Did the U.S. attack? Maduro flee? No, but in Venezuela, rampant rumors fly

CARACAS, Venezuela — Even in Venezuela, a nation battered by years of economic, social and political turmoil, the Christmas season is a time to put aside one’s troubles, spend time with family, enjoy a bit of holiday cheer — if you can escape the ubiquitous uncertainty and rumors that mark life here.

On one day social media will be ablaze with reports that President Nicolás Maduro has fled to Brazil. Or to Turkey. Or that he stopped in Turkey on his way to Qatar. Or that the U.S. invasion had begun. None of it (so far) is true.

Social media daily fuels the rumor mill, in part, because access to independent news is severely restricted.

“One hears so much on social media, but learns little,” said Begoña Monasterio, 78, who was out shopping in Caracas for ingredients to prepare las hallacas, the country’s emblematic Christmas dish. It’s a succulent mix of cornmeal, meat, olives, raisins and other delectables cooked and wrapped in banana leaves, a kind of Venezuelan tamale.

“I want to give a surprise to my eldest son, who is having a birthday during the holiday,” said the grandmother.

She toted a small shopping bag and vowed to buy “the minimum,” now the custom in a once-wealthy South American nation that has suffered a decade of hyperinflation, ravaged wages, lost savings, mass displacement and migration — the equivalent of multiple Great Depressions.

But the rumors of war, and peace — and all manner of other developments, from the trivial to the momentous — are never far away, even as shoppers make their way through storefronts and well-lighted malls brimming with holiday fare, much of it beyond most family budgets.

A lot of the current chatter-cloud hovers above María Corina Machado, the Venezuelan opposition activist and recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. She lives “in hiding” in the capital, though the government’s pervasive security apparatus probably watches her movements closely.

Members of the Bolivarian militia wave Venezuelan flags in Caracas on Wednesday during a march to commemorate a 19th century military battle.

(Jesus Vargas/Getty Images)

After days of conflicting reports about her whereabouts, Machado showed up in Oslo a day after the Nobel award ceremony, reportedly following a covert, U.S.-aided voyage via land, sea and private jet. Thousands of ecstatic supporters greeted her in the Norwegian capital, a publicity coup for the opposition and another round of bad optics for Maduro’s embattled administration.

Though Machado did indeed make it to Norway, the Venezuelan rumor mill still churned out theories about her arrival.

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro addresses supporters during a rally Wednesday in Caracas.

(Pedro Rances Mattey / Anadolu / Getty Images)

“We heard at one point that María Corina left the country in the fuselage of an airplane carrying migrants, and that once she was out los gringos would arrive,” Monasterio said. “Then we hear that Maduro has fled to Brazil. Really, nothing has turned out to be true. So I try to continue with my life, savoring my little alegrías [joys] as long as I can.”

It’s a sagacious survival strategy in a country where what will happen next is anybody’s guess. Will Maduro negotiate a stay-in-power deal with President Trump? Will U.S. forces, already amassed off the Venezuelan coast, attack? Or will the tense status quo just drag on?

“One doesn’t know whom to believe,” said Sebastián López, 33, a public employee who participated in a pro-government political rally downtown, one of a series organized these days by the ruling socialist party. “Many rumors originate outside the country, from Venezuelans who have left and can write what they want on the internet. … Yes, it’s true, María Corina left. But she’ll be back again.”

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt answers questions about the recent U.S. military seizure of an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela.

(Alex Wong / Getty Images)

One report circulating is that high-ranking chavistas — the hard-core government supporters named after late ex-President Hugo Chávez, Maduro’s mentor — are sending their families abroad, anticipating a U.S. strike. But there have been no reported high-level defections, a stark contrast from 2019, when Trump, during his first-term “maximum pressure” campaign against Venezuela, also attempted to force Maduro out.

Another rumor is that, in some fashion, Washington and its allies will officially recognize as the legitimate leaders of Venezuela the opposition tandem of Edmundo González Urrutia and Machado.

González, a veteran diplomat who lives in exile in Spain, ran as a stand-in presidential candidate for Machado in last year’s national election. Maduro claimed victory in balloting results widely denounced as fraudulent.

Whether such a move by Washington would even make much difference is not clear. During his first term, Trump followed a similar strategy, declaring Juan Guaidó, then an opposition legislator, as the U.S.-recognized president of Venezuela, providing diplomatic backing and funding for a shadow government. The gambit failed. Guaidó has since joined the large Venezuelan exile community in Miami.

The news this week that U.S. forces had seized an oil tanker off the Venezuelan coast only fueled the prevalent climate of unease. Maduro’s government denounced the seizure as an act of international piracy. Fears now abound about a possible U.S. blockade, potentially throttling oil exports, Venezuela’s economic lifeline, and deepening hardships for civilians.

“I’ve heard all the rumors — that the invasion will happen before Christmas, that Maduro is negotiating his departure, to Doha, to Cuba, to Russia — but I pay no attention,” said Carmen Luisa Jiménez, a Maduro supporter in the capital’s working-class Artigas district. “We know that el presidente will never leave, that he will remain with us. … We are a nation of peace, but prepared to confront whatever attack comes from the United States.”

Militia members wave Venezuelan flags Wednesday in Caracas during a ceremony marking the anniversary of a 19th century military battle.

(Pedro Rances Mattey / Anadolu / Getty Images)

Sonia Bravo, 40, who hawks Christmas trinkets from a makeshift stand, has also heard that “zero hour” is imminent. She has no idea. A bigger concern, she says, are slumping sales and trying to put food on the table for her family.

“People can’t afford to buy much,” said Bravo. “Right now, anything seems possible. But what we are all hoping is this: That something will happen to end this nightmare.”

Meantime, Venezuelans will keep on stocking ingredients for las hallacas, a complex dish that can take days to prepare. There is no doubt about the delicacy’s comforting presence in homes this Christmas, providing a sense of continuity absent from so many other facets of contemporary life in Venezuela.

Special correspondent Mogollón reported from Caracas and Times staff writer McDonnell from Mexico City.