Maduro ignored warnings that he risked "sparking chaos" ...
"Desperate Venezuelans are streaming across the Amazon Basin"...
Obama administration efforts to bolster the sharing of critical intelligence data with Cuba is likely to benefit Iran, which has been quietly bolstering its foothold in the country with the communist government’s approval, according to conversations with members of Congress and other sources familiar with the matter.
For Caracas housewife Anny Valero, today is grocery day — whether she likes it or not. Here's why: It's Monday, and if Valero doesn't go now, she'll have to wait four more days to buy food. In Venezuela, government supermarkets sell price-controlled food, making them far cheaper than private stores. But Valero explains that people are allowed in state-run supermarkets just two days per week, based on their ID card numbers. The system is designed to prevent shoppers from buying more than they need and then reselling goods on the black market at a huge markup.
In a vaguely-worded decree, Venezuelan officials indicated that public and private sector employees could be forced to work in the country's fields for at least 60-day periods, which may be extended "if circumstances merit." . . . . President Nicolas Maduro is using his executive powers to declare a state of economic emergency. By using a decree, he can legally circumvent Venezuela's opposition-led National Assembly -- the Congress -- which is staunchly against all of Maduro's actions.
Opposition leader Jesus Torrealba said election officials confirmed the validity of some 407,000 signatures that were under review, more than double the 200,000 signatures required.
What is striking is that the riots — sometimes half a dozen a day in the capital — are in working-class slums far from the middle-class areas where support for the opposition has traditionally been strongest. The opposition, which controls congress, is trying to push through a referendum to remove Mr Maduro but that will take time and hungry people are more concerned about procuring food. To put an end to the vast queues and black marketeers the government recently started distributing food directly to local community councils. In an area of Antímano, one of the largest slums, a council spokeswoman said that the first delivery was supposed to arrive in April but only half of it arrived. To avoid riots — and accusations that it had stolen the missing food bags — the council did not give out any supplies. Last month none arrived. This month’s supply has still not come and now there is no food in the supermarkets either.
'We want food!', Venezuelans cry at protest near presidency Venezuelan security forces fired teargas at protesters chanting "We want food!" near Caracas' presidential palace on Thursday, the latest street violence in the crisis-hit OPEC nation.
Bernie Hits Bump on Univision: Speechless on Socialism’s Failures The Democrats’ socialist candidate for President of the United States, Bernie Sanders, was seriously tripped up this week in an interview with Univision’s León Krauze.
The Atlanta-based company said in an emailed statement Friday said that its production of sugar-sweetened beverages will be suspended in the coming days after local suppliers reported they had run out of the raw material. Sugar-free beverages are not affected and the company said its offices and distribution centers remain open in Venezuela.
In a letter addressed to the Unasur delegation, the umbrella opposition group Table for Democratic Unity (MUD) said it was "willing to hold a true dialogue, with a clear agenda, equal conditions [for both sides] and the first meeting of which will be transmitted live on national radio and television channels".Additionally, the opposition wishes to have a third, independent involved in the talks in order to facilitate the process. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro earlier agreed to meet with members of the opposition, reports the Latin Times. Unasur and the Vatican have made offers to act as observers, and President Maduro said he "accepted" the Unasur proposal, according to BBC News. On Sunday, a graphic video depicting the Venezuelan people confronting the government for control of the streets was posted to Youtube. Watch it below:
Venezuelans on both sides of the nation's political divide took to the streets on Saturday after nearly two weeks of mass protests that have President Nicolas Maduro scrambling to reassert his leadership of this economically stricken country.Maduro meanwhile has been highly critical of the United States and media organizations over the course of the crisis. From AFP via Yahoo News:In Caracas, tens of thousands of opponents of President Nicolas Maduro filled several city blocks in their biggest rally to date against Maduro's 10-month-old government. Across town, a mostly female crowd of government backers gathered in T-shirts and baseball caps, forming a sea of red — the color of Maduro's Socialist party.
The dueling protests capped a violent week in which a government crackdown jailed hard-line opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez and dozens of other activists. The violence also left at least nine people dead on both sides and injured at least 100 others.
Venezuelans woke up Saturday to smoldering barricades of trash and other debris in the streets of some major cities, but there were no reports of major violence. Protesters have called on Maduro to either resolve problems such as rising crime and galloping inflation or step aside.
The tweet links to a powerful youtube video titled "What's going on in Venezuela in a nutshell (English version)," where a Venezuelan woman living in America explains the current anti-government protests and government backlash.
The video depicts photos and footage of the violent scene in Venezuela. At the end of the video, the woman narrator concludes, "If you are human, and want to share the truth, please, share this video."
Over the past week, Venezuelan protesters have been fighting against corruption in the government, high inflation, and a high murder rate.
