Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado emerged from hiding on Saturday to join thousands of supporters protesting in the streets of Caracas against contested national election results.
"Just as it took us a long time to achieve electoral victory, now comes a stage that we take day by day, but we have never been as strong as today, never," Machado told supporters in Caracas.
Machado, who has been barred by President Nicolas Maduro's government from running for office for 15 years, had been in hiding since Tuesday, saying her life and freedom are at risk. Masked assailants ransacked the opposition’s headquarters on Friday, taking documents and vandalizing the space.
Venezuela's electoral authority, blasted by critics as favoring the ruling socialists, proclaimed Maduro the winner in last Sunday's vote, saying on Monday he obtained 51% compared to 46% for opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez. The authority reaffirmed a similar margin on Friday.
The published election result sparked widespread allegations of fraud and protests. Subsequently security forces cracked down on protests which Maduro's government labeled part of an attempted US-backed coup.
So far, at least 20 people have been killed in post-election protests, according to rights group Human Rights Watch. Some 1,200 others have been arrested in connection with the demonstrations, according to the government.
Nations including the US and Argentina have already recognized Gonzalez as the election's winner, with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday citing "overwhelming evidence." Costa Rica, Ecuador, Panama and Uruguay also concluded on Friday that Gonzalez received the most votes.
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