Venezuelan Chancellor Elías Jaua has accused student protesters of engineering an "international campaign of lies and falsehoods" which looks to paint the country as being on the brink of civil war and the state as an oppressive force. The comments were made at a meeting of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva in response to Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's insistence that Maduro "listen to the legitimate aspirations of those protesting."
Venezuela has indeed been in the grips of violent protests led by students, demonstrating against Venezuela's high inflation and oppressive government. However, Elías Jaua tells a different story: "The international community should know that this aggression against democracy is by its very nature political and ideological, and its objective is to topple a government elected legitimately," he insisted during a speech televised live via state TV.
Protests have been ongoing in Venezuela since February 12. Despite Jaua's comments of conspiracy, the facts do not lie. Inflation has soared 56.3 percent over the past 12 months. In its 2013 annual Corruption Perceptions Index, Transparency.org ranked Venezuela as 160 out of 175, making it one of the most corrupt countries in the world. Crime in the country has also risen drastically: one person is killed every twenty minutes in Venezuela.
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