Fight for Freedom in Venezuela: Time to Double Down Again on Non-violent Resistance

"Nonviolence is a powerful and just weapon. Indeed, it is a weapon unique in history, which cuts without wounding and ennobles the man who wields it."  Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., Oslo (1964)

Non-violent strategic resistance can overthrow Maduro and his foreign backers

Following events in Venezuela over the past week and the response of the international community leads me to once again double down on my call to Venezuelan democrats to pursue a nonviolent resistance strategy to bring an end to the illegal and immoral Maduro regime.

The millions of Venezuelans who have protested against Maduro are more than enough to do it, but what is needed is a sound strategy to achieve it.

Violent flanks, to defend nonviolent protesters as we saw last week, did not speed up change or provide protection but was a setback that escalated violence.

Welcoming foreign solidarity and assistance, but not relying on it to achieve the goal of restoring democracy in Venezuela. Waiting for someone else to liberate the country will also be a long wait.

Now is the time for strategic and realistic thinking by Venezuelans while there is still time to remove the usurper and consolidate the position of Venezuela's legitimate democracy and the interim president Juan Gerardo Guaidó Márquez.

The puppet and his master.