Ahead of Miami rally, Guaidó calls for increased pressure

Juan Guaidó snuck out of Venezuela on Jan. 19, defying a travel ban, to warn the world about the Nicolás Maduro regime and the growing criminality in the South American nation.

His whirlwind trip has taken him to Colombia, Europe and Canada. On Saturday, Guaidó is coming to South Florida, a bastion of Venezuelan opposition, where he will hold a rally at the Miami Airport Convention Center.

In an exclusive interview with the Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald, Guaidó — who’s considered the legitimate leader of Venezuela by the United States and more than 50 other nations — asked his countrymen to hold out hope that change is still possible.

“I’ve heard from many people versions of the idea that Maduro is stronger or is winning — but that’s only if you measure his strength by one variable: that he spent one more day in the Miraflores” presidential palace, said the 37-year-old lawmaker. “But who is really running Venezuela right now?”

The country’s economy is in shambles, its borders are lawless, water and electricity shortages are the norm, and Maduro has few international allies and little internal support. Gangs and criminal groups control swaths of the countryside.

“Today, Venezuela looks like Syria,” Guaidó said.

And under those circumstances, change is within reach.

“We have to reevaluate all our options, because Venezuela and the region are paying the price of this war,” he said. “There are no bombs going off, but we’re feeling the pain.”

Guaidó has been trying to seize the presidency since Jan. 23, 2019, relying on street protests and mounting international sanctions to force Maduro’s hand. In April, Guaidó led a brief, but ultimately failed, military uprising. And yet Maduro — who first took office in 2013 — is still in power.

Guaidó says he’s not up against a pure dictatorship, but rather a criminal enterprise. Drug cartels, Colombian guerrillas and even elements of Hezbollah have been operating in Venezuela with the complicity of the Maduro regime, he said.

And that has dimmed hopes for a peaceful transition.

“That’s why we’re saying that we need the world’s help, to stop this criminal conglomerate that’s trying to perpetuate itself in power,” he said.

Critical to that process is starving Maduro and his conspirators of resources. During the European leg of his trip, Guaidó said he tried to warn his allies about the “blood gold” that’s flowing out of Venezuela’s Amazon and has become a lifeline for the regime and criminal groups.

Colombia’s National Liberation Army, in particular, is known to run major gold mining operations in Venezuela.

“We have to stop the flow of money that’s financing terrorist groups, financing [Maduro’s] para-state, and that’s mainly gold,” he said. “Almost $200 million dollars [of gold] a month are being used to finance irregular groups and it’s largely coming to Europe.”

Guaidó began his international trip earlier this month in Bogotá, Colombia, where he received the redcarpet treatment, escorted to the presidential palace by the Colombian honor guard.

While in Bogotá, he also met with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and

U.S. special envoy to Venezuela Elliott Abrams. In Europe he met with White House adviser Ivanka Trump, and he also met with Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross on his trip.

The one man he hasn’t met with is President Donald Trump.

“We’re doing everything possible to have that meeting, and we’re trying to coordinate our agendas,” Guaidó said Friday, amid rumors that he might attend Trump’s State of the Union address on Feb. 4.

If the meeting fails to happen, it will undoubtedly be seized on by the Maduro regime to reinforce the idea that Guaidó’s movement is losing steam.

But Guaidó said his priority is to be back home by early next week.

“I will be back in Venezuela soon, and what we’re asking from our allies, not just the United States, is to maintain their commitment to the cause of a democratic Venezuela,” he said. “We have an enormous opportunity to consolidate peace on this continent.”

Guaidó, the head of Venezuela’s National Assembly, left his country at great personal risk. The Madurocontrolled judiciary had banned him from traveling and there’s a real chance he may face detention or worse when he returns.

But Guaidó said he’s determined to keep rallying the opposition and leading street protests, even as recent attempts to organize antiMaduro demonstrations have been anemic amid fatigue and fear. Over the past three years, about 18,000 people have been murdered by security forces, according to human rights groups, and opposition leaders have been hounded and jailed.

Even so, Guaidó said he is confident people will return to the streets.

“2019 saw more protests than any year in the history of Venezuela, but many of them were made invisible by censorship, self-censorship and persecution,” he said. “Despite all that, we are going to overcome the fear and we are, undoubtedly, going to see demonstrations over the coming days that will bring together all sectors of society.”

Guaidó’s stop in South Florida comes as many in the opposition have become disheartened with the young leader who seemed to hold the promise of rapid change. And his visit comes as the opposition coalition has been riven by infighting.

Guaidó said he hopes Saturday’s event will provide a common ground, even for those who don’t support his tactics.

“Regardless of our views or our particular formulas for getting rid of the dictatorship, we all need each other,” he said. “And we need to take actions and use all the tools necessary to overcome this crisis and the tragedy that we’re suffering today.”

Jim Wyss: +305-299-9910, @jimwyss