Both anti and pro-Maduro demonstrations were held in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas as the economic lot of millions worsened [Xinhua]
Hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans took to the streets of the capital Caracas on Thursday to protest against President Nicholas Maduro, in what was the largest show of opposition to the government since inflation soared and vital food staples disappeared from the shelves.
Protesters dressed in white and shouted “this government will fall”, as they rallied for a referendum reinstating confidence in Maduro’s government from earlier this year to be recalled.
But elsewhere in Caracas, Maduro supporters donned red shirts, promoting the color of the ruling socialist party.
At a rally organized to counter the protests, they carried flags and handwritten signs accusing the opposition of trying to mount a coup.
The local news broadcaster TeleSur showed footage of Maduro attending the rally.
The government has reportedly jailed a number of prominent opposition figures, blocked off several roads and heavily deployed security forces ahead of the scheduled demonstrations.
Venezuela is facing one of the worst economic crises in Latin American history, with food shortages, soaring prices and lingering unemployment continuing to plague the nation since 2014.
In just the past year, food protests have increased exponentially as prices skyrocketed.
The crime rate has soared with violent robberies taking place including hundreds of looting incidents.
Venezuelans now face multiple daily power outages while businesses shut down and factory output drops significantly.
Even for those who can afford to buy food, staple scarcity has become a major challenge for the government.
Venezuela, like some emerging economies, has based nearly its entire GDP growth on oil exports. With an oil glut now entering its third year, the International Monetary Fund forecasts that inflation in 2016 will hit more than 720 per cent and that the economy will contract by 8 per cent.
Some analysts say the inflation rate could hit as high as 1,700 per cent in 2017.
The spiraling economic crisis appears to have gotten the better of Leftist President Nicolas Maduro and his party.
In April 2013, Maduro won a national election by a margin of only 1.5 per cent.
As the economic crises worsened, the opposition found its hand gaining strength.
In December 2015, Venezuela’s opposition Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD) party won 99 of 167 parliamentary seats.
The BRICS Post with inputs from Agencies
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