Violence is dangerously escalating in Venezuela after the “re-election” of Nicolas Maduro in last Sunday’s elections, which neither the opposition nor most Western governments recognize. According to estimates by Non-Governmental Organizations, in the last few days at least 20 people have been killed and another 100 injured in street battles with the police, who have also made more than 2,000 arrests.

This last element is confirmed by Maduro himself, speaking at gatherings of his followers and making it clear that this time “there is no forgiveness” for instigators of anti-government protests and that the opposition as a whole will end up in prison.

In his final speech on Tuesday, Maduro also opened a new front, this time with … technology and WhatsApp, which opposition supporters were apparently using to coordinate.

“I will cut all ties with WhatsApp, which they are using to threaten Venezuela» says the exasperated president, to the prolonged applause of his followers.

“I’m going to delete WhatsApp from my mobile forever and move my contacts to Telegram and WeChat. Do you understand me? This is what we have to do. Say no to WhatsApp. Out of Venezuela WhatsApp, with which criminals threaten our youth».

The opposition is under persecution

It is still unclear whether Maduro is trying to ban WhatsApp or is simply advising his followers to avoid it. As for the opposition, however, his position is clear. According to the newspaper El Nacional, the Attorney General, Tarek Saab, has requested that the head of the opposition, Maria Corina Machado, as well as her candidate in the last elections, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, be prosecuted on the grounds of “spreading false news”, but and “incitement to stop”.

Shortly before, Machado and González Urrutia, in an open letter, had called on the army to ignore Maduro’s orders and side with them. Machado signed as “leader of the democratic forces of Venezuela” and Gonzalez-Urrutia as “elected president of Venezuela”.

Russia and China have congratulated Maduro on his re-election. On the other hand, both the US and the EU do not recognize the result of the elections in Venezuela. In fact, a few days ago, seven European countries called on Maduro to make public information that would prove the validity of the election result. The joint statement of the “7” was published by the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s office.

The representative of the US Department of State, Matthew Miller, was asked to comment on the situation in Venezuela at the regular briefing. His response: “We are in constant contact with our partners in the region and particularly with Brazil, Mexico and Colombia, in order to examine the way forward. We call again on all parties involved in Venezuela to start consultations for a peaceful transition to a democratic framework. We appeal once again for transparency and publication of information regarding the election result…”

The role of Brazil and Colombia is “key”.

A major question is whether Washington will go so far as to withdraw the “democratic credit” it has somehow given Venezuela in the past by lifting sanctions on oil exports. For now, it appears that American diplomacy is moving on a low note, leaving the front lines of action to moderate Latin American voices with influence in Caracas, such as Brazilian President Lula da Silva.

On Monday, Lula da Silva met with the president of Chile, Gabriel Boric, and had been preceded by contacts with his counterparts from Colombia, Gustavo Pedro and Mexico, Lopez Obrador. Responding to a question about developments in Venezuela, the Brazilian president said: “With respect for tolerance and popular sovereignty, we ask for transparency in the election result and assurance of peace while calling on the parties involved to seek a solution through dialogue. There should be an understanding between the government and the opposition…»