Venezuelans Rally for Machado’s Safe Return and Elections

Hundreds of supporters of Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado rode motorcycle convoys through Caracas on Sunday, September 27, calling for her safe return and presidential elections. Demonstrations were also reported in other cities, including Valencia, Maracaibo and Mérida. Machado remains in Panama, and her party says repeated efforts to return to Venezuela have failed. In Caracas, demonstrators wearing sky-blue shirts associated with Machado’s Vente Venezuela party waved national flags and rode along major avenues. Supporters elsewhere also called for a clear election timetable and a vote. The demonstrations followed months of uncertainty about Machado’s return and the timing of elections. Machado’s party says she has made seven unsuccessful attempts to return this year. Her team described a planned boat trip that was canceled by the charter company, which said the vessel was unfit to sail, and a subsequent attempt to fly toward Curaçao that it said was thwarted when the plane was denied landing permits. The party’s account does not establish who was responsible for the failures.