Venezuela strike tests Maduro as pressure builds
Caracas : A 24-hour nationwide strike in Venezuela on Thursday is set to increase pressure on beleaguered President Nicolas Maduro, whose policies have put him on a collision course with the United States.
The opposition called the stoppage after holding an unofficial plebiscite last weekend in which a third of Venezuela's voters cast ballots rejecting Maduro and his policies.
Chief among them is the president's plan to hold an election July 30 to choose a 545-member citizens' body, called a Constituent Assembly, to rewrite the constitution.
US President Donald Trump has threatened "swift economic actions" against Venezuela if that election happens.
The European Union, the United Nations, the Organization of American States and the Catholic Church have all condemned Maduro's plan.
They fear the move -- seen by the opposition and Trump as a bid for dictatorship -- will irretrievably worsen the political crisis in Venezuela, and risk adding to a death toll that currently stands at 97 since anti-Maduro street protests turned violent in April.
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