Venezuela faces a dark lurch toward political chaos this week as dictator Nicolás Maduro prepares for a sham inauguration on January 10, defying the results of the July 28 election, which was decisively won by Edmundo González. While González, recognized internationally as Venezuela’s legitimate president-elect, has vowed to return to Caracas “by any means possible” to claim the presidency, Maduro has issued a US$100,000 bounty for his arrest.
Adding to the tension, Colombia has yet to announce which high-level government official will attend the mock ceremony. President Gustavo Petro could make a last-ditch appearance at Miraflores Palace, or delegate this task to Foreign Minister Luis Gilberto Murrillo. Regardless which Colombia representative appears side-by-side with Maduro, serious questions will be raised in Washington over Bogotá’s commitment to democratic principles.
The stakes are monumental. Maduro’s last inauguration, in 2019, was attended by Cuba’s Miguel Díaz-Canel and Bolivia’s then-President Evo Morales, showcasing solidarity among authoritarian regimes. This time, however, Maduro’s overt defiance comes as González has received widespread international recognition. Both the United States and the European Union have declared González president-elect, and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has extended an invitation to González to attend his own inauguration in Washington on January 20 as Venezuela’s legitimate leader.
Colombia, meanwhile, remains conspicuously silent. A refusal to unequivocally denounce Maduro’s despotic maneuvering risks legitimizing his regime and could embroil Bogotá in economic and political consequences. Petro must now decide whether to prioritize ideology over democracy – a choice that will reverberate beyond Venezuela’s borders.
Since González’s landslide electoral victory, securing over 70% of the vote, Maduro has unleashed a brutal campaign of repression. Opposition politicians, activists, and even minors have been swept up in mass arrests aimed at dismantling any opposition. More than 2,000 people have been detained since the election, including U.S. citizens, as Maduro’s regime tightens its grip. González himself fled to Spain in September after a judge issued a politically motivated arrest warrant.
Maduro’s inauguration marks the start of his third six-year term – one built on repressive socialist policies while dismantling Venezuela’s democratic institutions. Though he claims credit for stabilizing inflation and alleviating shortages, these superficial improvements have done little to mask the economic devastation and human suffering his policies have wrought.
The regime’s most recent escalation – a bounty on González’s head – underscores the lengths Maduro will go to stay in power. Yet González has pledged to enter Venezuela despite the threat, embodying a defiance that resonates with millions of disillusioned citizens and the Venezuelan diaspora.
Opposition leader María Corina Machado has called for nationwide protests on Thursday. Speaking from an undisclosed location to avoid arrest, Machado urged Venezuelans to rise up. “Maduro is not going to leave on his own,” she declared in a video message. “We must make him leave with the strength of a population that never gives up.”
Colombia’s High-Stakes Gamble
Latin America’s leaders will be closely scrutinized this week, particularly Colombia’s Gustavo Petro. Whether Petro or Foreign Minister Murrillo attends Maduro’s inauguration could signal a tacit endorsement of the regime, undermining Bogotá’s credibility as a regional leader. It could also provoke economic reprisals from the United States, where President-elect Trump’s incoming administration—led by figures like Marco Rubio and Mauricio Claver-Carone—has indicated a hardline stance toward Maduro’s allies.
Colombia’s silence is more than a diplomatic misstep; it is a moral failure. As Venezuela’s neighbor and a regional power, Colombia bears a responsibility to support democratic governance and reject authoritarianism. Failing to do so not only abandons the Venezuelan people but emboldens tyrannical regimes across Latin America.
This week’s events will test the resolve of Latin America, just ten days before the world witnesses the inauguration of the Trump era. For Colombia, the choice is stark: support a dictator’s fraudulent claim to power or align with the democratic aspirations of a nation fighting for its future. Washington’s hawkish, pro-democracy stance in the hemisphere will not be kind to those who choose silence or stand on the wrong side of history.
