Protests continue after Venezuelan diplomatic win
Protests continue after Venezuelan diplomatic win
By CHRISTOPHER SHERMAN, Associated Press | March 8, 2014 | Updated: March 8, 2014 10:50am
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelans returned to the streets in protest Saturday, while the government continued to celebrate a diplomatic victory in the Organization of American States.
Students called Saturday's demonstration the "empty pots march" to highlight Venezuelans' growing frustration with shortages of some everyday items. In Caracas, the march was scheduled to end at the country's Food Ministry, but the evening before Caracas' mayor announced that he had not authorized the march. Hundreds of riot police and National Guardsmen were posted in the area Saturday morning.
President Nicolas Maduro was scheduled to appear at a separate event recognizing the international day of the woman. Maduro has faced several weeks of daily student-led protests in Caracas and some other cities. The protests have been joined by mostly middle-class Venezuelans fed up with inflation that reached 56 percent last year, the shortages of items such as flour, cooking oil and toilet paper, and one of the highest murder rates in the world.
Late Friday in Washington, the Organization of American States approved a declaration that rejected violence and called for justice for the 21 people the government says have died in weeks of street protests. The resolution also offered "full support" for the Venezuelan government's peace initiative, in which the opposition has so far refused to participate. Student and political opposition leaders, one of whom is jailed, have refused to engage in dialogue with the government until all jailed protesters are released.
More:
http://www.chron.com/news/world/article/Protests-continue-after-Venezuelan-diplomatic-win-5299624.php
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