Venezuela crisis: Opposition condemns Maduro move

Opponents of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro have set up roadblocks and staged demonstrations demanding elections as the country’s political and economic crisis deepens.

They responded with defiance to his call for a new constitution to end unrest that has killed 28 people. Mr Maduro said his move was necessary to fend off a foreign-backed plot against him. The US said it was a bid to cling to power, while Brazil called it a “coup”. The president’s opponents want to hold a vote to remove him, blaming the left-wing president for food shortages that have led to rioting. Mr Maduro has rejected their calls and issued a presidential decree creating a 500-member “constituent assembly” to rewrite the constitution, a step that would bypass the opposition-controlled National Assembly.]]>