Venezuela braces for demonstrations amid election dispute

CARACAS: Venezuela on Friday was bracing for weekend protests, both from the opposition which disputes Nicolas Maduro´s reelection, and the president´s supporters, whom he has called to participate in the “mother of all marches” to back his win.

Uruguay and Argentina said they recognised opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia as the president-elect of Venezuela, joining the United States and Peru in rejecting the official results which showed Maduro had been reelected.

The election authority on Friday ratified Maduro´s win with 52 percent of the vote.

Maduro, 61, has reacted fiercely to criticism of his victory and has vowed to lock up opposition leader Maria Corina Machado and her presidential candidate Gonzalez Urrutia, saying they “should be behind bars.”

Machado, who had been barred from running herself, has called on supporters to gather on Saturday “in every city” to protest Maduro´s reelection. Maduro, for his part, has called for daily mobilization and “the mother of all marches to celebrate the victory of peace” -- also on Saturday.