to Venezuela, a large public demonstration was held on Sunday specifically to demand that she be allowed to return, and more generally to speed up the transition. Shortly before that, on Friday, the second round of talks between representatives of the regime and the opposition had concluded. As a possible outcome of all this, Claudia Macero, spokesperson for María Corina Machado, was able to return to Venezuela, having sought refuge in the Argentine embassy in Caracas since 21 March 2024, before leaving the country on a date that remains secret but is variously placed between August 2024 and May 2025.

“It is time to take back this country,” she told journalists last night as she disembarked at Simón Bolívar Airport in Maiquetía. “I am returning to regain my confidence and to instil it in others. It is time to return. I am here to pave the way, just as others have paved the way for me.” “Every return brings us closer to the reunification of us all,” commented María Corina Machado. Since Friday, the release of further political prisoners has begun; the NGO Foro Penal now estimates their number at 20. Among them are at least six people convicted in connection with the failed Operación Gedeón, an attempted armed incursion against the Venezuelan regime carried out in May 2020. In a telling sign of the ongoing changes, the Cuban government has made it known that it no longer considers Venezuela an “ally” – “it’s too strong a word” – but merely a “friendly country”. However, it has been reported that over 70 media outlets remain blocked in Venezuela.

Claudia Macero, communications manager for the Vente Venezuela party, explained that her decision to return was a personal one and stated that she was returning to work to support the Vente Venezuela team. “I am returning to work to instil confidence in a team that is doing everything possible to move forward.” “Venezuela will be reborn when there is a genuine electoral process that allows Venezuelans to choose the future they desire. And this will be possible once a date has been set,” she added. Regarding a possible return by María Corina Machado, she said she did not know when this might happen, but confirmed that the leader “is trying every day to return”, even though the process is “very difficult”. Dozens of Vente Venezuela activists had gathered outside the airport to welcome Macero and embraced her.

As for releases from prison, prior to the latest ones, Foro Penal had counted 344 political prisoners as at 14 September: 330 men and 14 women, of whom 200 were civilians and 144 were military personnel. Of this total, 153 had been convicted and 191 were awaiting sentencing, whilst 32 held foreign or dual nationality. Other human rights organisations have reported different figures. Justicia, Encuentro y Perdón, for example, recorded 39 releases, whilst acknowledging that 17 of these individuals were not listed in its register of political prisoners. Surgentes reported eight releases of women linked to the so-called ‘tancol’, an acronym used by the Venezuelan authorities to refer to alleged armed drug traffickers of Colombian origin. The opposition coalition Plataforma Unitaria Democrática, the largest in the country, has recorded 33 releases since 21 August.

The statements come at the end of the second round of dialogue between the government and the opposition, which took place from 17 to 25 September under the auspices of the United States and focused on freedom of expression and the right to information. The delegations, led by the current President of the National Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez (Delcy’s brother), and the 2015 President of the National Assembly, Dinorah Figuera, agreed to extend the unblocking of websites and to begin a dialogue on the use of the radio spectrum. However, last Friday, eight days after the government’s announcement that the restrictions had been lifted, 177 domains were still blocked, including 72 news outlets, according to a report by the NGO VE sin Filtro.

The first phase of this process, which concluded in August, focused on reconstruction following the earthquake on 24 June and on the renewal of the Supreme Court of Justice. The dialogue is taking place alongside a broader political rapprochement: on 22 September, US President Donald Trump met Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, in New York – their first face-to-face meeting and the highest-level contact between Washington and Caracas in over a decade. “Yes, we spoke about elections. Incidentally, she was very kind and fantastic,” Trump told journalists in the White House Rose Garden. He also highlighted the oil cooperation between the two governments and stated that Venezuela had derived revenue from this agreement. For his part, Secretary of State Marco Rubio indicated that the dialogue between Trump and Rodríguez had covered the issue of elections. “We do not just want free and fair elections, but also a lasting republic,” he declared. He added that any future transition would have to take into account the country’s economic and social situation.

Jorge Rodríguez has announced that a third round of negotiations will take place in mid-October. The Foro Penal has already stated that it will continue to examine each new release on a case-by-case basis, in a process which, according to its own figures, still leaves hundreds of people imprisoned for political reasons in Venezuela. Jorge Rodríguez has also denied that Machado is being prevented from entering the country. Dinorah Figuera reiterated that the release of all political prisoners is non-negotiable, but rather an “obligation” for Delcy Rodríguez’s administration.