Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro says several opposition activists accused of plotting violence during an anti-government rally scheduled for Thursday have been arrested.
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“The transfer of @Daniel_Ceballos to a prison constitutes one more link in a chain of human rights violations against prisoners of conscience”, his lawyer, Juan Carlos Gutierrez, charged on his Twitter account.
Venezuela has signed an agreement with foreign partners worth over $5.5 billion on investment in mining projects in the south of the country, President Nicolas Maduro announced.
Patricia de Ceballos said agents from the Sebin intelligence service arrived at their residence in the capital Caracas at around 3 a.m. on Saturday saying they were going to conduct a medical exam for her husband, who was granted house arrest in 2015 for health reasons.
The protest scheduled for September 1 in Caracas has been called for by the opposition coalition Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD) in an attempt to push for a recall vote against Maduro, as the country is facing a severe economic crisis with chronic shortage of goods and spiraling inflation.
He won a congressional primary from behind bars a year ago but authorities later barred him from holding public office.
Widespread food shortages, inflation topping 700 percent, a deep recession plus rampant crime have all fueled calls for a change after 17 years of socialist rule under Maduro and his predecessor, the late Hugo Chavez.
He said Venezuela’s oil minister and foreign minister would make announcements in the coming weeks, but did not provide details on concrete actions.
Caracas foreign affairs chief Delcy Rodriguez said the meeting was attended by a ministerial delegation and added that the two countries are working to “continue strengthening” strategic alliances.
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The incidents come amid escalating political tensions as the Venezuelan leader wards off pressure to hold a recall vote this year that could remove him from office. We condemn it and call for Mr. Ceballos’ immediate release.
