Venezuela — May 1st 2019

Over the past couple of days, there have been a lot of terms being thrown around to define what is currently happening in Venezuela. It is a coup! It is a US plot for oil! It’s a minority, lead by opposition leader Juan Guaidó ,who wants to allow the imperialists to take over the country.

I would like to address why calling this a coup is not only inaccurate but dangerous for the fight of Venezuelans and in the spread of misinformation.

Before I go on, I believe we should take a look at the definition of “coup” as per oxford dictionary:

“A sudden, violent, and illegal seizure of power from a government”

With that in mind let’s examine the most recent events that have lead to the “chaos” that Venezuela is now experiencing.

2017 — Maduro calls for a rewrite of the constitution and creates a new assembly: “The Constituent Assembly”

May 2018 — Premature presidential elections were called — opposition leaders had been jailed, exiled or forbidden to run

Jan 10 2019 — Maduro is sworn in for his new “presidential term”

Jan 23 2019 — the National Assembly’s President swears in as Interim President until free and fair elections can be held.

For just one minute let’s forget about the so called “US Intervention”, the Russian/Cuban influence on the Maduro Regime and even the humanitarian horrors that this country is experiencing.

Even if Venezuela was thriving socially and economically, the actions that have been taken by Interim President Juan Guaidó are still legitimate.

Nicolás Maduro (Left) — Juan Guaidó (Right)

Nicolás Maduro created his own Constituent Assembly once the Venezuelan National Assembly had an opposition majority. As a result, he then held premature elections that cannot be recognized as free, fair or legal because they were held under the observance of the Constituent Assembly and opposition was not allowed to run.

With this in mind, if the prior election was unconstitutional and illegal it means that on January 10th, no elected president was sworn into the Executive Branch of government leaving the country without a leader.

As with all constitutions of the world, the Venezuelan Constitution has a what if clause. What happens in the absence of an elected president. Article 233 reads:

“…Cuando se produzca la falta absoluta del Presidente electo o Presidenta electa antes de tomar posesión, se procederá a una nueva elección universal, directa y secreta dentro de los treinta días consecutivos siguientes. Mientras se elige y toma posesión el nuevo Presidente o la nueva Presidenta, se encargará de la Presidencia de la República el Presidente o Presidenta de la Asamblea Nacional…”

Translation:

“…When there is an absolute lack of a President-elect or President-elect before taking office, a new universal, direct and secret (anonymous voting) election shall be held within the following thirty consecutive days. While the new President or the new President is elected and takes office, the President of the National Assembly will be in charge of the Presidency of the Republic…”

So is what is happening in Venezuela a Coup?

No. Juan Guaidó is the President as per our constitution. He was the President of the National Assembly and as such he is bound by the constitution to take an Interim Presidency role until a new election is held. The actions he is taking are not only within his right but are within his constitutional responsibilities, to the people of Venezuela. Guaidó’s request to the National Army to remove from power a usurper makes complete sense constitutionally.

The events in Venezuela cannot be a Coup by definition because this is a legal action being taken by the legitimate Interim President of the Country.

So no, Juan Guaidó is NOT the Opposition Leader. He is the Interim President.

I urge all media outlets to use the correct terminology when speaking about the situation Venezuela is going through.

By using terms like “Opposition Leader” and “Coup” you further the agenda of the usurper, Nicolás Maduro and it gives the Maduro Regime legitimacy. Moreover, it undermines the efforts, of the people of Venezuela, to remove from power a dictator who has held on to power in unconstitutional ways.