OAS Discusses Venezuela Crisis, Caracas Protests

WASHINGTON, , (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 29th Mar, 2017 ) - The Organization of American States held a special meeting on the crisis in Venezuela on Tuesday, triggering a furious reaction from the Venezuelan government and its staunchest regional allies.

The meeting is the international community's latest effort to get to grips with an economic and political unraveling in the once-booming oil producer, whose skid to the brink of collapse has the rest of Latin America increasingly worried.

It comes after 14 countries in the OAS, including the United States, urged Venezuela's leftist government last week to release political prisoners and "reestablish democracy" by holding elections.

In a sign that Venezuela is increasingly cornered, a total of 20 countries voted to open Tuesday's special session of the OAS Permanent Council in Washington. Eleven countries voted against, two abstained and one was absent.

"As members of this organization, we cannot remain indifferent," said Costa Rica's representative, Rogelio Sotela. Venezuela protested that the organization was interfering in the country's internal affairs, in "flagrant violation of its principles."