Courtesy of: Associated Press
This week: After a controversial election and numerous protests, Nicolás Maduro’s presidency is off to a rocky start; shortly after his inauguration, Maduro shuffles his cabinet, keeping most of Hugo Chávez’s allies and key players; Venezuela’s electoral council and opposition leader Henrique Capriles express widely different expectations for the audit of the contested election; as a result, Capriles announces that the opposition will boycott the election audit because the Electoral Council failed to meet its demand for an examination of the “registers,” which contain voters’ signatures and fingerprints; and Capriles is threatened with jail as the opposition shows government claims of post-election violence to be exaggerated. Venezuela’s opposition accuses the government of engaging in mass arrests of protesters and harassment of government workers suspected of voting against Maduro; the government deals with accusations they exaggerated claims of opposition supporters firebombing Cuban-run neighborhood health clinics; Venezuela’s political climate and unrest worry Pope Francis, who urged politicians to reject any kind of violence and establish dialogue towards a reconciliation; and already with one of the world’s highest murder rates, political violence gets added to the mix of an already crime-ridden Venezuela. The Venezuelan government cuts off Capriles TV speech after he accused the government of robbing the election; Venezuela’s government arrests a US filmmaker, accusing him of plotting post-election instability; Venezuela’s Congressional Speaker, Diosdado Cabello, announces that government employees refusing to recognize Maduro as the legitimate president will not be paid; and Venezuela declares a 90-day electricity emergency amid unrest towards country-wide blackouts.
Maduro’s lousy start, The Economist
HUGO CHÁVEZ has been dead for more than a month, but visitors to Caracas could be forgiven for thinking that Venezuela’s bombastic former president was still alive and in power.
Shortly after narrow election victory, Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro shuffles Cabinet, Fox News
Newly elected Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro has shuffled his Cabinet, putting allies of late president Hugo Chavez in positions to tackle pressing problems including widespread power outages and double-digit inflation.
Opposition, election body differ on Venezuela vote audit, Chicago Tribune
Venezuela’s opposition and electoral authority expressed on Saturday widely differing expectations for an audit of the contested April 14 presidential election, a day after Nicolas Maduro was sworn in to succeed the late Hugo Chavez.
Venezuela opposition to boycott vote audit, USA Today
Venezuelan opposition leader Henrique Capriles Radonski said Thursday his movement will boycott an audit of the election results and push the government to hold a new presidential vote.
Venezuela: Capriles Threatened With Jail As Inquiry Into Election Violence Continues, Fox News Latino
The contested presidential election in Venezuela that saw Hugo Chávez’s successor maintain control of the South American nation has shed light on the deep ideological divide within the country and raised questions over the legitimacy of Venezuela’s state-run media.
Venezuela opposition denounces arrests of protesters, AFP
Venezuela’s opposition Saturday accused the government of President Nicolas Maduro of engaging in mass arrests of protesters and harassing government workers suspected of voting against him.
Venezuelan Govt Targets Disaffected Ex-Supporters, The Associated Press
The razor-close vote to replace late Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has sparked what opposition leaders and human rights groups say is a government crackdown on public employees who either didn’t back Chavez’s hand-picked successor or failed to show sufficient support for the ruling party.
Venezuela’s Political Climate Worries Pope Francis, Fox News Latino
While he no longer resides in the region, the first pope from South America says he is worried about the political unrest in Venezuela.
Political violence threatens crime-ridden Venezuela, AFP
With one of the world’s highest murder rates, Venezuela’s daily Russian roulette with violent crime now has an added spin: the threat of political violence due to the country’s election impasse.
Venezuela Cuts Off Capriles’s TV Speech Over ‘Robbed’ Election, Bloomberg Businessweek
Venezuela cut off the transmission of a speech by opposition leader Henrique Capriles Radonski yesterday using a system of national broadcasts known as “cadena” after he said this month’s election was “robbed.”
Venezuela Says U.S. Citizen Plotted Unrest, NYTimes.com
An American citizen has been arrested by Venezuelan authorities who said Thursday that he had been taken into custody because he was involved in a plot to destabilize the country after the recent presidential election.
Congress Speaker: Deputies not recognizing Maduro will not be paid, El Universal
During a visit to the state of Anzoátegui, northeast Venezuela, Congress Speaker Diosdado Cabello announced that any deputies failing to recognize Nicolás Maduro as the new president would not be paid.
Venezuela Declares 90-Day Electricity ‘Emergency’, Reuters
President Nicolas Maduro’s government declared a 90-day “emergency” in Venezuela’s electricity sector on Tuesday to speed up infrastructure work and equipment imports needed to prevent politically-contentious power cuts.