Street clashes inflict billions on Venezuela: President

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro says recent street clashes have inflicted some ten billion dollars in damage on the economy.

In a nationally televised speech on Friday, the Venezuelan president said hardliners and opposition supporters were responsible for terrorist acts that sought to sabotage public assets.

“The minority who want a coup have done so much damage to the country… they burnt a public university where hundreds of young people studied. This is not protest. It is vandalism. It is terrorism,” Maduro said.

Several cities across Venezuela have been the scene of violent clashes between opponents and supporters of the government over the past weeks.

More than 30 people have reportedly lost their lives in the clashes since mid-February.

The opposition blames the Maduro administration for rampant crime, soaring inflation and shortage of essential goods in the country. They are also expressing anger over the recent arrest of two opposition mayors accused of failing to curb violent demonstrations.

President Maduro, however, says the opposition seeks to launch a coup d’état in Venezuela with the backing of the United States.

Venezuela ranks as one of the most violence-stricken countries in the world, with an average of 71 murders every day. The country’s inflation also soared last year to 56.2 percent, which was almost three times higher than the 20.1 percent registered in 2012.