Court revokes Venezuelan President’s government coup after international protest – PB/TK
Venezuela seeks to cool outrage over court power grab – By Andrew Cawthorne and Girish Gupta April 1, 2017
CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuela’s pro-government Supreme Court revoked its takeover of the opposition-led Congress on Saturday after it drew international condemnation and protests against socialist President Nicolas Maduro.
“This controversy is over,” Maduro said just after midnight at a specially convened state security committee.
The committee ordered the top court to reconsider Wednesday’s court ruling, which effectively nullified the legislature and brought accusations the ruling Socialist Party was creating a dictatorship.
The tribunal duly erased two controversial judgments and its president, Maikel Moreno, met with both foreign envoys and journalists to explain the decision, insisting there had never been any intention to strip the National Assembly of its powers.
Maduro, 54, who had faced dissent even within government ranks over the Supreme Court’s move, sought to cast developments as the achievement of a statesman resolving a power conflict beneath him. But foes said it was a hypocritical row-back by an unpopular government that overplayed its hand in a power grab.
“You can’t pretend to just normalize the nation after carrying out a ‘coup,’” said Julio Borges, leader of the legislature.
Continue to oann.com article: http://www.oann.com/venezuela-opposition-begins-protests-against-dictator-maduro/
