News / Venezuela

Government supporter ‘dies of injuries’ in Venezuela

Monday, 24 April 2017 5:01 AM [ Last Update: Monday, 24 April 2017 5:14 AM ]

Demonstrators clash with police during a protest in Caracas, Venezuela, April 20, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

A Venezuelan national has reportedly died less than a week after she sustained injuries to her head during pro-government demonstrations in the capital Caracas.

Almelina Carrillo, 47, died on Sunday, the head of Venezuela’s Moral Council, Tarek Saab, wrote on Twitter.

Carrillo had reportedly been hit in the head by a bottle thrown from a building during a rally on April 19.

Her death raised the fatality toll from recent unrest in Venezuela to 21.

On April 19, thousands of people supporting President Nicolas Maduro took to the streets in four separate rallies in Caracas.

The supporters of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro rally in Caracas, April 19, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

The demonstrations followed weeks of massive anti-government rallies, which began after Venezuela’s Supreme Court stripped the opposition-controlled parliament of its powers. The move to seize the powers of the only lever of state authority not controlled by Maduro unleashed long-simmering anger and sparked the fiercest protests against him in three years. While that decision was later revoked under pressure, protests have only gained momentum.

The opposition, which blames Maduro, the army, and the national guard for the recent violence in the country, has called for an early presidential election. Currently, a presidential election is scheduled to take place in Venezuela next year.

Maduro, however, claims that the protests are incited by the Unites Stated to remove him from power.

Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro speaks during his weekly broadcast in the capital, Caracas, April 23, 2017. (Photo by Reuters)

On Saturday, he ruled out an election at the presidential level but said he was eager for mayoral and gubernatorial elections to take place.

“Elections... Yes, I want elections now,” Maduro said. “That is what I say as the head of state, and as the head of government.”

Maduro’s leftist government is under fire for a devastating economic crisis that has left many Venezuelans struggling with severe shortages of food, medicine, and other basic goods, among other economic woes.

The opposition has planned more demonstrations for Monday to call for Maduro’s ouster. The organizers have called on people to block the roads.

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