Arya News - Venezuela`s ruling movement is undergoing a process of internal reorganization marked by a conditional relationship with the United States.
Feb. 3 (UPI) -- One month after the capture of President Nicolás Maduro in a U.S. military operation, Venezuela"s ruling movement is undergoing a process of internal reorganization marked by a redistribution of power, signs of cohesion and a conditional relationship with the United States.
The absence of the leader who for years concentrated political command forced chavismo, the leftist political and social movement that holds power in Venezuela, to close ranks to preserve institutional control and ensure stability during a still-uncertain transition period.
One month after Maduro"s capture, chavismo is showing a process of political repositioning without an apparent rupture of power and with actions aimed at maintaining unity among its base.
Social, labor and student organizations, along with popular movements in Venezuela, organized a demonstration Tuesday in downtown Caracas to demand the release of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, who have been detained in the United States since Jan. 3.
"We will protest with strength, with love and with the conviction that justice will prevail. We will fight for the return of our President Nicolás Maduro and our First Lady Cilia Flores. There is no force that can stop a united people. Long live free and sovereign Venezuela. Victory forever!" Nahum Fernández, the United Socialist Party of Venezuela"s secretary for street mobilization, wrote on social media.
Maduro"s capture forced the ruling movement to reorganize its power structure swiftly. Political leadership was concentrated in Delcy Rodríguez as interim president and in Jorge Rodríguez as head of the National Assembly.
Since then, chavismo has reconfigured its power base around a bloc of senior political and institutional leaders, consolidating Rodríguez as a central figure, alongside historic representatives and new strategic allies within the Cabinet and the party.
On Monday, the appointment of Daniella Cabello as tourism minister reinforced the presence of key families within the government leadership. She is the daughter of chavismo No. 2 figure Diosdado Cabello.
Venezuela"s Ministry of Communication and Information has played a fundamental role in steering the ruling party"s communications strategy to present Rodríguez as a guarantee of institutional continuity and balance of power following the instability generated by Maduro"s absence.
On Jan. 10, according to a report by the digital outlet La Hora de Venezuela , ministry officials met with communicators and propagandists to reinforce internal unity around Rodríguez and coordinate the deployment of ministerial narratives across multiple arenas.
The first major propaganda campaign rolled out after the captures capitalized on the "V" for victory gesture that Nicolás Maduro made with his fingers, with difficulty, while handcuffed and escorted during his transfer to the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, N.Y..
The alleged signals sent by Maduro with his hands were repeated by other state officials and leveraged in the creation of images, videos and memes circulated in the following days in a campaign that sought to transform an image of defeat into a symbol of resistance.
However, relations with the United States have become the main axis of the repositioning.
During these 30 days without Maduro at the Miraflores Palace, talks took place between Rodríguez and President Donald Trump, who has insisted on advancing a three-phase roadmap for Venezuela: stabilization, recovery and transition.
Rodríguez"s meeting with U.S. envoy Laura Dogu, with the participation of senior officials, included discussion of a roadmap, alongside energy and diplomatic agreements aimed at normalizing relations.
That process has included measures with high political impact.
The National Assembly approved a significant reform of the legal framework governing the oil sector, opening the market to private participation and breaking the state exclusivity that characterized the chavista era -- a decision with long-term economic implications.
In parallel, Rodríguez announced Friday a general amnesty law intended to allow the release of hundreds of people detained for political reasons, along with a proposal to transform detention center El Helicoide into a social and sports center, as part of signals of openness in response to internal demands and international pressure.
Even so, chavismo"s repositioning is not taking place in a scenario of full internal cohesion.
According to an analysis published by the Venezuelan news organization Efecto Cocuyo , chavismo is undergoing an adaptation process marked by internal tensions and distrust following Maduro"s capture.
Political analyst José Vicente Carrasquero told reporters that the chavista leadership "is managing on several tracks" and that, while internally it seeks to minimize the impact of the capture and preserve cohesion, it is simultaneously trying to maintain channels of communication with Washington.
Carrasquero added that this dual approach has fueled doubts within the ruling movement about who controls strategic decisions and the direction of this stage.
In a similar assessment, political scientist Juan Manuel Trak warned that chavismo is facing a moment of high internal tension, in which the adjustments driven after Maduro"s capture clash with the traditional pillars of the Bolivarian project, particularly state control of oil revenues and nationalist discourse.
Trak said external pressure to move forward with economic and political changes has increased stress within the ruling movement and could raise the risk of fractures if it fails to balance Washington"s demands with the expectations of its base.
In his view, chavismo is facing one of its deepest dilemmas since coming to power: adapt to survive or preserve its original political identity.