A socioeconomic and political crisis has been taking place in Venezuela since

2010 under the presidency of Hugo Chávez and has continued into the current
presidency of Nicolás Maduro. The opposition accuses President Nicolas Maduro
of moving towards a dictatorship, and wanted him to resign.

In January 2016, the Supreme Court suspended the election of four legislators -
three that were enrolled with the opposition and one with the ruling party. Also, the
Supreme Court ruled that the entire National Assembly was in contempt and all
decisions it made would be null. On the next day, protesters in Caracas took to the
streets to protest the court's decision about the National assembly.

The court quickly reversed its decision on April 1, but street protests continued on
an almost daily basis for over three month with regular clashes exchanges of rocks
and tear gas between young protesters and National Guard troops. Demonstrators
also protested hyperinflation and shortages of food and medicines in the country. A
Venezuelan journalist said: “We are protesting because we are in disagreement
with the government of Nicolas Maduro. We are experiencing a serious crisis that
is suffocating us.”