PHOTOS: As Venezuela Says It Will Leave OAS, Citizens Continue Month Long Protest
As the current administrations begins the lengthy process of leaving the OAS, Hundreds of opponents of President Nicolas Maduro were marching to a military prison outside Caracas on Friday to demand the release of Leopoldo Lopez and other jailed activists they consider political prisoners.
Demonstrators block the Francisco de Miranda highway after a homage to Juan Pablo Pernalete in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, April 27, 2017. Pernalete, the latest victim of Venezuela's unrest, was killed during anti-government protests Wednesday when he was struck by a tear gas canister fired by security forces. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)
An opponent of President Nicolas Maduro aims his slingshot during protests as security forces block protesters from reaching the national ombudsman office in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, April 26, 2017. Hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans have flooded the streets over the last month to demand an end to Maduro's presidency. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Demonstrators block the Francisco de Miranda highway after a homage to Juan Pablo Pernalete in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, April 27, 2017. Pernalete, the latest victim of Venezuela's unrest, was killed during anti-government protests Wednesday when he was struck by a tear gas canister fired by security forces. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)
A woman cries during an homage to Juan Pablo Pernalete in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, April 27, 2017. Pernalete, the latest victim of Venezuela's unrest, was killed during anti-government protests Wednesday when he was struck by a tear gas canister fired by security forces. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
A woman dressed in a grim reaper costume holds a sign that reads in Spanish: "Maduro's dictatorship is death" during an homage to Juan Pablo Pernalete in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, April 27, 2017. Pernalete, the latest victim of Venezuela's unrest, was killed during anti-government protests Wednesday when he was struck by a tear gas canister fired by security forces. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
A woman, center, cries as she sings during an homage to Juan Pablo Pernalete in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, April 27, 2017. Pernalete, the latest victim of Venezuela's unrest, was killed during anti-government protests Wednesday when he was struck by a tear gas canister fired by security forces. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Anti-government protesters carry high tension cables to build up a barricade in Caracas, Venezuela, Monday, April 24, 2017. Thousands of demonstrators shut down the capital city's main highway to express their disgust with the socialist administration of President Nicolas Maduro. Protesters in at least a dozen other cities also staged sit-ins as the protest movement is entering its fourth week. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Nuns attendg a session of the Venezuelan National Assembly at a sports park in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, April 27, 2017. Opposition lawmakers payed homage to the latest victim of Venezuela's unrest, Juan Pablo Pernalete, who was killed Wednesday when he was struck by a canister of tear gas fired by security forces. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
People sing Venezuela's national anthem during a session of the Venezuelan National Assembly at a sports park in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, April 27, 2017. Opposition lawmakers payed homage to the latest victim of Venezuela's unrest, Juan Pablo Pernalete, who was killed Wednesday when he was struck by a canister of tear gas fired by security forces. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
The President of Venezuela's National Assembly Julio Borges smiles during a session of the Venezuelan National Assembly at a sports park in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, April 27, 2017. Opposition lawmakers payed homage to the latest victim of Venezuela's unrest, Juan Pablo Pernalete, who was killed Wednesday when he was struck by a canister of tear gas fired by security forces. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
People attend a session of the Venezuelan National Assembly at a sports park in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, April 27, 2017. Opposition lawmakers payed homage to the latest victim of Venezuela's unrest, Juan Pablo Pernalete, who was killed Wednesday when he was struck by a canister of tear gas fired by security forces. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
An anti-government protester sits at a barricade in Caracas, Venezuela, Monday, April 24, 2017. Thousands of demonstrators shut down the capital city's main highway to express their disgust with the socialist administration of President Nicolas Maduro. Protesters in at least a dozen other cities also staged sit-ins as the protest movement is entering its fourth week. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) —
Venezuela’s government says it will begin withdrawing from the Organization of American States, in reaction to growing international pressure on the socialist-run South American nation.
Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez says President Nicolas Maduro will send a letter Thursday to the Washington-based OAS renouncing its membership in the hemispheric body.
The decision had been expected. It came a short while after envoys to the OAS approved a resolution convening a special meeting of regional foreign ministers to discuss Venezuela’s crisis.
Rodriguez says Maduro’s administration has been forced to counter what it sees as an attempt by the OAS and conservative regional governments to topple Maduro.
And as the current administrations begins the lengthy process of leaving the OAS, Hundreds of opponents of President Nicolas Maduro were marching to a military prison outside Caracas on Friday to demand the release of Leopoldo Lopez and other jailed activists they consider political prisoners.
The march was part of an intensifying campaign by the opposition to force Maduro from office. Already 28 people have been killed, hundreds injured and more than 1,300 arrested in almost four weeks of street clashes between protesters, security forces and pro-government groups.
Light armored vehicles and national guardsmen blocked access to the Ramo Verde military prison where Lopez is serving a nearly 14 year sentence for inciting violence during a previous round of anti-government unrest in 2014.
Many foreign governments and human rights groups condemned Lopez’s conviction as politically motivated. One of the prosecutors in the case, who has since sought asylum in the U.S., even said he was under orders from the government to arrest Lopez despite a lack of evidence.
Lopez’s wife Lilian Tintori was at the front of a group of lawmakers and opposition activists carrying a large Venezuelan flag making their way to the prison. In a telephone interview with Colombia’s Blu Radio, said she hadn’t been allowed to see her husband since April 6 because authorities were punishing them for promoting protests. There was no immediate response from the government.
“For Maduro, not being on his side is a crime, thinking differently is a crime,” she said. “They forgot what democracy is.”
Foro Penal, a group that provides legal assistance to political prisoners, says at least 178 people are currently jailed for political activism.
President Donald Trump in February tweeted a photo of himself with Tintori at the Oval Office demanding that Lopez be let out “immediately.”
At the time Venezuelan Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez accused Trump of committing an “aggression” against Venezuela and a day later the Supreme Court upheld the activist’s conviction in a ruling on his appeal.
