Sawt Falasteen - Caracas protest denounces secrecy of Venezuela transition talks

The demonstration came as the first round of US-backed talks between Venezuela's interim government and parts of the opposition was wrapping up.

National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez and opposition figure Dinorah Figuera have been representing both sides since negotiations began last week.

"Let Dinorah come out," protesters chanted, waving Venezuelan flags high above their heads.

"We want to hear her side of the conversation," security worker Luis Antonio Correa, 54, told AFP.

"It's all been kept under wraps and we want her out here with us," he said.

Correa called for the release of political prisoners and salary increases, "because we haven't seen absolutely anything for us since January," when US forces ousted president Nicolas Maduro.

Maduro's former vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, has been serving as interim leader since then, effectively governing under Washington's thumb.

Many Venezuelans are hopeful that the transition talks will lead to democratic elections.

Over the last six days of talks, Figuera met separately with representatives of political prisoners, retirees and media workers and promised to advocate for their demands.

"We are in this process to achieve a democratic and free Venezuela," the politician wrote on X on Tuesday.

A source from the opposition delegation who requested anonymity compared the interim government to Nicaragua's oppressive administration, which the United States considers a dictatorship.

"There is no naivety on the part of the opposition delegation," the source said, adding that it "must take advantage of this window of opportunity."

The delegation is pushing for judicial reforms, they said, including an overhaul of the Supreme Court that validated Maduro's disputed election win in 2024.

Elections will only be announced after the reforms give way to a new Electoral Council, the source believes.

Notably absent from the table is exiled opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado, who has said she will not stand in the way of the process.

The source told AFP the delegation viewed Machado as "the leader of the Venezuelan opposition... she is the voice that Venezuelans identify as their own."

Some commentators believe that US President Donald Trump has vetoed Machado's return to Venezuela, which Washington denies.

The US leader has repeatedly voiced satisfaction with Rodriguez's administration.

J.AbuShaban--SF-PST