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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Venezuela protest turns violent | Venezuela protest turns violent |
| (about 10 hours later) | |
| Thousands of students have clashed with police in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, during a protest against proposed constitutional changes. | Thousands of students have clashed with police in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, during a protest against proposed constitutional changes. |
| Police fired tear gas at students angry at plans to let President Hugo Chavez stand for indefinite re-election as bottles and stones were thrown. | Police fired tear gas at students angry at plans to let President Hugo Chavez stand for indefinite re-election as bottles and stones were thrown. |
| Mr Chavez would also be allowed to bypass legal controls on the executive during a state of emergency. | Mr Chavez would also be allowed to bypass legal controls on the executive during a state of emergency. |
| Parliament, composed of Chavez allies, is now debating the changes. | Parliament, composed of Chavez allies, is now debating the changes. |
| They will be subjected to a popular referendum later this year. | They will be subjected to a popular referendum later this year. |
| 'Unfair restrictions' | 'Unfair restrictions' |
| Students had chanted "Reform, no - democracy, yes" as they tried to reach parliament. | Students had chanted "Reform, no - democracy, yes" as they tried to reach parliament. |
| Mr Chavez insists that the reforms are necessaryScuffles began when they tried to push through police lines. | Mr Chavez insists that the reforms are necessaryScuffles began when they tried to push through police lines. |
| Student leader Stalin Gonzalez said at least five demonstrators had suffered minor injuries, the Associated Press reports. | Student leader Stalin Gonzalez said at least five demonstrators had suffered minor injuries, the Associated Press reports. |
| "There is... a part of this country that rejects these reforms and we want to be heard," Mr Gonzalez told a local television station. | "There is... a part of this country that rejects these reforms and we want to be heard," Mr Gonzalez told a local television station. |
| Protesters complained that police had stopped their march from reaching the National Assembly while the authorities frequently allow Chavez supporters to stage street demonstrations without restrictions. | Protesters complained that police had stopped their march from reaching the National Assembly while the authorities frequently allow Chavez supporters to stage street demonstrations without restrictions. |
| "It's clear proof of political discrimination," said Mr Gonzalez. | "It's clear proof of political discrimination," said Mr Gonzalez. |
| Among the students' concerns about the erosion of civil liberties is the fear that the authorities will be allowed to detain citizens without charge during a state of emergency. | Among the students' concerns about the erosion of civil liberties is the fear that the authorities will be allowed to detain citizens without charge during a state of emergency. |
| Mr Chavez has dismissed criticism of the constitutional changes saying they are needed to accelerate Venezuela's transition to socialism. | Mr Chavez has dismissed criticism of the constitutional changes saying they are needed to accelerate Venezuela's transition to socialism. |
| Your accounts and comments: | |
| I am a 23 year old science graduate student. I went to the march because of the academic content of my faculty is being destryoed by ideology. We no longer have freedom of thought. I personally do not believe in totalitarism though I know many say that we have now had too much democracy and doctatorship is the only way. Our march was peaceful and the police behaved well for once but pro-Chavez elements attacked us with violence. In particular beer bottles, bricks, metal, stones and feces were thrown at us from government buildings including the Ministry for Science & Technology. Why does the government not want us to express our views? We are Venezuelan too.Simon Rodriguez, Maracaibo, Zulia | |
| One thing your report does not say, which it should, is that it is not campaigning time yet on the new constitution. Therefore, the National Guard/Police are complying with the law by preventing any marches - until the legal campaigning time begins for both sides. The organizers of the march were fully aware of this.Miguel, Caracas, Venezuela | |
| Yes I assisted at the National Asembly against the student march. The world should realize the march was only of fascist imperialist students organized and funded by the CIA as part of a campain to distablize our country. We will not permt them to march and infiltrate our democratic instituions. They must be stopped by force. Viva El Comandante Chavez!!Jose Hernandez , Caracas, Venezuela | |
| I would describe the atmosphere as almost festive up until a certain point (though its purpose never forgotten). Chants void of political influence, pertaining to specific alma maters or glorifying students as a whole were heard as frequent as those against the reform and the administration. From my perspective, tensions began to rise around the time the march encountered the first barricade. Here, possible sparked by the firecrackers and tear-gas, the students donned their riot gear (which consisted of a mask of toothpaste and a vinegar soaked handkerchief) in preparation for the worst, however the police from then on surprised me with their respect and restraint. As mentioned in other comments, the majority of the resistance came from those in favor of the current government, who either did not appear or chose not to present their opinions until towards the end of the manifestation (however any opinions presented were drown-out by those of the march). The incidences involving violence appeared to be few and contained to a very small group, though I did encounter a female student who incurred a split lip while clashing with the first police barricade.David Saenz, Caracas, Venezuela | |
| I am 17, a high school student, and was attending the march. (The protest was organized by the students, and I would say that more than two thirds of the people present were university students.) As BBC reports, we encountered light resistance from the police (which acted in accordance with their protocol). The people that support Chavez, on the other hand, threw bottles and stones when we tried to get near the General Assembly. If the Constitutional Reform is passed, more than 40 articles will be modified for the benefit of Hugo Chavez, who is blindly driving the country to ruins in his search for the long-lost communism. Jose Diaz, Caracas, Venezuela | |
| I was in the protest, the "Chavistas" (people that support Chavez) start to throw Publicity, CD´s of the President singing Folklore Song´s (i broke almost all of it) and, like always, partidist of the "Chavismo" began to throw bottles, rocks, and hard objects to try to stop us to reach our Goal, and the police built a lot of human-Walls, but we got enougth, we started to fight against them, and we won!... We go to a new Cuba, and so appears that nobody is going to help us...STUDENTS MOVEMENT!!!... Students Movement!!! (Victor ), Caracas, Venezuela | |
| ...what actually happened was that students and other demonstrators where marching towards the parlament as a protest, yes, but the ones trowing bottles and stones and "rioting" where people that support Chavez, in an attempt to stop the students to getting near the parlament to hand out a letter of petitions... Valentina Tepedino, Caracas, Venezuela | |
| I saw it on the one TV station still relatively free. The remarkable thing was that after a light skirmish, the municipal police did not oppose being pushed aside by the advancing student demonstration - or it was a last-minute change in tactics to show how "democratic" the regime is. The National Guard attitude was more hostile yet also non-violent. Another student march is announced for next Thursday, again to press for postponment of the constitutional changes.pedro (this is a pseudonym, my full name is not for publication), caracas, venezuela | |
| I helped organize protests in NYC against restructuring of the City University. Many of the students were from working class backgrounds, and of the thousands who showed up at City Hall, the overwhelming majority where black or of Latin American descent. 7,000 police were mobilized to contain the protests. I myself was beaten and hospitalized in the days leading up to it... Our demands were for an open university that served the entire population. These student protesters are far more concerned with defending their wealth and priviledge. Their right-wing leaders supported a military coup, a coup who's leader now sits at liberty in Miami, Florida. I have to say that North Americans are getting sick of a lying, right-wing media that only respects dissent when it looks down at the people and proclaims a democratic and socialist government a tyranny. Where were these heroic students when the coup leaders shot people down in the streets of Caracas? Where were they when democracy was truly spit on? They were cheering. The fact is that Venezuela has more students than ever, less censorship than ever and is actually repossessing their national wealth away from the foreign oil companies and the parasitic elite that views Venezuela's patrimony as their personal inheritance. BBC. Fox News. CNN. RCTV... We've had enough.Jed Brandt, New York City | |
| Wow....Someone fell asleep at the wheel with Chavez. This protest is unbelievably poignant as a sincere cry from the higher educated populous to the masses to wakeup and see that their democracy is being ripped from under them. Chavez's handling of this response to his actions will certainly be interesting. If he truly means well ...we will see. Unfortunately one of the very real effects of power is, over time it will eventually always corrupt.Nat, Pembroke Pines, Florida.USA | |
| President Chavez sees himself as the successor to Cuba's Castro and as such has set Venezuela on a course to copy verbatim the Cuban constitution. Once the constitutional referendum is passed, there will be absolutely no checks and balances on Chavez perpetuating his regime indefinitely. The proposed constitutional "reforms" concentrate power in the executive, threaten private property and subordinate all branches of power to the personal whim of the president, including the creation of non-professional militias answerable only to the Head of State. They are a thinly veiled means of achieving absolute power. As such, the students are absolutely right to oppose a democratic roll back in what was once Latin America's most durable democracy. miguel silva ramos, caracas, Venezuela | |
| The demonstration of today displays that youth people are the one that should carry the command of the fight against this government, they should not fear the police must give everything for the whole. Today showed that at the heart of caracas must say enough is enough to do so east of the city. Those who marched today deserve applauseManuel Gago, Caracas Venezuela |