Chavismo’s animus against Maria Corina Machado, the leading democracy activist who was indicted on trumped-up charges of “conspiracy” today, has reached farcical extremes. Today, attention was focused on whether she would be jailed – she won’t be quite yet. Nonetheless, the torrent of abuse she’s faced these last few years is extraordinary.
Consider. Since 2010, María Corina Machado has been accused of ordering buses burned. Of instigating lawlessness. Of seeking to generate chaos and panic. Of infiltrating provocateurs into queues for scarce basic goods. Of palling around with Lorent Saleh. Of killing six guards. Of killing Robert Serra. Of plotting to kill the president, (on the basis of forged evidence). Of paying a hacker to delete the evidence against her. Of “plotting a silent coup.” Of “seeking a civil war.” Of conspiracy. Of murder. Of terrorism. Of treason.
She’s been called an “enemy of the people.” A “shake-down artist of the empire.” A “whore of the empire“. A “hydra-headed monster of coup-plotting“. An “imbecile sell-out lackey.” “Evil for the people.” “The worst the homeland has borne.” “The face of fascism.”
She’s been threatened with detention at INOF, the notoriously violent women’s prison in Los Teques. She’s been told a jail cell is ready for her.
She’s been banned from leaving the country. Stripped of her parliamentary immunity. Stripped of her seat in parliament. Denied any forum to defend herself or present evidence to challenge this decision.
She’s been openly spied on. She’s had her private emails read out on state TV. Her phone calls tapped and the recordings played on state TV. She’s been spied on inside a private home (not on the phone) and had recordings of her conversations broadcast on state TV.
She’s been assaulted in Caricuao. Detained in Maiquetía. Shoved in Chacao. Attacked in Puerto Ordaz. Assaulted in Turmero.
She’s had her followers’ motorbikes burned in Sabaneta de Barinas. She’s had bottles thrown at her in a military parade in Los Próceres. She’s had her face kicked in on the floor of the National Assembly. She’s been threatened with war. She’s been threatened with the death penalty. In a country that doesn’t even have the death penalty.
For five years the government has pursued a sustained, cowardly, vicious, illegal, outrageous campaign of vilification and dehumanization against María Corina Machado. You don’t have to agree with her politics to understand no one is safe in a country where people can be brutalized this way.
Jesus… Que verguenza. In the face of declining popularity and oil prices ahead of the 2015 elections, government repression will only going get worse.
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WOW. ¡Increíble!
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I’ll never forget how her bus was shot at near 23 de Enero and how the government accused her of making it up based on an illegar conversation with her mother:
And then Robert Serra said MCM had nothing to do at 23 Enero cuz she’s an oligarch:
These are just classics:
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I really admire her and all other who have stood and confront this fucking government, including Henrique Capriles Radonsky, Ramon Guillermo Aveledo, Leopoldo Lopez just to name a few. I will even include Julio Borges whose management of PJ I do not like.
All have different styles, all have made mistakes, some are better than others but in the end all of them are brave and very stubborn to keep on taking the mountains of shit thrown at them on a daily basis.
I tip my hat to all of them
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Well put.
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Like (without having to register and whatnot)
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Couldn’t agree more. Their courage and tenacity is incredible.
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Couldn’t agree more (and I really dislike Borges).
It’s one thing to stay home and say “Those opposition suckers don’t do anything for us!” while it’s THEM who are publicly murdered by an apparatus that wants you to think exactly that they’re useless garbage.
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You’d only hope some people in the regime feel shame when they see what their project has defined as a mortal enemy.
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Never
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The charges of gender violence piled here would be enough to lock each bastard of the red nomenklature for 30 years.
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For the cowardly who presume of beign all mighty and powerful , the existence of a woman ( and as such a traditional emblem of weakness) who despite lacking any of the trappings of power stands her ground and is much braver than them offends their conceit where it hurts most. That might explain ( never justify) their extreme persecution of her person.
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As somebody once said in a previous post, Freud would find wonderful to study chavista machismo.
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I still have connection here >:P
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Quico this post is incredible.
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i still believe in the few … & … NOT YOU
DONDE ESTA CAPRILE?
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All this because she dared to stare down Chavez…. Chavez looked like an insect with a needle run through when Corrina confronted him. Major league balls….
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FT: Excellent post summarizing the Regime’s abuse of valiant MCM, who, along with LL, are among the few who have had the balls to openly/publicly confront this mockery of a government.
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MIND YOU, Hugo Chavez told her, right to her face, when she told him he was incompetent (to his face), that “You are not in my league. You are not worthy of arguing with me. Look for someone else to debate with, because I’m too big for you”.
Este artículo hay que publicarlo en español. Más gente debe leer esto.
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Do you have that exchange anywhere? I recall he said something about “eagles don’t hunt flys” (he did have a way with words, particularly when insulting and unfairly maligning others), but can’t recall what she said to him before that.
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He said that she couldn’t argue with him because she was “out of ranking”. That she should be the main opposition figure before thinking of arguing with him.
In case you ever thought of Hugo Chavez as a humble individual.
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In plain english and beautiful french “ñangaros cobardes de mierda”
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MCM would make a better President than HCR or LL any day. I only supported HCR last time because he had better chances, but MCM is where it’s at. She don’t take shit from nobody. Always a breath of fresh air to hear her speak.
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