Amanpour Venezuelan Opposition Leader Maria Corina Machado
May 11, 2026
Maria Corina Machado, Venezuelan opposition leader in exile and Nobel laureate, speaks about plans to return and timelines for democratic transition. Omer Bartov, historian of genocide and critic of Israeli policy, discusses Israel’s shift toward ethno-nationalism and warnings about Gaza. Bob Davis, journalist on U.S.-China trade, examines how Chinese competition reshaped American towns like Hickory.
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Dismantling Repression But Atrocities Continue
- Machado says the interim US-backed government has started dismantling repression but grave abuses persist, including confirmed killings and many political prisoners.
- She cites release of 400+ prisoners and the regime admitting Victor Hugo Quero had been killed months earlier as evidence of ongoing human-rights crimes.
Start Electoral Technical Steps Immediately
- Machado urges naming a new electoral council immediately because technical preparations need seven to nine months once the political decision is made.
- She stresses elections must be free and fair to attract investors and reunite the diaspora of ~9 million Venezuelans.
Negotiated Transition With Safeguards For Defectors
- Machado says negotiated incentives and guarantees can include regime figures in transition but insists the criminal nature of the old regime must be dismantled.
- She frames this as offering security and amnesty to those who facilitated a peaceful transition, not revenge.
