Caracas Chronicles

Photo: Washington Post retrieved

In a Spanish OpEd at the Washington Post, Juan Guaidó, Speaker of the Venezuelan National Assembly, makes his case to the international community: the Venezuelan presidency is being usurped by Nicolás Maduro.

Pivoting off a growing international recognition for the National Assembly as the only legitimate branch of the state, and invoking Articles 233, 333 and 350 of the 1999 Constitution, he called on the Armed Forces and the Venezuelan people to defend the republican system. He sets out his position clearly: he’s ready to assume the Presidency on an interim basis—which, again, is not the same as saying he already did so. He wants to form a transition government and call for new elections.

The piece came out the same day CNN announced Donald Trump is considering recognizing Guiadó as legitimate President of Venezuela—something Guaidó hasn’t claimed to be, yet. Minutes later, the Assembly issued an accord declaring Maduro was usurping the authority.

“Our main call is to the Armed Forces, key actor in this process. To them, we say that the chain of command is broken and there’s no Commander in Chief—it’s time to get on the right side of history. Venezuela and the world will thank you; success will depend on everyone doing what they must in these hard times for the motherland.

The call is to action: to not hesitate, not fight among brothers and be faithful heirs of the freedom we carry written in our blood.”

You can read the whole thing in Spanish, here.