Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado reported that her colleague Juan Pablo Guanipa was kidnapped mere hours after being freed from detention. The leader of the Justice First party was taken from the Los Chorros neighborhood of Caracas by heavily armed men in civilian attire, according to Machado's posts on social media.
These men arrived in four vehicles and forcibly abducted Guanipa, who had only recently been released after spending eight months behind bars. His imprisonment occurred during a time of heightened political strife, following the US government's intervention in Venezuela's political affairs earlier this year.
Guanipa's party labeled the incident as an act of repression by the dictatorial regime, emphasizing that those who accompanied him at the time witnessed the violent abduction, with weapons pointed at them before he was forced into a vehicle. Justice First has called for international support demanding Guanipa's immediate release and an end to government persecution against opposition figures.
Just prior to the kidnapping, Guanipa's son, Ramón, had shared his joy on social media celebrating his father's return. Following the abduction, Ramón released a video demanding assurance of his father's safety and holding the government accountable for any harm that may come to him.
The ongoing situation illustrates the precarious nature of political dissent within Venezuela, where countless opposition members have faced similar fates as President Nicolás Maduro's government attempts to consolidate power through intimidation and imprisonment of dissenting voices.
