‘Lower your clenched fist,’ Maduro told

CARDINAL Jorge Urosa has deplored a call from the Venezuelan President, Nicolas Maduro, for his civilian militia supporters to confront protesters who have erected blockades on roads around Caracas, writes Isabel de Bertodano.
“The use of force is reserved by law for the use of the security forces,” said the cardinal. “The intervention of these groups to suppress the protests is not only illegal, it’s also extremely dangerous.”

More than 20 people have died in a month of protests against the Maduro Government by people who say they are tired of high inflation, undemocratic policies and rising crime rates.

The Archbishop of Coro, Roberto Luckert, has written an open letter to Mr Maduro saying that “one can’t hold dialogue with a clenched fist”. “Mr President, call for dialogue but lower your fist,” said the archbishop. “Tone down your aggression, you have a grave problem on your hands.”