Leopoldo López, Venezuela's Imprisoned Opposition Leader, Reappears Amid Uprising
Leopoldo López, Venezuela's Imprisoned Opposition Leader, Reappears Amid Uprising
“His [Leopoldo López's] public appearance outside house arrest will galvanize the street," said AS/COA's Eric Farnsworth about Venezuela in an interview with The Washington Post.
On Tuesday morning, Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó, recognized by many countries (including the United States) as the country’s rightful ruler, released a video from what he said was a military base. He’s shown surrounded by troops — and with a man named Leopoldo López.
López’s presence gave Guaidó's video, which he said marked “the end of usurpation” and the final chapter in his struggle to wrest power from Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, extra significance...
Like Guaidó, López studies involved a U.S. university (in Guaidó's case, a non-degree program established with the George Washington University; in López’s, the Kennedy School at Harvard), a fact that is sometimes used by detractors.
It’s a statement of fact, but also subtle shade, because it’s a way to signal that he’s part of the non-chavista elite, which immediately raises the ire of those who promote chavismo, including internationally,” Eric Farnsworth, vice president of the Council of the Americas and the Americas Society, wrote in an email. “It’s like saying Guaidó is U.S.-backed . . . it’s true, but is also a subtweet that seeks to delegitimize in some quarters.”...
