7 Pictures That Prove Venezuela’s Opposition ‘Strike’ Is a Flop

For Venezuela’s right-wing opposition, July 26 was supposed to be a day of momentum.

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It was the day they launched their 48-hour-long nationwide “civic strike,” which was supposed to show President Nicolas Maduro that Venezuelans oppose his mandate and the upcoming National Constituent Assembly.

“It's our moment, without a doubt,” Venezuelan opposition leader Freddy Guevara wrote on Twitter the night before, claiming that “millions of people” were going to participate. 

It was also the day they were supposed to “paralyze” the country, bringing businesses, public services and activities across the country to a halt. 

Early Wednesday morning, however, those pipe dreams were quickly shattered. 

Dozens of images have surfaced on social media of Venezuelans across the country carrying on with their regular morning routines, traveling to work and school.

Perhaps even more embarrassing, their call to post thousands of pictures of empty streets using the #HuelgaYParoPorVzla (Strike for Venezuela) hashtag fell on deaf ears — a quick search reveals that just Guevara and a few other opposition leaders have been tweeting photos of “empty” streets.

Even Reuters, one of many mainstream media cheerleaders for the Venezuelan opposition, was forced to admit the “strike” was a failure. 

There was less enthusiasm for the strike “in working-class neighborhoods and rural zones where the government has traditionally drawn more support,” the outlet reported Wednesday, adding that “fewer people appeared to be heeding the shutdown” compared to a similar action called last week.

Here are seven pictures that prove the Venezuelan opposition’s so-called “strike” is a total flop.