After years of crisis and allegations of repression, Nicolás Maduro, the president of Venezuela, was captured earlier this year in a controversial U.S. military operation.
The former Venezuelan leader faces U.S. federal criminal charges.
From 2012 to 2013, Maduro served as the vice president of Venezuela under Hugo Chávez. When Chávez died in 2013, Maduro succeeded him as president.
Under his leadership, Venezuela faced a severe economic crisis, and human rights groups alleged widespread violations.
An ongoing battle
Pastor Victor Hugo, a man who’s lived his entire life in Venezuela, remembers the hardships that emerged when Maduro assumed power.
“Everything became more complicated. There was no money, and there was nowhere you could go and buy rice or flour. You had to stand in enormous lines just to buy what you needed,” said Hugo in Spanish, from his home in Acarigua, Venezuela.
In 2018, Maduro’s re-election sparked international concern about its legitimacy.
More than 50 countries, including Canada, recognized his opponent, Juan Guaidó, as the legitimate president of Venezuela amid allegations of electoral fraud.
In March of 2020, the Southern District of New York charged Maduro with narco-terrorism, conspiracy to import cocaine, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices, according to the U.S. Department of State,
Amnesty International documented more human rights violations following the 2024 election, prompting a global uproar.
“Thousands of arbitrary arrests were carried out against political opponents, human rights defenders and journalists; hundreds of children were among those detained,” reads the report.
On Jan. 3, the U.S. launched a military operation in Caracas and captured Maduro along with his wife, Cilia Flores, transferring them to New York to face the 2020 charges.
The operation drew global attention and sparked debate over its legality and Venezuela’s sovereignty.
Divided response
Despite celebrations around the globe in response to Maduro’s capture, the people of Venezuela reacted with caution.
“We didn’t celebrate anything like that. In other countries, yes, but not here. Here, there was a lot of uncertainty because of everything we went through. A lot of uncertainty,” said Hugo.
Any significant changes in the country are distant, but there is still a sense of hope.
“There is hope that things can go differently because there’s nothing left they can take from us that they haven’t already taken,” added Hugo.