Venezuelan opposition figure Delsa Solorzano on Tuesday appeared in public for the first time in 17 months, hailing a new phase in the country’s history after the ouster of deposed president Nicolas Maduro.
With Maduro behind bars in New York, Solorzano said that she felt safe to resurface, renew the work of “bringing about political change,” and to agitate for new elections.
“We believe Venezuela is in a new phase, and I think the entire country feels that,” the 54-year-old former lawmaker said.
Photo: AFP
However, she cautioned that “the transition has not yet begun,” and would only “be consolidated when there are free elections in Venezuela.”
The last time Solorzano appeared in public was on the back of a campaign truck in August 2024 at a protest against Maduro’s widely rejected claim to re-election.
At her side that day was Maria Corina Machado, who went on to win the Nobel Peace Prize, and other opposition leaders who ended up in hiding, exile or prison.
Solorzano on Tuesday returned for the first time to the headquarters of her party, Encuentro Ciudadano (Citizen Encounter), and was received with cheers.
However, Maduro’s allies still run the security services and his vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, has taken over the reins with the apparent blessing of US President Donald Trump.
Solorzano said the first step to a democratic future for Venezuela is “fundamental and obvious” — freeing hundreds of political prisoners.
Under pressure from the US, Rodriguez’s government claims to have released about 800 prisoners — a figure activists question.
Solorzano expressed concern about the cooperation between Rodriguez and Trump, who have announced agreements on US access to Venezuelan oil and the unblocking of Venezuelan funds frozen under sanctions.
“They declare every day that they talk to each other,” the opposition figure said. “The problem is that the people of Venezuela are not part of those daily conversations. So the challenge is how the people of Venezuela can be heard.”
Solorzano is loath to talk about her time away, saying she does not like to call it hiding, but rather “shelter.”
“It’s a personal matter; everyone experiences their persecution differently,” she said.
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