Venezuelans gather in Toronto wanting to restore democracy

Around 100 Venezuelans gathered at downtown Toronto’s Dundas Square on Jan. 9 to protest ahead of the country’s presidential swearing-in ceremony on Jan. 10.

At a Jan. 10 ceremony at the National Assembly in the capital Caracas, candidate Nicolas Maduro was illegally sworn in after being declared winner of the July, 28 elections despite Machado and Gonzalez saying the "actas electorales," or the electoral papers of all registered votes, show that Gonzalez won the election..

On Jan. 9, in the cold and tense but hopeful atmosphere, Venezuelans demanded freedom, that the results of the July 28 presidential election should be respected, freedom for all political prisoners, and sang the national anthem.

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado called all Venezuelans in and outside the country to protest demanding the placement of what she said was the legally elected government and restoration of freedom for the country. 

Demonstrations across Venezuela on Jan. 9 didn’t face major issues with police until Machado was arrested by forces loyal to Maduro’s regime. She was released soon after, causing shock and uncertainty for all Venezuelans.

Later in the evening, Machado said in a post on X that she was in a safe place and was going to explain what was to come next. She is expected to make a statement on Jan. 10.

Emma Diaz, a member of Comando Con Venezuela, the political party Machado leads, and who actively participated during the July 28 elections at voting centres in the Andes region of Venezuela, said she worked to verify that the country's voting centres were operating as they should on the election day.

She helped monitor voting centres in that region to ensure everything went well.

She said problems started to appear after 7 p.m. local time when the announced results didn’t match the electoral papers she was able to verify.

At the demonstration in Toronto, she read a speech in honour of all the people killed and imprisoned for protesting after the election in the state of Táchira, near the Colombian border in the southwestern part of the country.

“We are talking at this plaza, at Dundas, in the name of all these people who are still in jail,” Díaz said, “At this moment, Venezuela doesn’t have a public rule of law, you can’t communicate publicly.”

She said it’s uncertain what is going to happen on Jan. 10 and that Maduro’s regime doesn’t want to allow a transition and a change in the country, even if it doesn’t have any proof that he won the elections.

The person who was elected president, Edmundo González, was forced into exile in Spain in early Septemeber. Nevertheless, he toured several countries in the Americas, including the United States, where he met with President Joe Biden and several Republican senators before returning to Venezuela.

González is expected to be in the country today accompanied by various former Latin American presidents and former Spanish Prime Minister José Maria Aznar.

It is unknown how González is going to enter the country after Maduro’s regime threatened to arrest him, along with all the other former state leaders who will come with him.

As of right now, González hasn't been able to enter the country.

Machado chose González to be the opposition candidate for the presidential election after she was not allowed by the government to be the main opposition candidate.

Protester Carlos Garzón said he feels hopeful Maduro’s regime will fall.

"Tomorrow the fight continues, and we are going to protest again,” Garzón said.

He said the main reason to keep fighting and protesting is to mark the end of 25 years of tyranny.

Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said in a message posted on X on Jan. 9 that Canada officially recognizes González as the new-elected Venezuelan president and demanded the will of the Venezuelan people to be respected after talking with Machado.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), more than 6.1 million Venezuelans have fled the country due to the economic and humanitarian crisis the country is suffering.

Sergio Suárez said demonstrations outside Venezuela, no matter where they take place, are the best way to support Venezuelans in the country and restore democracy.

“We are all very hopeful and with a lot of faith, supporting from afar,” Suarez said.

He said he remains hopeful there will be good news for all Venezuelans on Jan. 10.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights said in a Jan. 7 report that the Maduro regime’s actions before and after the July 28 elections can be classified as state terrorism.

“The IACHR concludes that the circumstances surrounding the July 28 presidential election constitute a severe disruption to Venezuela's constitutional order,” the IACHR said.

The report urged the regime to cease all human rights violations, political imprisonment and persecution, and free protesters arrested unjustly.

Ricardo Castillo said this is a key moment in the fight for a free Venezuela.

“Now there are a lot of mixed emotions,” Castillo said. “Obviously, we expect the dictatorship to fall. (I hope) tomorrow (Jan. 10) this nightmare is going to come to an end.”