AMERICA/VENEZUELA - National holiday marked by demonstrations

Wednesday, 25 June 2014

Caracas (Agenzia Fides) - Yesterday, June 24, the 193rd anniversary of the Battle of Carabobo was celebrated in Venezuela, which marked its independence from Spain. In addition to the official ceremonies, demonstrations against President Nicolas Maduro were held in Caracas and other cities in the country, and to demand the release of prisoners jailed for anti-government protests.
In fact, since February (see Fides 15/03/2014), some of the protests have been marked by episodes of intense violence, causing deaths, and injuries. The Catholic Church has reiterated its offer of mediation in dialogue with all the parties concerned, but the situation still remains without a solution.
In Caracas yesterday, several hundred protesters walked through the main streets of the affluent municipality of Chacao, where Maria Corina Machado (former MP), who is pushing for the resignation of Maduro, told the crowd that "the goal of the demonstration is independence, and the force to reach it is the unity of the opposition". Machado and the leader of the Voluntad Popular Party, Leopoldo Lopez (in prison), are identified by the government of Maduro as the main instigators of violence recorded in some anti-government protests. (CE) (Agenzia Fides 25/06/2014)


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