Maduro’s gone: Why are Venezuelans still afraid of the government?

With the repressive machinery Maduro used still in place, many Venezuelans are scared to celebrate his departure.Published On 8 Jan 2026Some 2,000 miles (3,200km) now separate Venezuelans from Nicolas Maduro, their abducted president, who United States special forces have flown to New York.But Mario, a Caracas resident, is worried about celebrating publicly against the ouster of a leader who oversaw a government apparatus that to many Venezuelans became synonymous with repression.Maduro’s government remains mostly intact after his Vice President Delcy Rodriguez was sworn in – with US President Donald Trump’s blessing – as acting president on Monday. Her track record within the Maduro establishment has many Venezuelans on edge; deleting texts, avoiding talking about politics in public, and self-censoring on social media, according to people interviewed by Al Jazeera.Since the US bombing, Venezuelan police have announced the arrest of at least four people for celebrating Maduro’s capture or mocking the former leader.“[The police] apprehended two citizens in Guaraque who were celebrating the kidnapping of President Maduro,” read one statement from police in the western city of Merida; “Two arrested for incitement to hatred and treason,” read another from authorities in the state of Carabobo.The crackdown comes after the government on Saturday decreed a state of emergency, ordering security forces to “immediately undertake the search and capture … of any person involved in promoting or supporting the armed attack by the United States of America” and to prosecute them.Screenshots of the decree have circulated on social media, contributing to what some residents say is a chilling effect.