On the frontline of Venezuela's punishing protests

On the frontline of Venezuela's punishing protests
After two months of political unrest, many wonder whether the relentless
clashes with police will affect change – or make things worse
by Virginia López in Caracas


It starts with a distant rumble, and then a chanted countdown from the
demonstrators packed tight along the Caracas freeway.

As the count reaches zero, the crowds briefly part, and a file of young
protesters – faces covered by T-shirts or makeshift gas masks – rush
forward to confront heavily armed riot police.
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Shots ring out, and plumes of teargas arch towards the protesters. Some
shelter behind wooden shields; other return the gas canisters or throw
Molotov cocktails. After a few minutes, the first wave returns to the
crowd, coughing and spitting – and a new cohort rushes forward to take
their place.

After nearly two months of political unrest in Venezuela, a pattern has
emerged at the near daily protests that have erupted across the country.

Anti-government demonstrations begin with a peaceful march, in which
hundreds of thousands head towards government buildings in central
Caracas, demanding fresh elections and an end to chronic shortages of
food and medicine. They never reach their destination.

Somewhere along the route, the road is blocked by a line of national
guardsmen armed with rubber bullets and teargas, and backed by water
cannon. After a brief standoff, the countdown starts – and the rioting
begins.

At times, the clashes resemble scenes from Braveheart or Gladiator, with
security forces with shotguns and body armour battling ragtag protesters
with catapults and improvised shields.

It is an unequal fight, but the young firebrands – known as los chamos
after the Venezuelan slang for kids – are increasingly dominating the
daily protests. State television dismisses them as rioters, but every
day new cellphone footage of the clashes is widely shared on social media.

Some activists say that the young protesters are the opposition's best
hope at galvanizing the resistance and even pushing the demoralized
military to shift loyalties.

On Wednesday the streets of eastern Caracas were once again engulfed in
the blueish fog of teargas after the pro-government electoral council
announced a timetable to redraft the constitution and delay regular
elections until the end of the year.

Pausing between clashes, Andres Muñoz, an engineering student in his
final semester who barely managed to escape, explained that it was the
authorities' disproportionate use of force that keeps him protesting.

"I know that my main duty is to prepare myself for a better future – and
that is precisely why I am protesting," said Muñoz, who asked to be
identified with a pseudonym for fear of reprisals. "This is as much a
part of my future as my studies."

Muñoz said that at the same march he saw one man struck in the head by a
teargas canister. "I don't believe in violence but we are reacting to
their abuse," he said, before heading back to the frontline.

Others are concerned that such tactics will inevitably lead to more
violence.

"Many of them are young – and they're angry at being without a job or a
sense that the future will offer them opportunities," said a lawyer as
she watched another skirmish last week. "I worry that if things don't
change for the better, we'll be left with a group of kids who for the
last two months learned how to attack security forces – and are now even
more frustrated."

The government of president Nicolás Maduro goes a step further.
High-ranking officials have called the young protesters "terrorists" and
claim they are organized and paid by the extreme right. Others say the
young men – and a few women – on the frontline are being used as cannon
fodder by opposition leaders.

The country's chief prosecutor said on Wednesday that 55 people had been
killed and about 1,000 injured in the latest wave of political unrest,
which was triggered in March by Maduro's efforts to consolidate his rule.

Luisa Ortega Díaz – one of the most senior officials to speak out
against the government – accused security officers of excessive force
and said that at least one person had been killed by a teargas canister
fired from close range.

Protesters have hurled Molotov cocktails and fired catapults; they have
also been shot and run over by water cannon.

Those in the thick of the street fighting say that the deaths have only
strengthened their resolve.

"I didn't know any of [the victims] but their deaths hurt me like they
were my brothers," said an accounting student, who asked not to be
named. "At first, I wanted to stop protesting. I still do. I am tired.
But I know I can't give up until we recover our country."
Venezuelan opposition activists clash with the riot police in Caracas.
Many now wear gas masks and construction helmets.

After seven weeks of clashes, los chamos have become more organized and
better equipped: where once they entered the fray with swimming goggles
and dust masks, and carrying improvised shields made from wood or even
satellite dishes, now they wear gas masks and construction helmets, and
shelter behind shields made from sawn-off oil drums.

Many wear a single glove so that they can retrieve and return teargas
canisters without getting burned.

"You never study how to protest and nobody has trained us, but you learn
how to take care of yourself as you go," said another student.
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Slingshots and stones are giving way to petrol bombs, and for a brief
period earlier this month even "poopootov cocktails" – bags full of
water and faeces that are hurled at the security forces.

Even some opposition activists have expressed disgust at that tactic.
"It might seem like a joke, but the emotional impact of being splattered
in shit after fighting kids for eight hours under the sun in riot gear
is not to be underestimated," said a retired armed forces officer who
asked not to be named. "These [officers] are guys who suffer from the
same economic crisis that the rest of the country and who will likely go
back home to little food, or even no soap to wash off."

The minister of the interior, Nestor Reverol, cited the use of such
weapons to justify a growing trend to try protesters in military
tribunals. "Military courts will be in charge of all investigations that
are necessary of these terrorists hired by the right," he wrote on Twitter.

Thousands have been detained and nearly 120 people are being tried in
military courts, according to Human Rights Watch.

Amnesty International argues that the use of such tribunals reflects a
government that is willing to tighten its grip. "The Venezuelan
government is moving yet further away from the realm of legality.
International law clearly establishes that it is unacceptable to treat
civilians in the same way as the military, and is a total infringement
on the exercise of human rights," it wrote.

But others believe it is a sign that the government no longer has the
support of a judicial branch that in previous waves of protests jailed
hundreds of students and activists.

Few on the frontline are likely to be deterred by the threat of prison.

"According to the constitution, it is my right to protest," said Muñoz.
"If the government wants to deny me that right then they force me to
resist.""

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/may/25/venezuela-protests-riots-frontline-caracas-nicolas-maduro