Outrage in Venezuela despite court move to reverse decision on legislative power

World Today

Venezuela Political CrisisA protester covers his face from tear gas fired by Venezuelan National Police as he holds a sign that reads in Spanish: ” No more dictatorship,” in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, April 1, 2017. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Venezuela’s Supreme Court has reversed its decision annulling the country’s legislature.  But the move is seen as too little, too late by concerned leaders across South America.

In a statement retracting Wednesday’s decision to strip parliament of its powers, Supreme Court President Maikel Moreno, said  “the content” of the ruling had now been “suppressed.”

CGTN’s Juan Carlos Lamas reports from Caracas where protesters are demanding Venezuela’s President Maduro step down.

The decision to restore parliament’s powers came hours after President Nicolas Maduro ordered the court to think again. His intervention came after the country’s  Attorney General,  Luisa Ortega Díaz criticized the Supreme Court ruling, saying it violated the constitution and represented a “rupture of the constitutional order.”

But for opposition lawmakers, the move does not go far enough. Parliament President Julio Borges called on the international community to apply more pressure on the government and appealed to protesters to carry on making their voices heard.

Venezuela’s political unrest brought Foreign Ministers from South America’s largest trading bloc together for an emergency meeting in Buenos Aires. The group is demanding steps be taken to ensure separation of powers within the government.