The past few weeks have seen a dramatic increase in the political unrest and military pushback that has ravaged Venezuela since February. The protests have been dubbed a “Venezuelan Spring,” in reference to its revolution-minded demonstrations reminiscent of the ongoing Arab Spring in the Middle East. Like participants in the Arab Spring, Venezuelan protesters have been met with a violent response from authorities. Venezuelan security forces have been accused of using excessive force against members of the opposition, resulting in 41 deaths and hundreds of injuries. 97 officers are currently being investigated for the use of “cruelty and torture” in persecuting protesters. Strategic command chief of the military Vladimir Padrino vehemently denied human rights abuses, insisting that the actions of security officers had been lawful.
The Venezuelan government has accused the U.S. of supporting the opposition in an attempt to destabilize President Nicolas Maduro, a member of the United Socialist Party. In an interview with The Guardian, Maduro pointed to the U.S.’ history of supporting coups in other Latin American countries, including the 1973 Pinochet takeover in Chile and 2004 coup in Haiti. Venezuela faced a coup attempt under Hugo Chavez in 2002 that was also allegedly supported by the U.S. The Venezuelan government fears a reiteration of this coup attempt.
The crisis in Venezuela has now reached a breaking point. Last week, mounting violence spurred peace talks between President Nicolas Maduro and the opposition, sponsored by the Vatican as well as Colombia, Brazil, and Ecuador. Though protests continue, the dialogues taking place finally indicate progress and hope for peace for the highly polarized nation.
Sources:
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-27015608
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/17/venezuela-protests-talks-truth-commission
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_Venezuelan_protests#January
Image:
The Guardian: Student protesters march barefoot in Caracas ‘in penance’ for the country’s economic and crime problems. Photograph: Christian Veron/Reuters
