Venezuela to put up 30,000 cameras to fight crime

Venezuela plans to install 30,000 surveillance cameras as part of its efforts to crack down on widespread crime across the country, officials say.

Venezuelan Interior Minister Miguel Rodriguez said on Wednesday, “The goal is the installation of 30,000 security cameras nationwide, as well as other types of sensors that allow the collection of information in real time.”

Most of the devices are due to be installed in the capital Caracas while some are already put up in a municipality within the Caracas metropolitan area as part of a pilot program.

Produces by Chinese company CEIEC, the equipment will be given to Caracas under cooperation agreements agreed by Venezuela and China.

Venezuelan police will use the information gathered by the devices in crime investigations.

In 2012, 16,000 murders were recorded in Venezuela. However, official statistics indicated that the figure stood at 3,400 during the first quarter of 2013.

In May, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced that the government was planning to dispatch a large number of troops across the country in order to counter the rise in Venezuela’s crime rate.

On August 16, the Venezuelan president said that he plans to request the country’s national assembly to approve a law giving him more powers to fight corruption.

“I am going to ask for an enabling law to arrive at a more far-reaching process and establish stricter norms to fight corruption, and apply the maximum penalties possible, in keeping with legislation, to punish all crimes,” the president said.

Maduro, who has pledged to eliminate corruption at every level, launched the anti-corruption drive just days after marking his first 100 days in office.