Student

Nicole Halseth
News Editor | ote-news@unbc.ca

Aw to the BBC, “At least three
people were shot dead as violence
erupted during anti-government protests
in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, on
Wednesday.” This follows a series of
protests against the policies of Venezuelan
President Nicolas Maduro.

After around 10,000 people had already

left what was a largely peaceful protest,
two people were shot dead by men on
motorbikes who opened fire on what was
left of the crowd, and a third person died in
later protests.

Many of these protestors are students, and
they marched to the federal prosecutor's
office on 12 February “to demand the
release of 13 protesters who they say were

illegally detained in previous marches.”

Two of the victims who have been
identified as the ones shot after the rally
include Bassil da Costa, 24, and Juan
Montoya. It is believed that da Costa was an
anti-government protester, while Montoya
was at the rally as a pro-government
supporter.

President Maduro blames the incidents on a
“neo-fascist upsurge,” and claims that while
he wishes for peace, he will not allow the
violence to go unpunished.

Ina TV and radio broadcast, Maduro stated
“There will be no coup d'etat in Venezuela,
you can be absolutely sure of that, let the
whole world know that.” However, there

is still strong oppositional support, and
politicians are calling for more protests
despite the recent violent upswing.

One of these oppositional politicians is
Caracas mayor Antonio Ledezma, who
had this to say on the matter: “Just as we
condemn the violent incidents, we say to
all Venezuelan families that we have to
remain ready to continue fighting, calmly
but with determination.” He continued by
saying “You have to know, Mr. Maduro, that
whatever you do, what started today will
not stop until change is achieved in peace
and with democracy for all Venezuelans.”

Protesters are calling for the resignation of
the President amongst growing discontent.
Among the strongest supporters for this
anti-government movement include
students from western states of Tachira
and Merida. They claim that the lack of
security and the failing economy need to be
addressed.

According to the BBC, “The country has the
highest inflation rate in the region at 56.2%

reuters

protests in Venezuela

in 2013,” in addition to having one of the
highest murder rates in the world. Staple
shortages, such as with supplies of milk
and toilet paper, have also been incredibly
common in recent times. Many blame the
current government for this state of affairs,
though opinions are incredibly divided
throughout the country. The government,
meanwhile, blames the current troubles
on “saboteurs” and “profit-hungry corrupt
businessmen.”

For more pictures of the protests, and more
information on the current situation in
Venezuela, check out: http://www.bbc.
co.uk/news/world-latin-america-26166094.

These protests are being driven by
students, and as fellow students in Canada,
we can only hope that these protests
remain as peaceful as possible, to avoid
future deadly violence.