Protests in Venezuela

This item appears on page 19 of the June 2017 issue.

In Venezuela, at least 28 people were killed during massive protests against the presidency of Nicolas Maduro that, at press time, had been ongoing since the Venezuelan supreme court tried to invalidate the National Assembly on March 30. That order was later reversed. Violent clashes occurred between opposition protesters and security forces as well as between pro- and anti-Maduro groups.

Demands of opposition protesters include removing the justices who temporarily suspended the National Assembly, holding general elections, releasing political prisoners and allowing humanitarian aid to enter the country to alleviate the extreme shortages of food and medicine. Venezuela is also experiencing triple-digit inflation and high crime rates.